Speakers

Donald M. Berwick, MD, MPP
President Emeritus and Senior Fellow
Institute for Healthcare Improvement, Cambridge, MA.

Changing the Balance of Power: New Designs for More Capable Care
The current, basic designs of health care systems are simply not up to the task of achieving the IHI "Triple Aim" of better care for individuals, better health for populations, and lower cost through improvement. Equally, the goal of "joy in work" will remain elusive in care does not change to better support clinicians and other staff. This lecture will explore a series of "radical redesign principles," which can guide innovations to produce a far more capable system of care. Important among those principles is to "change the balance of power," so that care is more thoroughly co-produced between professionals and the patients, families, and communities that those professionals wish to serve.

Objectives:

Explain the nature and magnitude of the opportunity to advance the Triple Aim.
Explain redesign principles that can provide a foundation for a far more capable system of care.

Full Biography

Kim Katrin Milan
Co-Founder
The People Project & Activist for Justice and Inclusion

Kim Katrin Milan is the co-founder and Executive Director of The People Project; an initiative to bring forth local and international community development for queer and trans folks of colour and their allies, through alternative education, art-activism and collaboration.

A public researcher, consultant and human rights educator, she has shared hundreds of unique resources and presentations around intersectional issues including race, ability & gender. A passionate speaker, Kim travels around the world talking to people about justice, equity, and human rights.

A queer woman married to a transgender man, she has hosted events for the United Nations, acted as the Grand Marshall for Hudson, NY Pride, and hosted the opening night Black Lives Matter panel at the Art Gallery of Toronto.

From a personal perspective, as a queer woman moving through a new part of the health system –midwifery –she will also share how positive and affirming it can be when receiving compassionate care. As well as the importance of being encouraged to have a more participatory relationship with healthcare providers who are informed and open to integrative practices.

Using an intersectional framework, Kim will describe the systemic barriers for communities of colour and LGBTQ folks. By focussing on tangible examples of cultural competency & emphasizing how important it is to reach out across difference, she will provide tangible examples; aiming to empower audience members and leave them feeling they have power to connect with diverse peoples.

Objectives:

Learn about current barriers for people of colour and LGBTQ people in our health system
Learn about what good care looks like from a patient perspective
Learn through examples, specific ways to provide good care for diverse peoples

Full Biography

Moderators

Ross Baker, PhD
Professor and Program Lead, Quality Improvement and Patient Safety, Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation
University of Toronto

G. ROSS BAKER, Ph.D., is a professor in the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto and Program Lead in Quality Improvement and Patient Safety. Ross is co-lead for a large quality improvement-training program in Ontario, IDEAS (improving and Driving Excellence Across Sectors). His recent research projects include an edited book of case studies on patient engagement strategies, an innovative approach to monitoring and measuring patient safety, and an analysis of interprofessional team dynamics in quality improvement.

Susan Brien, PhD
Director, Public Reports
Health Quality Ontario

Susan Brien is the Director of Public Reports at Health Quality Ontario. She is responsible for the development and production of reports on the performance of Ontario’s health system. Prior to joining Health Quality Ontario, Susan was at the Health Council of Canada and the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences. Her post-doctoral research in the department of Community Health Sciences at the University of Calgary was focused on health system performance reporting and report cards, with methodological focus on systematic and scoping reviews. Susan holds a PhD in pharmacology from Queen’s University.

Catherine Brown
Chief Executive Officer
Health Shared Services Ontario

As Health Shared Services Ontario’s (HSSOntario) inaugural CEO, Catherine Brown is a health care leader with a robust record of achievement and knowledge that spans Ontario’s public sector.

Prior to joining HSSOntario, Catherine was CEO of the Ontario Association of Community Care Access Centres (OACCAC). From 2014 to 2017, she led the organization in the delivery of a broad range of leading edge health technology solutions and member services to CCACs to support and advance the effective and efficient delivery of home and community care across Ontario.

Catherine also held many roles within the Ontario Public Service, most notably as Assistant Deputy Minister in both the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care and the Ministry of Government Services where she led complex policy agendas and reform mandates. Catherine’s scope of experience within the public service also includes senior leadership positions at the Ministry of the Environment and Cabinet Office. She initially joined the Ontario Public Service in policy roles at the Ontario Women's Directorate.

Catherine’s passion for public causes extends to the voluntary sector where she has spent considerable time on community-based boards with a focus on mental health.

Edward M. Brown, MD
Chief Executive Officer
Ontario Telemedicine Network

Dr. Ed Brown is a founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Ontario Telemedicine Network (OTN), one of the largest and most active integrated telemedicine networks in the world.

Dr. Brown has won numerous awards for his work in Telemedicine, including a Meritorious Service Medal in 2016 for his contributions to health care in Canada. In 2010, he was chosen as one of 25 Transformational Canadians by a national media panel sponsored by the Globe and Mail, CTV and La Presse. He currently sits on the board of OntarioMD and is a Past President of the American Telemedicine Association, which named him to its College of Fellows in 2015. An emergency physician who studied mathematics and engineering before embarking on his medical career, Dr. Brown is a passionate advocate for telemedicine as a tool to improve access to care, quality of care and the sustainability of health care systems.

Donna Cripps
Chief Executive Officer
Hamilton Niagara Haldimand Brant Local Health Integration Network

As CEO of the Hamilton Niagara Haldimand Brant Local Health Integration Network, Donna Cripps leads the planning, funding, and integration of the health care system and management and delivery of home and community care across Hamilton, Niagara, Haldimand, Brant, Burlington and Norfolk.

Donna has extensive past experience in clinical practice and executive leadership, holding key roles including former President of Hamilton Health Sciences' St. Peter's Hospital. She is also involved in many regional and provincial initiatives.

Donna's commitment to putting people first is a driving force behind the pursuit of a health care system that provides coordinated access to high quality care.

Gail Dobell, BA, MPP
Director, Performance Measurement
Health Quality Ontario

Medical Officer of Health and CEO with the Sudbury & District Health Unit since 2000, Dr. Sutcliffe is a specialist in Public Health and Preventive Medicine through the University of Toronto.

Dr. Gail Dobell is Director of Performance Measurement at Health Quality Ontario. In this role, she leads indicator development, selection, and analysis, as well as benchmarking projects across all health care sectors.

Previously, Gail served as Principal Investigator for various measurement projects, including the Integrated Care Satisfaction Measurement project and a California HealthCare and Archstone Foundation-funded project. Gail was also an Agency for Health Care Research and Quality research fellow at the Institute for Health Policy Studies, UCSF, and has served on numerous health system and sector-specific working groups and committees.

She holds a Master’s degree in Gerontology and a Doctorate in Social and Behavioral Sciences from the School of Nursing, University of California, San Francisco.

Anna Greenberg, BA, MPP
Vice President, Health System Performance
Health Quality Ontario

As Health Quality Ontario’s Vice-President, Health System Performance, Anna Greenberg is responsible for designing and implementing a comprehensive strategy to improve performance monitoring and public reporting in Ontario.

Prior to joining Health Quality Ontario, Anna was Director, Strategic Policy at the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care where she led a branch of policy professionals in the development of policy in a wide variety of areas including mental health and addictions, healthcare quality and safety, clinical and social service integration, and reproductive technology. She previously spent over a decade in leadership roles in the cancer system, spearheading initiatives such as Ontario’s first publicly reported cancer system performance measurement tool, and cancer system planning and policy development, and knowledge management at Cancer Care Ontario, Princess Margaret Hospital/University Health Network, and the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer.

Anna holds a Masters in Public Policy from the Goldman School of Public Policy at University of California at Berkeley, and a Bachelor of Arts from McGill University. Ms. Greenberg previously served on the Board of Directors at the Davenport Perth Neighbourhood and Community Health Centre, including serving as its inaugural Chair of the Quality Committee of the Board.

Don Husereau
Senior Associate
Institute of Health Economics (IHE)

Don Husereau is an Adjunct Professor of Medicine at The University of Ottawa, Senior Associate with the Institute of Health Economics, and Senior Scientist at the University for Health Sciences, Medical Informatics and Technology in Hall in Tirol, Austria. Don’s current research focuses on appropriate and innovative approaches to the use of evidence and economics to inform health policy based on sound principles of social justice, epistemology, and judgment and decision-making. He is currently Chair of an International Task Force that has developed consolidated health economic evaluation reporting standards (CHEERS) that is now endorsed by leading biomedical and health policy journals. Don is currently an Editorial Advisor for the biomedical journals, Value in Health and BMC Medicine. He also serves on the pan-Canadian Oncology Drug Review (pCODR) Expert Review Committee (pERC) and Ontario Committee to Evaluate Drugs. Don received both his BSc and MSc from the University of Alberta's faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.

David Kaplan, MD, MSc, CCFP
Primary Care Lead
Health Quality Ontario

Associate Professor, Family & Community Medicine
Health Quality Ontario

Dr. David M. Kaplan is an academic family physician practising in low-risk obstetrics.

He is currently the Primary Care Clinical Lead at Health Quality Ontario.

Dr. Kaplan is an Associate Professor in the Department of Family & Community Medicine and Joint Centre for Bioethics at the University of Toronto.

Previously, he was the Interim Family Physician-in-Chief and Medical Program Director at North York General.

Andreas Laupacis
Executive Director
Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael's Hospital

Board Chair
Health Quality Ontario

Dr. Laupacis is a general internist and the Executive Director of the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael’s Hospital. He is a Professor at the University of Toronto in both the Department of Medicine and the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation. Dr. Laupacis is also a health services researcher. One of his current interests is engaging the public about health care issues (he founded the website healthydebate.ca). He holds a Canada Research Chair in Health Policy and Citizen Engagement. He has served on numerous academic and governmental advisory committees, including the Board of Cancer Care Ontario (2011-present), and the Alberta Health Services Board (2008-2010), where he chaired its Quality and Safety Committee. Dr. Laupacis was awarded the 2011 Health Services Research Advancement Award from the Canadian Health Services Research Foundation and was also named the Justice Emmett Hall Laureate in 2010.

Angela Morin
Patient and Family Advisory Council Co-Chair,
Kingston General Hospital

Accreditation Canada,
Client and Family-Centered Care Advisory Group

Core Faculty Member and Coach,
Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement

Angela Morin has been a Patient and Family Experience Advisor since November 2011 and is currently Co-Chair of the Kingston Health Sciences Centre Patient and Family Advisory Council.

She is a Board Member of Health Quality Ontario, Core Faculty Member and Coach with CFHI, an HSO People Powered Faculty Member and a founding member of PAN (Patient Advisors Network). In 2014 she was appointed Co-Chair of the Minister of Health's Quality of Care Information Protection Act (QCIPA) Review Committee.

Angela passionately believes in the transformative power of bringing the patient and family voice to all levels of healthcare.

Maureen O'Neil, OC
President
Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement

Maureen O’Neil is President of the Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement, the former President of the International Development Research Centre, as well as a former Deputy Minister of Citizenship in Ontario. Ms. O’Neil has chaired several boards, both in Canada and internationally, including a university Board of Governors, several think tanks, a provincial agency responsible for electronic health systems and other not-for-profit organizations. In June 2011, Ms. O’Neil was named an Officer of the Order of Canada for public service, recognizing her contributions to international development, gender equality and human rights.

Jennie Pickard
Director, Strategic Partnerships, Governance
Health Quality Ontario

Over the course of her career, Jennie has held a variety of clinical, education, research and policy roles within the community and mental health sectors and Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. Jennie has previously held roles at the Ontario Association of Community Care Access Centres and the Clarke Institute of Psychiatry. Most recently, she was a consultant on the Integrated Client Care Project at the Ontario Association of Community Care Access Centres, where she provided strategic leadership and support for the design and implementation of a new provincial model of care delivery, focused on clinical populations, integrated care and payment for outcomes. Inter-professional and cross-sector collaborations to improve patient outcomes has been an area of career focus for Jennie as evidenced in such provincial initiatives as Behavioural Supports Ontario, End-of Life Care, and currently Improving and Driving Excellence Across Sectors (IDEAS). She belongs to the Canadian College of Health Services Leaders, the College of Nurses of Ontario and the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario. Jennie holds a Master of Science in Nursing from the University of Toronto with a specialty in mental health. She has been certified as an IHI Improvement Advisor by the Institute for Health Care Improvement, Boston.

Jennifer Schipper, BA, MA, ABC
Chief of Communications and Patient Engagement

In her role, Jennifer is dedicated to creating timely, clear, meaningful, and motivating communications to build enthusiasm for Health Quality Ontario’s strategic initiatives and to generate discussion about what quality means throughout the health system. Her other prime focus is patient, family, and public engagement and making it central to supporting quality improvement in health care.

Prior to Health Quality Ontario, Jennifer was the Senior Vice President of a North American communications agency. She served a diversity of clients including patient groups, government agencies, hospitals and professional associations on prominent health and health system issues. Prior, she was the Director of Public Relations for Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care. Jennifer has spent her 30+ year career working hand-in-hand with patients and families helping them tell their stories and engage in meaningful change based on their experiences. With them, she has tackled many large issues from health care quality, to child injury prevention, pandemic preparedness, and prescription drug misuse.

Jennifer holds a Master of Arts from the University of Michigan and a Bachelor of Arts from McGill University. She is also accredited with the International Association of Business Communicators and has sat on boards and board committees for several non-profit organizations in health, community service and the arts.

Kevin Smith, D. Phil, KSG, ICD.D.
Chief Executive Officer
St. Joseph's Health System

Dr. Kevin Smith is President and CEO of St. Joseph's Health System and CEO of the Niagara Health System. With over 12,000 colleagues partnered in clinical care, health professional education and research, and operating dollars in excess of $1.25B, Kevin is privileged to lead one of Canada’s largest and most comprehensive academic health care networks.

Kevin is a Professor (Part Time), Department of Medicine, DeGroote School of Medicine, McMaster University and is committed to the tripartite mission of outstanding health professional education, scholarly research and innovation, and high quality, evidence driven care. His current areas of interest include technology enabled care across the continuum, aligning economic incentives for high quality care, and the application artificial intelligence in clinical care.

Kevin has been a pioneer of, and leader in, advancing integrated care models, championing this for the Province of Ontario. This work has resulted in the expanded introduction of quality based procedures and bundled funding initiatives by the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care.

Educated in Canada, the United States and Great Britain, Dr. Smith began his career in medical education, followed by leadership roles in university administration, academic hospitals and health systems. Kevin is professionally certified in Corporate Governance by the Institute of Corporate Directors and the Harvard Program in Effective Governance.

Kevin is a frequent advisor to Governments, Health Care Organisations, the Private Sector and Funders, at home and abroad. Dr. Smith is privileged to Chair the Canada Foundation for Innovation and Chair, the Council of Academic Hospitals of Ontario. He has served on numerous Boards, Special Committees and Commissions. He is a member of Premier’s Health Results Team.

Late in 2015 Dr. Smith was honoured by Pope Francis for his contributions to health care by being made a Knight of St. Gregory the Great.

Jill Tettmann, MA, MHSc, CHE
Chief Executive Officer
North Simcoe Muskoka Local Health Integration Network (NSM LHIN)

Jill Tettmann is a seasoned health care leader with significant experience in multiple healthcare environments. She has provided leadership for the North Simcoe Muskoka LHIN’s responsibilities of the local health system for over 11 years. Jill is a collaborative leader who believes in the power of building strong relationships to foster transformation. She is recognized for having an open, collaborative and results-oriented approach. She is an active member of the Canadian College of Health Service Executives as a Certified Health Executive and holds a Masters of Health Science in Health Administration from the University of Toronto and a Masters of Community Psychology from Wilfrid Laurier University.

Leslee J. Thompson
President and CEO
Accreditation Canada

Leslee is passionate about working with people around the world to achieve quality health services for all. Starting out as a Registered Nurse, she now has 25 years of senior executive and corporate director experience spanning multiple geographies and sectors. Her pioneering work on partnering with patients to improve outcomes is internationally recognized and celebrated. As Chief Executive Officer of Health Standards Organization (HSO) and Accreditation Canada, these organizations are building world class health standards and innovative assessment systems so people in their local jurisdictions can save and improve lives.

Tamara Wallington, MD, FRCPC
Corporate Medical Director, Quality and Patient Safety
William Osler Health System

Clinical Quality Lead
Central West Local Health Integration Network

Dr. Tamara Wallington is a leader and educator in quality improvement committed to working with colleagues in the Central West LHIN and across Ontario to foster healthy communities through the delivery of innovative, adaptable, collaborative, high-quality and patient centered models of care.

Trained in internal medicine, public health and preventive medicine, Dr. Wallington is a staff physician at William Osler Health System in the Department of Medicine, and Corporate Medical Director for Quality and Patient Safety.

In her role as Medical Director Quality and Patient Safety, Dr. Wallington has led quality improvement initiatives including the design of a standardized process for the development and evaluation of standardized clinical decision tools. Dr. Wallington has led the roll out of a corporate electrocardiogram (ECG) management system, an integrated diagnostic and management process for the early detection and treatment of sepsis in the Emergency Department, as well as a corporate anticoagulation initiative.

Since the introduction of Quality Based Procedures (QBPs), Dr. Wallington has been the lead physician for the implementation of over twelve QBPs and is leading work on the delivery of an integrated, collaborative care model in the community. She works on building partnerships to ensure a smooth transition between acute care and home, as well as care where and when it is needed by patients.

In addition, Dr. Wallington is faculty in the provincial Improving and Driving Excellence Across Sectors (IDEAS) training program.

Dr. Wallington has also been appointed to the role of Central West LHIN Clinical Quality Lead. In this role, she strives to influence positive change that results in improved patient outcomes, experience of care and value for money. The ultimate goal to align the quality agenda while engaging Central West LHIN communities to build on and help accelerate existing efforts to promote a culture of quality.

Shawn Whatley, MD
President
Ontario Medical Association

Dr. Whatley trained in medicine at the University of Ottawa and completed his residency at the University of Toronto; he has worked in emergency medicine and served for a number of years in a leadership position at Southlake Regional Health Centre in Newmarket. He is a lecturer for the University of Toronto, Department of Family and Community Medicine. He is currently a rural family physician in Mount Albert.

Dr. Whatley previously served as a member of the OMA Board for six and a half years before he was elected President in May 2017. He is also a member of the Board of Directors for the Canadian Medical Association.

Originally from Thunder Bay, Dr. Whatley lives with his wife and four children on a hobby farm in Mount Albert, in rural York Region.

Julia Abelson, BASc, MSc, PhD
Professor and Director, Health Policy PhD Program, McMaster University
Member, Centre for Health Economics and Policy Analysis (CHEPA)

Julia Abelson is a professor in the Department of Health Evidence and Impact, and an associate member of the Department of Political Science. She was director of CHEPA from 2006-2011, and is a past recipient of a Canadian Institutes of Health Research New Investigator award, and an Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care Career Scientist award. She is also the director of McMaster's PhD in Health Policy program. Abelson obtained her M.Sc. in Health Policy and Management from the Harvard School of Public Health and her doctorate in social and policy sciences at the University of Bath, U.K. Her research interests include public engagement in health system governance; the analysis of the determinants of health policy decision-making; and the evaluation of innovations in the organization, funding and delivery of health services. Through her research, education and service activities, Abelson works closely with decision-makers in provincial, regional and local governments.

Cathy Bachner, BASc., B.Ed.
Patient Partner
Council Member, Health Quality Ontario's Patient, Family and Public Advisors Council, HPHA Patient Partner

Cathy Bachner, B. A. Sc., B. Ed. is a teacher with the AMDSB and recipient of a 2016 Always Learning Award for her efforts to engage, inspire and innovate in the classroom. In late 2012, she contracted life-threatening necrotizing fasciitis and consequently encountered a complex web of healthcare professionals addressing her diverse medical needs for survival and continuing rehabilitation.

She has international experience presenting on the integration of patients and families into healthcare teams and the particular contributions they bring to the change process that positively impacts patient satisfaction, safety, engagement, and staff satisfaction.

Paul Benassi, MD FRCPC MSc
Forensic Psychiatrist
Law and mental health division, CAMH

Improvement Clinician, Forensic Psychiatry CPD Lead
Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto

Dr. Paul Benassi is a Forensic Psychiatrist at the Centre of Addiction and Mental Health and Assistant Professor at University of Toronto. He completed graduate training in quality improvement and patient safety (QIPS) at the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation (IHPME). He works as an ‘Improvement Clinician’ and Forensic Psychiatry Continuing Professional Development Lead in the Department of Psychiatry, and facilitator for the 2017 IDEAS and IHPME MSc QIPS Program.

Mark Bisson
Chief Executive Officer
Centre de santé communautaire de l’Estrie

Graduate of Laval University in Quebec and the National School of Public Administration in Montreal, Mr. Bisson has worked in the community health field for over 20 years. Before moving to Cornwall in 1993, he worked in Mali, Rwanda, Bolivia and Quebec in the community development field. Father of 2 sons (Victor and Adrien), he has been Lucie Perron’s spouse for more than 30 years. Since June 1993, he has worked for the Centre de santé communautaire de l’Estrie(CSCE), a non-profit organization which serves the FrancoOntarian populations of Cornwall, Alexandria, Crysler, Bourget, Embrun and Limoges. He has occupied various positions within this agency, at times simultaneously (Community Health Worker, Health Promoter, Team Leader and Program Coordinator). In June 2002, he was named Executive Director of the CSCE following Roland Beaulieu’s retirement. Mr. Bisson has participated on numerous local, regional and provincial committees and Board of Directors. He has advocated tirelessly for the rights of FrancoOntarians so that they may benefit and access high quality services. His extensive experience in the community field enables him to ensure that a comprehensive approach to health and well-being and the role of active partner in the development of services by community members remain interconnected.

Gary Bloch, MD, CCFP, FCFP
Family Physician
St. Michael’s Hospital

Associate Professor
University of Toronto, Department of Family and Community Medicine

Gary Bloch is a family physician with St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto. He is Co-Chair of the Ontario College of Family Physicians' Committee on Poverty and Health and a founding member of Inner City Health Associates and Health Providers Against Poverty. His internationally recognized clinical, program development, advocacy, and research interests focus on the role of health providers in addressing the social determinants of health.

Christopher Booth, MD, FRCPC
Member
Division of Cancer Care and Epidemiology, Cancer Research Institute, Queen's University

Medical Oncologist Clinician-Scientist
Cancer Centre of Southeastern Ontario

Associate Professor
Departments of Oncology and Medicine, Queen's University Canada Research Chair in Population Cancer Care

Christopher Booth MD FRCPC is a Medical Oncologist and Health Services Researcher at Queen’s University in Kingston, Canada. He is a Professor of Oncology and holds the Canada Research Chair in Population Cancer Care. Dr. Booth has an active program in population-based cancer research. The focus of his research program is to evaluate the quality of care delivered to patients in routine clinical practice and the effectiveness of new therapies in the general population. In 2016 he spent a sabbatical as a visiting scientist at the Regional Cancer Centre in Trivandrum, India. He continues to work closely with colleagues in India to improve accessibility and quality of cancer care globally.

Jocelyn Bourgoin
Chief Executive Officer
Santé Manitouwadge Health

Mr. Bourgoin joined the Manitouwadge General Hospital in 1982 and progressed to senior management by 1999. He was a municipal councillor from 1988-1991 and mayor from 1997 to 2001. He led the integration of seven service providers into an EMS system servicing 26 communities. He returned to the Manitouwadge General Hospital in 2007 and has been its’ CEO since 2010.

He is an advocate for the preservation of services in small rural northern communities and sees Local Health Hubs as a key component of this strategy. He has led a team that has integrated a Hospital, LTC, FHT, Home Care Nursing Services, Diabetes, Public Health Promotions and a Clinic into a Hub Model.

Samantha Calder-Sprackman, BPHE BSc MD MSc QIPS (Candidate)
PGY5 Emergency Medicine Resident
University of Ottawa

Samantha Calder-Sprackman is a PGY-5 in Emergency Medicine at the University of Ottawa. She has an interest in Quality Improvement and Patient Safety, specifically in the areas of Patient Experience and Physician Wellness. She is currently completing her MSc. in Quality Improvement and Patient Safety at the University of Toronto. In her free time, Sam loves hiking, running, and playing with her dog.

Lucas Chartier
Emergency Physician
University Health Network

Dr. Lucas Chartier is an emergency physician working at the University Health Network and North York General Hospital, in Toronto. He completed his Royal College specialty training program at the University of Toronto, as well as a Master of Public Health at the Harvard School of Public Health, with a focus on quality improvement and patient safety. He is the Director of Quality and Innovation for the UHN ED, and co-chairs the ED QI Committee. His academic areas of interest reside in understanding how return visits can be minimized without compromising high quality care, and in evaluating the appropriateness of resource utilization in the ED.

Tammy Clifford, PhD
Chief Scientist and Vice President, Evidence Standards
Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH)

Dr. Tammy Clifford is CADTH’s Chief Scientist and Vice President, Evidence Standards. Over the past dozen years, she has held a number of senior leadership roles at CADTH. She is actively engaged in many national and international HTA activities, including serving as a deputy editor with the International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care, and as the co-chair of the International Scientific Programme Committee for HTAi2018, which will be held in Vancouver in June 2018. Tammy holds a PhD in Epidemiology & Biostatistics, and is on faculty with the University of Ottawa’s School of Epidemiology and Public Health.

Patti Cochrane, RN, BScN, MHSc, CHE
Senior Vice President, Clinical Strategy & Chief Innovation Officer
Trillium Health Partners

Patti Cochrane is a passionate and innovative leader who is motivated by making a difference for patients and providers. Over 30 years of nursing and administrative experience have provided a foundation for providing leadership at Trillium Health Partners in her role as Senior Vice President, Clinical Strategy and Chief Innovation Officer.

Patti is a registered nurse with a Masters in Health Science Health Administration and has her Canadian Health Executive program designation. She is a surveyor with Accreditation Canada.

Trey Coffey, MD, FAAP, FRCPC
Associate Director and Site Director
SickKids Hospital

Dr. Trey Coffey is a hospitalist and Medical Officer for Patient Safety at SickKids and the Associate Clinical Director of Solutions for Patient Safety, a network of 120 Children’s Hospitals across the United States and Canada collaborating to eliminate preventable harm. As faculty in the University of Toronto Centre for Quality Improvement and Patient Safety, Trey has taught and mentored emerging healthcare quality and safety leaders and has led implementation and research in several areas of patient safety including medication reconciliation, epidemiology and of adverse events, disclosure, and handoff, and is currently working on studies around high reliability organizing.

Nicki Cunningham
Group Manager of Primary Care in Cancer Screening
Cancer Care Ontario

Nicki Cunningham is a Group Manager of Primary Care in Cancer Screening at Cancer Care Ontario. In her role at Cancer Care Ontario, Nicki leads quality improvement and knowledge translations strategies with and for primary care providers and regional cancer teams to support priorities in breast, cervical and colorectal cancer screening initiatives. Nicki works as a knowledge broker to strengthen the connection of primary care to the cancer system to improve health outcomes for Ontarians through working closely with interdisciplinary teams, physicians, clinicians, scientists, epidemiologists, evaluation researchers and patient advisors to achieve cancer screening objectives. Nicki is an active clinician with over twenty five years of experiences and expertise in change management and implementation. Nicki has an M.Sc. in Physiotherapy from ds University in the UK.

Stacey Daub
President and CEO
Headwaters Health Care Centre

Stacey Daub has more than 16 years extensive leadership experience in the health and community sectors.

Stacey is a system-level thinker who has implemented various quality improvement initiatives designed to challenge system behaviours, allow frail seniors more choice about their place of care and improve their health experience and outcomes. She believes that leadership is a responsibility that belongs to all of us all and that when organizations come together to transform the experience of clients and caregivers, extraordinary things are possible. This is evident through her strong leadership and the partnerships she has developed in leading integration strategies for complex populations.

She holds a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Western Ontario and is a graduate of the Advanced Health Leadership Program from the Rotman School of Business.

Linda Davis
President and CEO
Northumberland Hills Hospital

Linda Davis joined Northumberland Hills Hospital as President and Chief Executive Officer in November 2013. A senior executive with over 30 years of experience in the Canadian health-care sector, she was most recently CEO of the Collingwood General & Marine Hospital, a role she held for nine years.

A Registered Nurse, she trained at the University of Alberta Hospital in Edmonton. Her career has taken her from that province to Vancouver, British Columbia and Montreal, Quebec, where she obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing and a Master’s of Science, both from McGill University, before moving in 1990 to Ontario.

Throughout her career, Linda has held senior leadership positions in a number of hospitals. She has also worked within the private sector as a health care consultant.

Linda is passionate about engaging staff and physicians with the focus of continually improving the quality and safety of patient care.

Aldo Del Col
Co-founder & Chairman
Myeloma Canada

Since being diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2002, Mr. Del Col has directed his attention to building an effective national platform to address the needs of the Canadian myeloma community. Founded in 2005, Myeloma Canada is the only national non-profit organization uniquely focused on the needs of the Canadian myeloma community.

Mr. Del Col holds a Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy degree from the University of Toronto and a Master in Business Administration from the York University Schulich School of Business. Throughout his extensive professional career, he has gained knowledge and experience not only as a Community Pharmacist, but also as a Financial Analyst for a multinational pharmaceutical company and National Director of Sales and Marketing for a leading consumer products corporation.

Shelly Dev
ICC Physician
Sunnybrook Hospital

Dr. Dev has been a staff intensivist at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto since 2006, after completing her Internal Medicine residency and Critical Care Fellowship at The University of Toronto. She complemented her Critical Care training with a fellowship at the New England Journal of Medicine in Boston. Her work there was focused on the development of media for peer review publication through working on their series, Videos in Clinical Medicine. She has published her own videos through this series and continues to work in collaboration with the editorial staff at NEJM.

Dr. Dev has used her video production skills in the field of knowledge translation, collaborating with colleagues of varying clinical backgrounds in order to create multimedia educational tools around topics as diverse as lung protective ventilation, proper hand washing techniques, communication skills and brain death declaration.

Dr. Dev is an Assistant Professor in the Interdepartmental Division of Critical Care Medicine at the University of Toronto where she is also Director of Mentorship and Wellness. Dr. Dev is also Director of Education in the Department of Critical Care Medicine at Sunnybrook and runs the education and evaluation program for both residents and clinical fellows.

She is active in undergraduate and post-graduate education and has won several awards and recognition for her teaching. Dr. Dev has recently been appointed as Director of Mentorship for undergraduate medical trainees at Sunnybrook. In truth, however, her definition of success is continuing to prevent 9-year-old Nathan and 7-year-old Jack from seriously injuring one another.

Reena Dhatt, MD, CCFP, FCFP
Clinical Quality Lead
North East LHIN

Dr. Dhatt is a family physician who has served patients in the Sudbury and surrounding region since 1992. Although her time is primarily spent in clinical care, she also participates in clinics that deliver travel medicine, occupational health and allergy services to patients throughout the Northeast. As an associate professor of Family Medicine at NOSM, board member of NOAMA/PCTA and a member of the Member Services Board at the OMA, Dr. Dhatt tries to stay engaged in the role of family physicians in both medical and political affairs.

Now in the role of the Clinical Quality Lead of the NE LHIN, Dr. Dhatt is motivated to try and address issues of equity and quality improvement throughout the NE by mobilizing a network of like minded health advocates to spread initiatives that will improve how health care is delivered in our region.

John Dickson
Patient Advisor

My involvement in mental health advocacy began on September 2, 2014 when I began my recovery from a suicide attempt; however, it wasn't until early-2015 that I was diagnosed as suffering from Major Depressive Disorder. In late-2016 I was experiencing a depressive episode with severe suicidal ideations. As part of my treatment, I was referred to the Big White Wall. I immediately saw how this tool could benefit many and how it would have benefited me in 2014 had it been available to me.

John Dixon
Director
Mental Health and Addictions for Dilico Anishinabek Family Care

John Dixon, BA, is currently the Director of Mental Health and Addiction Services at Dilico Anishinabek Family Care. Dilico Anishinabek Family Care is an integrated multi-service agency that provides child welfare, health and mental health and addiction services to First Nation members residing in the City of Thunder Bay and within the Robinson Superior Treaty Area. John is a member of the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation who has been working in various frontline and management roles in the addictions field since 1997. John earned a BA in Indigenous Learning and Psychology at Lakehead University and has had extensive experience working with First Nations in urban, rural and remote settings. John is a certified life skills coach, ADR facilitator and has a diploma in Leadership and Management from the Schulich School of Business.

John was a recipient of the National Aboriginal Day 2012 Honoring our Men Award. He completed a two year term as the National Native Alcohol and Drug Abuse Program representative on the Ontario Regional Addictions Partnership Committee. He was recognized for his work as the change management lead for the agency’s National Anti-Drug Strategy modernization project that reprofiled the Dilico Anishinabek Family Care Treatment Center into a recognized lead in the area of culturally safe opiate addiction and concurrent disorder programming for First Nations populations.

John is currently collaborating on research partnership projects with CAMH, Lakehead University and the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre. John lives in Kaministiquia, Ontario with his wife and three children.

Michael Dunn, MSc, TITC-CT
Director, Quality Improvement
Canadian Mental Health Association, Ontario

Michael has worked in the mental health and addictions sector for over 13 years in roles ranging from front-line to senior leadership. Currently, Michael is the Director of Quality Improvement with the Canadian Mental Health Association, Ontario. He is passionate about the ethical application of quality improvement methods as a means to strengthen the relationships we have with, and the services we provide to, clients and families.

Lee Fairclough, BSc, MRT, MHSC
Vice President
Quality Improvement, Health Quality Ontario

Lee has a diverse background, with experience in health delivery as a radiation therapist, health research and informatics, systems planning and policy, leadership and institutional board membership.

Previously, Lee was Vice-President of Strategy, Knowledge Management & Delivery at the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer (CPAC) and member of the executive team that established the organization in 2007. She served as Director of the Toronto Regional Cancer Programme, and Director of Informatics and Administration, Clinical Research Unit at Princess Margaret Hospital, UHN. Ms. Fairclough was also a member of the Advisory Board of the Institute of Health Services and Policy Research (IHSPR), and a Board member with a number of community agencies. She is an adjunct professor with the Institute for Health Policy Management and Evaluation (IHPME) at the University of Toronto.

William Falk
Senior Fellow
C.D. Howe Institute

Will Falk is a retired partner with PwC. He has spent 25 years as a strategist and consultant in New York and Toronto advising top academic centres, governments, and public companies in healthcare. Over his career Will has had several formal advisory roles within government and a long and distinguished career as a Board Director and Advisor. Will has two appointments at the University of Toronto and is an Executive Fellow at the Rotman School of Management and at the Mowat Centre for Policy Innovation. Will was recently appointed as a Senior Fellow at the C.D. Howe Institute.

Melissa Farrell
Assistant Deputy Minister
Health System Quality and Funding, Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care

Melissa has over 12 years of leadership experience in health care, including work in primary care, long-term care, home care, and hospital sectors. In her current role as Assistant Deputy Minister of the Health System Quality and Funding Division, Melissa leads a dedicated and diverse team responsible for allocating evidence-based funding and improving the quality of care for Ontario’s patients.

Sid Feldman, MD, CCF (COE), FCFP, CMD
Executive Medical Director of Long Term Care and Residential Program and
Chief Department of Family and Community Medicine
Baycrest Health Sciences

Associate Professor
Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto

Dr. Sid Feldman is Chief, Department of Family and Community, Medical Director of the Apotex Home for the Aged and Executive Medical Director of the Residential and Aging at Home Program at Baycrest Health Sciences. He is an Associate Professor at the University of Toronto Department of Family and Community Medicine.

Susan Fitzpatrick
Chief Executive Officer
Toronto Central Local Health Integration Network (LHIN)

Susan Fitzpatrick is the Chief Executive Officer of the Toronto Central Local Health Integration Network (LHIN). Susan leads an organization with a mandate to plan and integrate local health services, engage with the central Toronto community, and allocate 4.7 billion dollars to over 170 local health service providers.

Susan is a results-oriented and strategic planner with a capacity to engage stakeholders and build consensus across the broader health sector.

Prior to joining the LHIN, Susan was Associate Deputy Minister, Health System Delivery and Implementation at the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. Susan’s career with the Ontario Public Service spans more than three decades.

Jonathan Foster
Director – Mental Health and Regional Renal Programs
Windsor Regional Hospital

Jonathan Foster is the Director of Mental Health and Renal with Windsor Regional Hospital and is the Regional Director through the Ontario Renal Network for the Erie St. Clair LHIN. He has clinical experience across outpatient, tertiary and acute mental health services. The focus of his work as a Director in mental health has been to re-design the service model to meet patient needs and quality measures. Jonathan’s work in the Renal program deals heavily with Quality Based Procedures and that knowledge base has translated to implementation of Quality Standards in the Mental Health Sector. He holds a Masters of Social Work degree from Wayne State University and is actively engaged in various community and provincial committees for both renal and mental health services.

David Fry, MHSc., OT Reg. (Ont.)
Vice President, Home and Community Care
Mississauga Halton Local Health Integration Network

David Fry brings more than 18 years of health care leadership experience to his role as Vice President Home and Community Care at the Mississauga Halton LHIN. He has worked in clinical and leadership positions in hospital, and home and community care settings with particular interest in the area of mental health care delivery. He also held the role of Director of Client Services, Ontario Association of Community Care Access Centres and most recently, Vice-President of Patient Care at the Mississauga Halton CCAC.

His educational background includes a Bachelor of Science in Occupational Therapy and a Master of Health Science in health administration from the University of Toronto.

Rosalyn Gambell, RN, BScN, MN
Manager Health Links and Chronic Disease Management
Southlake Regional Health Centre

Rosalyn Gambell has worked in Health Care for over 30 years, predominately in the acute care sector. Currently she is the Manager of the South Simcoe Northern York Region Health Link as well as the Manager for Chronic Diseases at Southlake Regional Health Centre. In her various roles Rosalyn has demonstrated her commitment to quality improvement, cross sector integration and collaboration and system change. Over her tenor as Manager of the SSNYR HL the Link has participated in an IHI collaborative integrating Mental Health into the HL model of care and the CCT project, that utilizes an electronic version of the patient’s Coordinated Care Plan that can be shared and updated by the patient’s Health Care Providers. Rosalyn has an ongoing commitment and dedication to patient care, collaboration, integration and quality, striving to provide the Right Care in the Right Place at the Right Time.

Alain Gauthier, BEPS, MA, PhD
Associate Professor
School of Human Kinetics, Laurentian University

Alain P. Gauthier is Director (A) of the Centre for Rural and Northern Health Research (CRaNHR) and Associate Professor with the School of Human Kinetics at Laurentian University. Dr. Gauthier is primarily interested in research related to the health of sociolinguistic minorities, with a particular emphasis on rural and northern areas. He currently leads a research program related to the access to, and quality of, French Language Health Services for persons residing in northern Ontario and his team is working closely with several community partners to develop strategies to better meet the health needs of Francophones in the region.

Amir Ginzburg, MD, FRCPC
Chief of Quality and Medical Director
Medical Administration, Trillium Health Partners

Clinical Quality Lead
Mississauga Halton LHIN

Department of Medicine and the Institute of Health Policy, Management & Evaluation University of Toronto

Amir is Trillium Health Partners’ Chief of Quality and Medical Director of Medical Administration. He serves as the Mississauga Halton LHIN’s Clinical Quality Lead in partnership with Health Quality Ontario and has participated in many cross-sectoral improvement initiatives. Amir is a Master Facilitator for the Patient Safety Education Program Canada and has worked with the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada to develop curricula for faculty development in quality improvement and patient safety. In 2013, the Canadian Patient Safety Institute honoured Amir by including him in a select group of influencers of patient safety in Canada.

Rick Glazier, MD, MPH, CCFP, FCFP
Senior Scientist
Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences and St. Michael's Hospital

Rick Glazier is a Family Physician and Senior Scientist and Program Lead of Primary Care and Population Health at the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES). He is a staff physician at St. Michael’s Hospital and a Scientist in its Centre for Urban Health Solutions. At the University of Toronto, Dr. Glazier is a Professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine. His research interests include evaluating health system transformation, primary care health services delivery models, health of disadvantaged populations, management of chronic conditions, and population-based and geographic methods for improving equity in health.

Marisa Granieri, P. Eng.
Patient Advisor
Health Quality Ontario, Patient, Family and Public Advisors Council

Marisa Granieri is a Professional Engineer and has experience in manufacturing, project engineering, and marketing. She is a patient advisor on Health Quality Ontario’s Patient, Family and Public Advisor’s Council. Marisa was a presenter at HQT conference in 2016 and a member of the Minister’s Medal Selection Committee. As a patient living with fibromyalgia and a daughter of a cancer survivor, she brings unique, multigenerational insights that she hopes can help improve the health system for others of all ages and stages of life.

Christoper Hayes, MD, MSc, MEd
Chief Medical Information Officer
St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton

Christopher Hayes, M.D., M.Sc., M.Ed., is the Chief Medical Information Officer at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton. Hayes was a 2013-14 Canadian Harkness/CFHI Fellow in Health Care Policy and Practice, and had previously been at St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto since 2005, where he was the medical director of quality and performance. He is an associate professor at McMaster University in the Department of Medicine and adjunct associate professor at the University of Toronto. From 2008-15 Hayes was the medical officer at the Canadian Patient Safety Institute. He is a recognized leader in patient safety and quality improvement, and has worked with regional, national, and international organizations, and has received multiple distinctions and awards. Hayes holds a master’s of science from McMaster University in Ontario, and a medical degree and master’s of education from the University of Toronto.

Shoshana Helfenbaum, MSW, RSW, DGrt
Interprofessional Educator
Baycrest Centre for Learning, Research and Innovation in Long Term Care

As an Interprofessional Educator in the Baycrest Centre for Learning, Research and Innovation in Long Term Care, Shoshana designs curriculum and implements educational methodologies in the area of relational-centred care. Recent work focuses on using mindfulness, simulation and Appreciative Inquiry for knowledge mobilization and sustainable practice change on interprofessional teams.

Shoshana's career spans over 20 years in community, hospital and long-term care settings as a geriatric social worker and psychotherapist, gerontologist, clinical simulationist, instructional designer and eLearning strategist. Shoshana also volunteers as an advocate for social care for persons living with dementia; both academically, and as a volunteer Caring Clown.

Wayne Ho, M.Eng.
Managing Director, Human Factors
University Health Network

Wayne Ho is the Managing Director of Healthcare Human Factors, a proud partner of University Health Network. Healthcare Human Factors is a design and usability agency that is devoted to the application of human factors informed design to problems of healthcare and patient safety.

Wayne has been active in the user-centered design and evaluation of complex medical devices, including radiotherapy systems and ethnographic research related to primary care providers and health information technology. For over 20 years Wayne has focused on the interaction between people and technology as an Interaction Designer and Usability Specialist. He is passionate about improving the design of software, devices, and processes in healthcare.

Wayne holds a BASc in Systems Design Engineering at the University of Waterloo and a MEng in Industrial Engineering at the University of Toronto specialising in Human Factors.

Sophia Ikura
Executive Director, Population Health Solutions Lab
Sinai Health System but sponsored by the LHIN, University of Toronto and Toronto Public Health

Sophia Ikura serves as the Executive Director for the newly launched Population Health Solutions Lab. A space that is dedicated to bringing together partners from across health and beyond to work on some of the most complex challenges facing the health care system today. The lab will be a space that invests in taking the necessary risks to innovate and dramatically change conditions for marginalized people in Ontario, while working with a broad range of LHIN and health sector partners to scale what is already working well. Sophia has nearly two decades of experience in health system strategy and has served as the Senior Director of Strategy at the Toronto Central LHIN, and as an Advisor to three health Ministers and the Premier of Ontario.

Timothy Jackson, BSc, MD, MPH, FRCSC, FACS
Surgical Lead
NSQIP-ON Program Division of General Surgery, University Health Network

Assistant Professor of Surgery
University of Toronto

After receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in Life Science from McMaster University in 1999, Dr. Jackson attended medical school at McMaster. Upon completion, he entered the McMaster post-graduate training program in General Surgery. Dr. Jackson became a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada in 2009, and was certified by the American Board of Surgery in 2010. In 2006, he attended Harvard University and received a Master of Public Health degree in Quantitative Methods. Currently, his research interests are in surgical quality improvement and surgical outcomes. In 2010, he completed the Harvard Advanced Laparoscopic Surgery Fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. His clinical focus is in bariatric and gastrointestinal tract surgery. Dr. Jackson is a member of the Division of General Surgery at University Health Network based at Toronto Western Hospital. He is an Assistant Professor of Surgery within the Faculty of Medicine at University of Toronto.

Ahmed Jakda, MD, MBA, Candidate (2018), CFPC (PC)
Provincial Clinical Co-Lead
Ontario Palliative Care Network

Medical Director, Palliative Care
Grand River Regional Cancer Centre

Associate Professor
McMaster University, University of Western Ontario

Dr. Ahmed Jakda is the Provincial Clinical Co-Lead with the Ontario Palliative Care Network, the principle advisor to the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care on Palliative Care. He is also a family physician who specializes in palliative care. He completed his training in Family Medicine and Fellowship in Palliative Care at The Ohio State University. He is dual board certified in family medicine and palliative care, through the American Board of Hospice Palliative Medicine, and the College of Family Physicians of Canada.

His clinical practice is located at the Grand River Regional Cancer Centre in Waterloo-Wellington, where he also serves as the Medical Director for Division of Palliative Care. In addition to his clinical practice, Dr. Jakda is an Associate Clinical Professor with McMaster University and the University of Western Ontario, and provides resident education on an ongoing basis. His research focus is around system policy and patient-centred structures to support patients and families facing advances illnesses.

Margaret Jin
Clinical pharmacist and academic detailer coordinator
Hamilton Family Health Team

Margaret Jin is a clinical pharmacist and academic detailer coordinator for the Hamilton Family Health Team. She has also worked as a nursing home consultant and manager of the drug distribution for long-term care facilities in the Cobourg/Port Hope area. Both Margaret’s pharmacy degrees (Bachelor of Science Pharmacy, Doctor of Pharmacy) were completed at the University of Toronto, and received her Masters of Science in Health Research Methodology from McMaster University.

Jon Johnsen, MD
Clinical Quality Lead
North West LHIN

Dr. Jon Johnsen is a family doctor in Thunder Bay, Ontario. He graduated from medical school at Dalhousie University, and did his family practice residency in Thunder Bay through the Northern Ontario Medical Program of McMaster University. His full scope family practice is with the Fort William Family Health Team. He holds the rank of Assistant Professor of Family Medicine at the Northern Ontario School of Medicine. His past roles have included being a board member of the Ontario Medical Association (OMA) and Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre. He is also a past chair of the OMA Section on General and Family Practice. He has served as president of the Professional Staff Association of Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre and the Thunder Bay Medical Society. Please join us in congratulating Dr. Johnsen on his appointment to this important role in the North West LHIN.

Jennifer Kehoe, MPH
Digital Health Planner, Former Title: Benefits Realization Specialist
South West Local Health Integration Network (SW LHIN)

Jennifer Kehoe holds a Masters in Public Health from Lakehead University and Bachelors of Science in Human Physiology from Boston University. Her current role as Digital Health Planner with the South West Local Health Integration Network (SW LHIN) and previous role as Benefits Realization Specialist with the Connecting South West Ontario (cSWO), South West Region Change Management and Adoption Delivery Partner provides her with valuable insight into the digital health environment.

Stewart Kennedy
Executive Vice President of Medicine and Academics
Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre

Dr. Stewart Kennedy is the Executive Vice President of Medicine and Academics at Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre.

He is a Past President of the Ontario Medical Association.

He continues to practice comprehensive family medicine with active hospital privileges in Thunder Bay, Ontario. He currently is Associate Lead of the Family Health Team Wave 5 – Harbourview Medical Clinic. Within his community, Dr. Kennedy is an Assistant Professor at the Northern Ontario School of Medicine and has been the recipient of the Community Teacher of the Year award from the Ontario College of Family Practice.

He is a past chairperson of the Thunder Bay District Health Council and was the Medical Director of the World Nordic Games in 1995.

Tara Kiran, MD, MSc, CCFP, FCFP
Staff Physician, QI Program Director, and Board Chair
St. Michael's Hospital Academic Family Health Team

Embedded Clinician Researcher
Health Quality Ontario

Tara Kiran is an actively practicing family physician in the St. Michael’s Hospital Academic Family Health Team where she is also the Quality Improvement Program Director and Chair of the Board of Directors. She is a Clinician Scientist in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Toronto, an Associate Scientist in the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael’s Hospital, and an Adjunct Scientist at the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences. Dr. Kiran’s program of research focuses on evaluating the impact of Ontario’s primary care reforms on quality of care and related disparities. Her research was recognized by the North American Primary Care Research Group in 2015 with a New Investigator Award. As of October 2016, she has taken on a new role as an Embedded Clinician Researcher with Health Quality Ontario where she is leading a program of research related to improving care for patients transitioning from hospital to home.

Jack Kitts, M.D., MBA, FRCPC
President and CEO
The Ottawa Hospital

Dr. Jack Kitts received his medical degree from the University of Ottawa in 1980 and completed a tour of duty with the Canadian armed forces prior to joining the medical staff of the Ottawa Civic Hospital. In 1998 he was appointed Vice President of Medical Affairs and led the medical staff during a complex restructuring of the Ottawa hospitals. He received his master’s degree in business administration from the University of Ottawa in 2001 and was subsequently named President and CEO of the Ottawa Hospital, a position he continues in today. The Ottawa Hospital is one of the largest and most productive research and teaching hospitals in Canada. Dr. Kitts’ roots are firmly anchored in the Ottawa Valley and his wife and three children have all chosen careers in the health sector.

Dr. Philip Klassen
Vice President Medical Affairs,
Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences

Assistant Professor,
Department of Psychiatry and Medicine, University of Toronto

Dr. Philip Klassen is Vice-President, Medical Affairs, at Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences, and Assistant Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Medicine at the University of Toronto. He is also a practicing forensic psychiatrist, and works in the Traumatic Stress Clinic at Ontario Shores.

Administratively, Dr. Klassen is responsible, in partnership with the Senior Management Team and interprofessional colleagues at Ontario Shores, for quality improvement, utilization management, medical staff evaluation, recruitment and retention, and education. Dr. Klassen is the executive sponsor of the hospital’s implementation of clinical practice guidelines, and quality-based procedures, and was Co-Chair of the provincial QBP expert panel, and implementation panel, for schizophrenia.

Academically, Dr. Klassen has written and presented on clinical and quality-related topics, and topics in forensic psychiatry. He has been awarded for course design, and remains an active teacher at the undergraduate and graduate levels. He has a special interest in global mental health and has led the creation of the first mental health and diversion court in Africa.

Clinically, Dr. Klassen is active in the areas of forensic risk assessment and management, clinical sexology, assessment of fitness for duty, assessment of trauma outcome, and other forensic domains. He has also been an external reviewer for provincial and hospital programs.

Betty-Lou Kristy
Peer Support Substance Use & Provincial Systems Lead
TEACH: Teach Empower Advocate Community Health - a peer initiative of Support & Housing-Halton

Betty-Lou Kristy, is the Peer Support Substance Use & Provincial Systems Lead for the Enhancing & Sustaining Peer Support Initiative Mississauga Halton Region. A bereaved mother who lost her son to opioid overdose, and has sustained her 18 year recovery from mental health, addiction and trauma; Betty-Lou has been engaged at provincial systems level as a lived experience/family advocate helping to frame policy, governance & programming. Betty-Lou is the recipient of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) Transforming Lives Award & the Ministry of Health &Long Term Care (MOHLTC) ACE Award- Partner Relations category, for her work with Expert Advisory Narcotics.

Melissa Kwiatkowski
Director of Primary Care
Guelph Community Health Centre

Melissa has worked at the Waterloo Wellington Local Health Integration Network and also at Guelph General Hospital as the Director of Strategy and Risk Management. Melissa is passionate about working with groups of dedicated clinicians and stakeholders to make positive change happen in the health system. She is also involved in community development activities in her community, specifically aimed at reducing the impact of poverty in Guelph.

Amy Lang, PhD
Director, Patient, Caregiver and Public Engagement
Health Quality Ontario

Amy Lang is the Director of Patient, Caregiver and Public Engagement for Health Quality Ontario. Amy leads Health Quality Ontario's work to embed patient, caregiver and public perspectives into its reports, recommendations and programs and to support and spread best practices for patient, caregiver and public engagement throughout Ontario's health care system.

Amy has extensive experience conducting patient and public engagement and supporting the adoption of engagement best practices across a variety of public sector settings. In previous roles, Amy has led consultations on complex municipal issues, designed and delivered policy and training on engagement, conducted research on innovative methods of public engagement and served on the Board of the Canadian Community for Dialogue and Deliberation.

Amy holds a B.A. and M.A. in Sociology from McGill University, and a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Darren Larsen, MD, CCFP, MPLc
Chief Medical Information Officer
OntarioMD

Darren is part of OntarioMD’s executive team, acting as Chief Medical Information Officer. He has been with the company since 2007 first as a Peer Leader in the EMR adoption program, then as Physician Advisor (Quality, Innovation and Leadership) and he assumed the role of CMIO in 2014. As the CMIO, he provides clinical advice on all aspects of OntarioMD’s evolving work in advancing electronic record keeping and data management in primary care and community specialist clinics. This includes clinical practice change, quality improvement, data quality and analytics, EMR maturity measurement, and has expanded to focus on system level partnerships.

Darren obtained his BSc at the University of Alberta, MD at the University of Calgary, and did residency at the University of Ottawa. He holds a Masters Certificate in Physician Leadership from York University’s Schulich School of Executive Management. Clinically, he practices and teaches through the University of Toronto Department of Community and Family Medicine at Women’s College Hospital Family Practice Health Centre.

Brian Lewis
President & CEO
Medical Devices Canada (MEDEC)

Brian Lewis is the President & CEO of MEDEC, the Canadian association representing the medical technology industry and diagnostic companies across Canada. Prior to joining in 2012 Brian worked for Genzyme Canada from May 2005 till Dec 2012 as General Manager, where he was responsible for strategic direction and operations. He brought extensive leadership experience to Genzyme, having held progressive management positions at Hoechst Marion Roussel, Serono, and AstraZeneca Canada, Mr. Lewis has a Bachelor of Science in Human Kinetics from the University of Guelph and a Bachelor of Business Administration from York University.

Hannah Loshak
Information Manager
Centre for Effective Practice

Hannah Loshak in an Information Manager at the Centre for Effective Practice, a federally incorporated non-profit organization that works to close the gap between best evidence and current practices in healthcare. As an information professional, Hannah provides literature search, synthesis, and quality appraisal services to a wide array of healthcare clients. Her past work has also included program evaluation, qualitative research, and clinical content development. Hannah received her Honours Bachelor of Arts (Anthropology and Bioethics) and her Master of Information from the University of Toronto.

Theresa Malloy-Miller
Volunteer
Patients for Patient Safety Canada

Theresa is an active volunteer member of PFPSC since 2006. It was the tragic and preventable loss of her son Daniel that changed the course of Theresa’s volunteer work more than a decade ago. That unimaginable pain combined with her determination became a force that shaped changes both in the organization where the harm happened and at Canadian level. As the lead for PFPSC’s KT working group Theresa shapes unique webinars designed by patients for patients and providers.

Shelagh Maloney
Vice President, Consumer Health, Communications and Evaluation Services
Canada Health Infoway

Shelagh Maloney is responsible for driving the implementation and adoption of patient-centred digital health solutions and patient engagement activities. She oversees evaluation efforts that measure the benefits of digital health investments in Canada and leads the development and execution of all of Infoway’s communications and marketing efforts.

Prior to assuming her current role, she held a number of executive positions in the public and private sectors where she honed her relationship management and business development skills.

Alisa Mamak
Senior Interactive Developer
CBC/Radio-Canada

Alisa Mamak is a Web Developer with over a decade of experience conceptualizing and creating innovative data visualizations and online storytelling presentations at major media organizations. She currently works as a part of the News Interactives team at the CBC where some of her more recent projects include the visualization of large-scale public data sets, such as federal election and census results.

Christine M. Maroulis, MBA
Senior Director, U.S. Health Policy & Reimbursement
Johnson & Johnson Medical Devices Companies

Christine Maroulis is currently the Senior Director of U.S. Health Policy & Reimbursement for the Johnson & Johnson Medical Devices Companies. As such, she is responsible for policy development, reimbursement strategies, public/private payer and employer engagement, and collaboration with hospitals in new payment models on behalf all of Johnson & Johnson’s Medical Devices Companies. She has worked closely with hospital systems and surgeons on the design and implementation of value based healthcare, including episode-based payments, and is a frequent public speaker on the topic.

Prior to this, Christine was a lobbyist at The Wexler & Walker Group, a bipartisan firm in Washington, D.C., where she provided strategic planning, direct lobbying and coalition building for Fortune 500 clients.

Christine received her MBA from Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Northwestern University in Evanston, IL.

Alies Maybee
Patient Advisors Network

Alies Maybee is passionate about meaningful public involvement in all aspects of healthcare. She brings her patient, caregiver and professional background to her commitment as a patient advisor.

At her local hospital, Alies is on the Community Engagement Council and is a patient and family advisor on a variety of projects. She collaborates with Health Quality Ontario, the Ministry and is on the Citizens Panel, Toronto Central LHIN.

In the research area, Alies is on the ARTIC Operational Committee, CFN citizen engagement committee and Patient Engagement Advisory Committee, Bruyère Research Institute. She is a patient partner on six research teams.

Dr. Joby McKenzie, MSc, MBA, PhD
Senior Vice President, Business Development

As Senior Vice President, Business Development, Joby is responsible for overseeing and leading the implementation of our business development strategy. Working with a team of cross-functional experts, Joby identifies opportunities for new product and service development to support our long-term growth in new and existing markets. Joby has also played an instrumental role in leading the integration of CML, BC Bio and LifeLabs and creating the foundation necessary to enable the continued growth of the organization.

Prior to joining LifeLabs, Joby was a consultant with the Boston Consultant Group (BCG) where she led project teams who provided advice to organizations across various sectors regarding business strategy, organizational transformations and operational efficiency.

Joby holds a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry from Simon Fraser University; a Doctorate in Philosophy (PhD), Molecular and Medical Genetics, from the University of Toronto; and a Masters in Business Administration, with a specialization in health care from the Richard Ivey School of Business.

As an athlete, Joby also represented Canada at international tournaments and was part of the basketball team that won a silver medal at the Pan-American games and qualified for the 2000 Olympics.

Annette McKinnon
Founding Member
Patient Advisors Network

Annette’s experiences in health care as a patient with chronic disease have led to her passion to have the patient voice included in health care decisions at every level.

Being a Medicine X ePatient Scholar, serving as a Health Mentor to interdisciplinary health professional students, and serving on the Community Advisory Council of Michael Garron Hospital have also influenced her views.

Through involvement with the Patient Advisors Network, as a patient partner on several research teams, and as a member of the Toronto Central LHIN’s Regional Quality Table she is happy to see growing progress towards the goal of patient inclusion.

Donna I. McRitchie, BSc, MD, MSc, FRCSC
Vice President Medical & Academic Affairs, General Surgeon and Intensivist
North York General Hospital

Assistant Professor, Department of Surgery
University of Toronto

Donna is a busy practicing General Surgeon and an Intensivist. She did specialty training in Trauma at the University of Maryland and Critical Care training at Harvard in Boston. She is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of Toronto.

Donna has taken keen interest in innovative quality initiatives at North York General and currently is the Physician Champion for Choosing Wisely.

Kirk Miller
Director of Performance and Accountability and Privacy Office
Guelph Family Health Team

Kirk is currently engaged with the Guelph Family Health Team as the Director of Performance and Accountability and Privacy Officer. He also participates on various regional privacy and eHealth Committees.

As part of the corporate team Kirk has assisted 83 Guelph FPs to expand the scope and quality of services to over 120,000 patients providing the foundation for an emerging Guelph Medical Home.

Kirk is a member of the Grand River Hospital Board Resources Committee. Living in Waterloo for over 37 years he has also participated in business roles as a Grand River Cancer Center and Hope Spring volunteer.

Leila Monib
Provincial Practice Lead
Ontario Indigenous Cultural Safety Program. Southwest Ontario Aboriginal Health Access Centre

Leila Monib is a settler-Canadian of diverse ancestry (African, Middle Eastern and European). She has recently joined the Ontario ICS Program as a Provincial Practice Lead. Previously, Leila was a Health Equity Specialist on Toronto Pubic Health’s Access and Equity Team where she worked with the Toronto Indigenous Health Advisory Circle to develop and implement the Toronto Indigenous Health Strategy. She has also worked as the Youth Program Manager at the Rexdale Community Health Centre. Leila is passionate about exploring the roles/responsibilities of non-Indigenous Canadians in examining implicit bias while honouring treaties and international law to improve health outcomes for diverse Indigenous communities.

Husein Moloo, MD, FRCSC, MSc
Assistant Professor,
The Ottawa Hospital, Department of Surgery, University of Ottawa

Husein got involved with quality improvement about 5 years ago and since that time has enjoyed the multidisciplinary nature of tackling different issues as well as creating organizational architecture for sustainable front line involvement in perioperative quality improvement.  He is a member of the steering committee for surgical quality with Health Quality Ontario and the collaborative that has been formed utilizing NSQIP as the data source.

Kimberly Moran
Chief Executive Officer
Children’s Mental Health Ontario

Kim Moran is CEO of Children’s Mental Health Ontario. Recognized as a leading advocate for children, Kim brings more than twenty-five years of senior leadership experience in the private and not-for-profit sectors.

Kim is passionate about improving the service delivery of children’s mental health as mother of a daughter who became seriously ill.  A Chartered Professional Accountant, she also brings financial and operational management to her work. 

Kim held positions as Special Advisor to the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto and Chief Operating Officer at UNICEF Canada.

Paula Morrison
Team Coordinator
CHEO, BORN Ontario

Paula is interested in health outcomes around maternal child health. She is currently the Public Health Coordinator at BORN Ontario.  She has had a diverse career in healthcare working in both community and hospital.  She has devoted most of her career focused on maternal child health.   She is a registered nurse and holds a masters degree in Psychology specializing in Industrial/Organizational Psychology.  Her latest project has been a partnership with the Ministry of Children and Youth (MCYS) on the Healthy Babies Healthy Children (HBHC) pilot as the BORN clinical project lead.

Maryann Murray
Volunteer
Patients for Patient Safety Canada

Maryann Murray became focused on patient safety following the death of her daughter Martha in 2002. Questions in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, presentations to the Standing Committee on Justice Policy and lobbying Ontario’s Chief Coroner’s Office resulted in provincial improvements. As a volunteer with Patients for Patient Safety Canada, and the WHO’s World Alliance For Patient Safety, Maryann became a working group member of the WHO Global Patient Safety Challenge on Medication Safety. Recently presenting the patient perspective at the WHO69 Side Event on Medication Safety at the UN in Geneva, and the 2nd Global Ministerial Conference in Bonn Germany, Maryann supported the Global Challenge and goal of reducing medication harm by 50% worldwide.

Charles Musa
Member, Patient Family & Public Advisors Council Health Quality Ontario

Charles is a member of the Health Quality Ontario's Patient Family & Public Advisors Council. Charles believes strongly in community development and engagement. He moved to Ontario in 2010 and currently lives in Etobicoke, Ontario.

Inspired by his own health journey, Charles strives to support improvements in the coordination of health care services in Ontario. To that end, Charles took an opportunity to give back and help inspire change in his own community by becoming an active patient and family advisor with St. Joseph’s Health Centre in Toronto, Ontario.

Charles is also a Board Member at LAMP CHC, a Community Health Centre that provides a variety of integrated programs and services to meet the health needs of the East Mississauga and Etobicoke community.

Cyrelle Muskat, BA, MHA Manager
Seniors Quality Leap Initiative
Baycrest Health Sciences

Cyrelle Muskat works at Baycrest Health Sciences and is the Manager of Quality and Accreditation. She is also the Manager of the Seniors Quality Leap Initiative (SQLI), a quality improvement consortium comprised of 12 high performing long-term care/post-acute care facilities across Canada and the United States. In this capacity, Cyrelle leads SQLI’s strategy execution, including the design and implementation of a novel improvement approach for long-term care. Cyrelle has a Master of Health Service Administration from Dalhousie University, a Certificate of Quality Improvement from the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Medicine and is Lean certified.

Susana Neves-Silva, RN, BScN Manager
Telehomecare and Rapid Response Nursing Programs
Toronto Central Local Health Integration Network

A Registered Nurse with 20 years of experience assisting patients, Susana spent many years in acute care in various roles, including support within the areas of Internal Medicine, In-Patient Mobility and Electronic Health Records.

In addition to holding her BSc in Nursing from Ryerson University, Susana also holds certificates in Project Management and Leadership and Management in Nursing from the same institution. Since May of 2008, Susana has lent her skills to the home and community care sector in a variety of roles, including care coordination, and currently in the role of Manager of Client Services to both the Telehomecare and Rapid Response Nursing Programs at the Toronto Central Local Health Integration Network (LHIN).

Genevieve Obarski, MSA, BS, FACHE
Executive Lead Program Implementation
The Change Foundation

Genevieve joined The Foundation in 2011 as Executive Lead, Program Implementation, to lead the improvement and engagement activities of the Foundation. She is also active in stakeholder relations and on advisory committees and has 35 years' experience in healthcare. In Ontario, as a Senior Quality Improvement Consultant at the Centre for Healthcare Quality Improvement, and in the U.S. in executive and clinical positions with the Veterans Affairs Healthcare System.

Genevieve is a Fellow with the American College of Healthcare Executives, holds a Master of Science degree in Health Care Management and a Bachelor of Science degree in Medical Laboratory Technology.

Michèle Parent-Bergeron
Provincial Practice Lead
Ontario Indigenous Cultural Safety Program, Southwest Ontario Aboriginal Health Access Centre

Michèle is Algonquin and Métis from the Outaouais region in Québec. She currently lives on the French River in Noëlville, Ontario. She has worked for several years at Laurentian University, Nipissing University and the University of Regina and holds current academic appointments at both Laurentian University and Western University. Over the last twenty years, her work included outpost nursing, research, education and program evaluation focused on tuberculosis management, Indigenous health, consensus building, and Indigenous health policy. She is bilingual (French and English) and is mentor to several students in the health professions and in graduate programs across the country.

Wanda Parrott, RN
Director, Home and Community Care, Patient Services
Central East Local Health Integration Network

Wanda Parrott is Registered Nurse with over 23 years of experience working in a variety of health care sectors. She graduated from St. Clare’s School of Nursing in 1992 and in addition, completed Social Work degree at Memorial University of Newfoundland. Wanda joined the Central East CCAC (now the Central East Local Health Integration Network)in 1998, working as a Case Manager and has participated in the implementation of Case Management Model, Client Services Reconfiguration and other key initiatives. In addition to fulfilling role of Care coordinator, Wanda was the Bargaining Unit President of ONA with CE CCAC and was also the Provincial Chair of the first CCAC Central Bargaining team. Wanda has a vast knowledge of labor relation, contract negotiation, labour disputes, and mediation and has certificates in contract negotiation, dispute resolution.

In 2012, Wanda became a Senior Manager of Patient Services, managing community teams and in 2015, she was promoted to Program Director. In her current role as Director, Home and Community Care, Patient Services, she is the Chair of several committees and working groups including Palliative Care Committee and the Wound Care Committee, which governs the Wound Care Program and focuses on improving quality care and efficiencies that align with Ministry of Health initiatives and the CE LHIN’s strategic direction. She and select member of her team were the recent recipients of the System Partnership Award for the Emergency Diversion Protocol project from Health Shared Services.

Wanda is committed to provide high quality and cost effective care for the 38,000 patients in her portfolio.

Barb Pizzingrilli
Director, Patient Care Mental Health and Addictions
Niagara Health

Barb Pizzingrilli is currently the Director, Patient Care Mental Health and Addictions at Niagara Health. Previously she held the position of Manager, Program Development and Evaluation. She frequently presents on quality initiatives undertaken by Niagara Health across both inpatient and outpatient care settings.

Barb has held various frontline and leadership positions in mental health and addictions over the last 20 years. She holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Nursing from Memorial University of Newfoundland and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from University of Phoenix.

Michelle Policarpio, MSc, BSc
Senior Research Associate
Cancer Care Ontario

Michelle is a Senior Research Associate at Cancer Care Ontario. As a member of the Cancer Screening Analytics team, her primary role is to integrate the various CCO screening programs. Prior to joining CCO, Michelle was an Epidemiologist at Public Health Ontario (PHO) working on various public health surveillance and research initiatives. She has also helped developed analytic tools and infographics within PHO. In addition to working at PHO, she was a Research Coordinator at St. Michael’s Hospital and a Health Data Analyst with the International Organization for Migration. Michelle has a M.Sc. in Epidemiology and B.Sc. in Public Health.

Ioana Cristina Popescu, MBA
Patient Safety Improvement Lead
Canadian Patient Safety Institute

As a Patient Safety Improvement Lead with the Canadian Patient Safety Institute since 2009, Ioana provides leadership and management to the design, development, execution and evaluation of programs and networks, with a focus on patient engagement. The Engaging Patients in Patient Safety – a Canadian Guide, developed in partnership with HQO, is one of her recent accomplishments. The best part of her job is working with the volunteer patient partners of Patients for Patient Safety Canada in making care safer. Nursing and business management are the two pillars on which she has built her passion for safe care.

Wanda Power, RN
Senior Manager
Home and Community Care, Palliative Team
Central East Local Health Integration Network

Wanda Power is Registered Nurse with over 34 years of experience working in a variety of health care sectors. Wanda started her nursing career at the Scarborough Hospital, Centenary site) working in a variety of acute care settings including ICU, Heart Catheterization Lab and the Operating Room. In 1989 Wanda joined Saint Elizabeth Health Care, visiting nursing program, to provide support to patients in their homes. In 1998, Wanda joined Durham Access to Care as a Case Manager, formerly Central East CCAC, now the Central East Local Health Integration Network. Wanda transitioned from Case Manager to her current role as Senior Manager, Home and Community Care (formerly Patient Services) in 2009. Wanda has recently transitioned to her current role as Senior Manager Palliative Care. Wanda won the System Partnership Award for the Emergency Diversion Protocol project from Health Shared Services Ontario and was the first provincial lead for Total Contact Casting for Diabetic Foot Ulcers.

Paul Preston, MD, CCFP
VP Clinical, Primary Care Lead
North East Local Health Integration Network

His 30 year career in North Bay, includes working in: E.R., general and psychiatric hospitals, local prison, nursing home, walk-in clinic, and family practice office. He has been: chief of departments of Emergency and Family Practice; President of Medical Staff and Medical Society; Chair of the Blue Sky FHT; is the Primary Care Lead Physician for the NE LHIN, and now the VP clinical. He loves his fellow Northerners and so he’s passionate about working to ensure they get their fair share of health care resources in a way that fits the Northern Ontario reality.

Tammy Quigley
Director, Quality & Performance
London Health Sciences Centre

Tammy is the Director of Quality & Performance at London Health Sciences Centre, Ontario’s fourth largest hospital, in London, Ontario. As a passionate leader in health care with a keen focus on performance improvement, Tammy places patients at the centre of everything she does. She has an Honours Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Science from the University of Guelph, and an MBA in Health Services Management from the DeGroote School of Business at McMaster University. Tammy lives in Cambridge with her husband and four daughters, and is currently pursuing a second master’s degree in communications management.

Arun Radhakrishnan, MD, CM, MSc., CCFP
Ontario College of Family Physicians Mentorship Program

Dr. Arun Radhakrishnan is a family physician with a clinical interest in chronic pain and is affiliated with The Ottawa Hospital and the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Toronto. He has an interest in developing and evaluating programs and tools to support primary care knowledge translation. Towards this, he is currently the Clinical Lead for the Collaborative Mentoring Networks at the Ontario College of Family Physicians and is also a 2017-18 AMS Phoenix Fellow. He has also worked with the Centre for Effective Practice to produce the CNCP Tool and the CORE Neck Tool & Headache Navigator.

Lou Reidel
Chief System Planning and Performance Officer
Ontario Hospital Association

As Chief System Planning and Performance Officer at the Ontario Hospital Association, Lou Reidel strives to advance hospital funding and planning strategies as well as proactively identify hospital funding needs. He is responsible for OHA’s Thought Leadership Mandate on System Re-Configuration. He works to strengthen the OHA’s capacity to conduct rigorous, timely and effective technical research and analysis with regard to financial and other issues.

Lou has been with the OHA for over 16 years and boasts an extensive career in the Healthcare sector, with 36 years of experience in various roles, including 15 years as a hospital CFO.

Eleanor Rivoire, BScN, MSc
Independent Healthcare Advisor

Eleanor Rivoire has spent her career working in the clinical, education and administrative domains of professional practice. She retired in 2015 from the position as Executive Vice-President and Chief Nurse Executive, after 35 years at Kingston General Hospital. While enjoying the many rewards of retirement, she also works on a part-time basis as an Independent Healthcare Advisor sharing her expertise in building partnerships with patients and families to transform the patient experience with a focus on patient-and family-centred care; with design and implementation of models of inter-professional practice and education; and in the design of healthcare policy and process improvements with the goal of improved quality, safety and satisfaction for patients, families and providers. Recent activities have consisted of continued engagement as an Accreditation Canada surveyor, and as faculty advisor with Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement (CFHI), HealthCareCAN, Canadian Patient Safety Institute, Accreditation Canada/Accreditation Canada International and as consultant to Canadian acute care hospitals.

Zahava Rosenberg-Yunger, Hon. BSc, MA, PhD
Director, Health Policy and Research
Ontario Pharmacists Association

Dr. Rosenberg-Yunger, is the Director of Health Policy and Research at the Ontario Pharmacists Association and Adjunct Professor within the School of Health Services Management, Ryerson University. She is an expert in qualitative methods, particularly interviewing and document review using a thematic approach. She has published in numerous peer reviewed journals and is funded by CIHR. Dr. Rosenberg-Yunger's research interests include the role of pharmacists in patient care, equity in resources allocation, comparative health policy, and stakeholder engagement in health care decision making.

John Sanio
Patient Advisor
Health Quality Ontario

John is a patient advisor from who, after a year of health concerns and traumatic issues in the healthcare system, led him to be involved in the Quality of Care Review.

In December 2014, a misplaced positive blood culture, and later in 2015 an overlooked ECG sent John and his young family into a year-long medical nightmare. Failures in medical processes very nearly killed him in many dramatic, horrific and seemingly never-ending emergencies. The trauma, frustration, anger, fear and skepticism escalated as they became mired in what appeared to be an uncaring, unhearing and disinterested “Medical Establishment”. The day he and his family were told by the hospital about the mistake and were asked to participate in Quality of Care Review, their perception changed. John, his family, and the medical community became a team that day whose collective goal was to save John’s life. John is alive and fully recovered now because of the amazing skill, dedication, caring of the medical professionals in Ontario’s Healthcare System.

David Schieck, MD
Family Physician,
Guelph Family Health Team

Dr. Schieck trained in medicine and completed his family medicine residency at Queen's University. He currently works as a comprehensive family physician in Guelph and is a member of the Guelph Family Health Team.

Dr. Schieck has been involved with the Ontario Medical Association for the past 7 years and is currently the Past Chair of the OMA Section on General and Family Practice. He has also participated on several committees with Health Quality Ontario, the Ontario College of Family Physicians and the Waterloo Wellington LHIN.

Dr. Schieck has recently taken on the role of Clinical Lead for the Guelph-Puslinch Care Community with the Waterloo Wellington LHIN.

Michael Schull, MSc, MD, FRCPC
President and CEO
Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences

Michael Schull is President, CEO and Senior Scientist at the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, and Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Toronto. His research focuses on health service utilization, quality of care, health system integration and patient outcomes, and the evaluation of health policy. His studies use administrative health datasets and linkages with clinical data, and he works closely with health system decision and policy makers. Dr. Schull practices as an Emergency Medicine specialist at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto.

Nancy Searl
Collaborative Practice Leader and Early Learning and Development Leader
Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilition Hospital

Nancy Searl is a Collaborative Practice Leader and Early Learning and Development Leader at Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital. Nancy believes passionately in the importance of compassion in health care, and spear-headed efforts to bring Schwartz Rounds® (compassionate care rounds) to Holland Bloorview - the first organization in Canada to host Schwartz Rounds®.

Throughout her career as an Early Childhood Educator, and in her leadership roles, Nancy has always placed high priority on the preservation of dignity of clients, family, and colleagues in all that we do. In her spare time, Nancy is a voracious reader, musical theater fan, and an expert in trivia of all kinds.

Sara Shearkhani, MA
PhD Student
Institute of Health Policy, Management, and Evaluation of University of Toronto

Sara Shearkhani is a Ph.D student studying in the area of Health Services Outcomes and Evaluation at the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto. Sara is completing her thesis entitled “Inclusion of Informal Care in Decision Making”. She is also the co-founder of a volunteer group “Family Caregivers Voice”, dedicated to educating caregivers on their journey as well as healthcare professionals on the value caregivers can bring to the table. She was named one of the faces of change in Ontario in 2014 and received the Canada Cares Award in 2017.

Nancy Sikich
Director, Evidence Development & Standards
Health Quality Ontario

Nancy Sikich is the Director of Health Technology Assessment at Health Quality Ontario, Toronto. She has been involved in Health Technology Assessment for more than 10 years with a focus on the evaluation of clinical effectiveness, the quality of evidence, and the process for making recommendations. Nancy holds a Masters in Health Research Methodology and Bachelor of Science in Nursing both from McMaster University.

Chris Simpson, MD, FRCPC, FACC, FHRS, FCCS, FCAHS
Vice-Dean (Clinical) and Medical Director of the Southeastern Ontario Academic Medical Organization (SEAMO)
Queen's University

Chris Simpson was born in Moncton in 1967 and raised in Nackawic, a small pulp mill town of 1,000 people in western New Brunswick.

A graduate of Dalhousie University, Dr. Simpson completed his Medical Degree 1992 and subsequently completed internal medicine and cardiology training at Queen’s University and went on to complete a Heart and Stroke Foundation Clinical and Research Fellowship in Cardiac Electrophysiology at the University of Western Ontario.

In 1999, Dr. Simpson founded the Heart Rhythm Program at Kingston General Hospital, establishing catheter ablation and implantable defibrillator programs. From 2006-2016 he served as Professor and Head of Cardiology at Queen’s University, as well as Medical Director of the Cardiac Programs at Kingston General Hospital/Hotel Dieu Hospital. Currently, he is Vice-Dean (Clinical) and Medical Director of the Southeastern Ontario Academic Medical Organization (SEAMO) in the Queen’s School of Medicine. He is also an Affiliate Scientist with the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES-Queen’s) and a member of the Queen’s School of Policy Studies Health Policy Council.

Dr. Simpson’s primary non-clinical professional interest is health policy – particularly access to care, seniors’ care, wait times and medical fitness to drive.

He served as the chair of the Wait Time Alliance (WTA) – a federation of 17 medical specialty societies and the Canadian Medical Association (CMA) – and is a past chair of the Canadian Cardiovascular Society’s (CCS) Standing Committee on Health Policy and Advocacy. He serves on the Cardiac Care Network of Ontario Board of Directors, is a past member of the CCS executive and a former governor of the American College of Cardiology. He currently serves as the Canadian representative to the World Medical Association (WMA). He served as the first president of the Canadian Heart Rhythm Society and as the President of the Canadian Medical Association from 2014-2015. In 2015, Dr. Simpson was elected to fellowship in the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences where he currently serves on their Board of Directors.

An active clinician, educator and researcher, Dr. Simpson has authored or co-authored over 350 peer reviewed papers and abstracts and has won numerous teaching awards. Outside medicine, Dr. Simpson serves on the Board of Directors of Cantabile Choirs of Kingston and is a proud supporter of University Hospitals Kingston Foundation. He recently served as Chair of the Kingston Blue Marlins Swim Team Board of Directors.

Diane Smylie
Provincial Director
Ontario Indigenous Cultural Safety Program, Southwest Ontario Aboriginal Health Access Centre

Diane is Métis with early roots in the Red River Settlement and western Canada. She worked in community-based substance use services for many years before becoming more involved in program evaluation, program development, system planning, community engagement and knowledge exchange initiatives. She has an educational background in both nursing and social work. Before returning to Ontario in 2016 and becoming the Provincial Director of the Ontario ICS Program she worked as a Substance Use Knowledge Exchange Leader with the Provincial Health Services Authority in B.C. on initiatives to strengthen trauma-informed practice, Indigenous cultural safety and compassion; inclusion and engagement.

Bruce Squires
Vice President, People, Strategy and Performance
CHEO

Bruce Squires is the Vice President of People, Strategy and Performance. Bruce joined CHEO in 2013, bringing nearly 25 years of senior leadership experience in Canadian healthcare in varied roles such as CEO of the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association, Vice President at the Canadian Medical Association, and CEO of the Ontario Chiropractic Association. Throughout his career, Bruce has focused on assisting organizations in accomplishing major strategic transformations and on supporting engaged employees.

Bruce has an MBA from Dalhousie University, and is currently pursuing his Doctorate in Management at Carleton University. He also teaches at the graduate and undergraduate levels in the areas of leadership, strategy, organizational behavior and human resources. In his spare time, Bruce and his family enjoy travel and adventure; including a recent trip to Cambodia and Thailand for house-building.

Nadine Sunarich, MSW, RSW
Clinical Social Worker
Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilition Hospital

Nadine Sunarich, MSW, RSW, is a clinical social worker who has extensive experience working with children and families in hospital and rehabilitation settings. Nadine stated her career at Sickkids where she worked on many medical programs. For the past 14 years Nadine has worked at Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital providing social work services to clients and families and field education to University of Toronto Master of Social Work Students. Nadine demonstrates a strong commitment to Client and Family Centered Care and she is passionate about the importance of compassion in caregiving and strengthening relationships between health care providers, clients and families.

Penny Sutcliffe, MD, MHSc, FRCPC
Medical Officer of Health and Chief Executive Officer
Sudbury & District Health Unit

Medical Officer of Health and CEO with the Sudbury & District Health Unit since 2000, Dr. Sutcliffe is a specialist in Public Health and Preventive Medicine through the University of Toronto.

She is the Chair of the Council of Ontario Medical Officers of Health, and board member of the Association of Local Public Health Agencies.

Dr. Sutcliffe has worked for 20 years across northern Canada and has a longstanding interest in health promotion and population health, exploring how local public health can reduce social inequities in health. Rural and northern health, public health systems and evidence-informed practice are areas of great interest.

Karen Truter, RN(EC), MN, CHPCN(C)
Nurse Practitioner, Post Acute Specialty Services
Northumberland Hills Hospital

Karen Truter is the Nurse Practitioner (NP) for Gerontology and Post-Acute Specialty Services in Northumberland Hills Hospital (NHH), Cobourg, Ontario. She graduated as a RN in 1985 in Bristol, England, immigrated to Canada in 1996 and has nursed in Montreal, Quebec and Cobourg, Ontario. She obtained her MN/NP degree in 2013. Her expertise is in palliative care and gerontology.

Karen is the lead NP in the Assess & Restore pilot, and has developed a process for direct admissions from emergency to a rehab bed, for those elderly patients that are failing at home and require intensive assessment and intervention as inpatients.

Karen’s focus of assessment incorporates both a medical and gerontological approach through comprehensive gerontological assessment. She, along with the interprofessional team at NHH, emphasizes the identity of gerontological syndromes as key to successful restoration of wellness for older adults.

Dr. Jeffrey Turnbull
Chief
Clinical Quality

Jeffrey was the Vice Dean of Medical Education at the University of Ottawa (1996-2001), the President of the Medical Council of Canada (1999-2000), the President of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (2006-2007), and the President of Canadian Medical Association (2010-2011). He also served as Senior Medical Officer for Correction Services Canada (2011-2014), as well as the Chief of Staff at The Ottawa Hospital (2008-2017). In 2001, he helped establish Ottawa Inner City Health, which works to improve access to health care for people who are chronically homeless. He has also been involved in educational and health initiatives in Bangladesh, Africa, and the Balkans.

Jeffrey holds a Bachelor of Science from the University of Toronto, a Master of Education from the University of Western of Ontario, and a Doctorate in Medicine from Queen's University. He later received a speciality certification in Internal Medicine through the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. He is also the recipient of several national and international awards, including the Order of Canada.

Ross Upshur
Head Division of Clinical Public Health
Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto

Director
Bridgepoint Collaboratory for Research and Innovation, Sinai Health System

Dr. Ross Upshur is currently the Head of the Division of Clinical Public Health at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health, Scientific Director, Bridgepoint Collaboratory for Research and Innovation and Assistant Director of the Lunenfeld Tanenbaum Research Institute, Sinai Health System. At the University of Toronto, he is a Professor in the Dalla Lana School of Public Health and the Department of Family and Community Medicine, affiliate member of the Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology and Adjunct Senior Scientist at the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences.

Rebecca Van Iersel
Clinical Quality Lead
Health Quality Ontario

Dr. Van Iersel is a family physician in Orillia. As a family doctor, she is passionate about comprehensive care. Dr. Van Iersel has held many positions in her role as an accredited physician at Orillia Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital (OSMH) including Past-President, Medical Staff Association and Program Medical Director, Intensive Care Unit, Emergency Department, Family Medicine and Patient Flow. At OSMH, Dr. Van Iersel was a leader in improving Alternate Level of Care utilization, reducing patient lengths of stay, implementing standardized care and quality based procedures. In addition, she has been an active participant in the Improving and Driving Excellence Across Sectors (IDEAS) province-wide initiative. Dr. Van Iersel received her Bachelor of Science in Life Sciences and Doctor of Medicine degrees from Queen’s University. She is a graduate of the OMA / CMA Physician Leadership Development Program.

Rick Vanderlee, RN, BNSc, MScN, EdD
Professor
Nipissing University

Adjunct Professor
Laurentian University

Dr. Rick Vander is a Full Professor and the founding Dean for the Faculty of Applied and Professional Studies at Nipissing University, North Bay. He is currently in his second term as Dean of the Faculty and Dean of the Muskoka campus. He is an Adjunct Professor at Laurentian University and Associate member of the graduate program in the Schulich School of Education.

He has held several faculty and administrative appointments in both academia and health care for 25 years. Previous academic appointments include Dean of Arts of Science (Interim) and Director for the School of Nursing at Nipissing University; Associate Dean and faculty member in the Faculty of Nursing at the University of Calgary; Director for Learning and Development in the Calgary Health Region; faculty member at Laurentian University and the University of Western Ontario; and several nursing positions typically in acute care and intensive are settings. His community involvement has included serving as President of the Nipissing and Parry Sound Children's Aid Society and several community athletic associations.

Lee Verweel
Research Coordinator
Ontario Pharmacists Association

Mr.Verweel is a research coordinator at the Ontario Pharmacists Association. His research focuses on the role of pharmacists in diabetes management, medical assistance in dying, and shared decision making.

Danika Walden, MSc, PMP
Project Manager
The eHealth Centre of Excellence

Danika Walden is the Project Manager for QBIC (Quality Based Improvements in Care), a program hosted by the eHealth Centre of Excellence. QBIC offers a range of ehealth change management and coaching services to primary care clinicians in the Waterloo region, supporting them to realize greater value out of existing digital health technologies. Under Danika’s skillful leadership, QBIC has expanded from a focus on EMR supports for Chronic Disease Prevention and Management (CDPM) to a number of streams including telehealthcare and other practice efficiencies.

Sarah Ward, MD, FRCSC
Orthopaedic Surgeon, Division of Orthopaedic Surgery
St. Michael’s Hospital

Sarah Ward is an orthopaedic surgeon at St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto with a clinical practice focusing on hip and knee arthroplasty and orthopaedic trauma. Her academic interest is Quality Improvement and Patient Safety and she is currently completing a Master’s degree in this discipline through the University of Toronto. Dr. Ward was a member of Health Quality Ontario’s Hip Fracture Quality Standard Advisory Committee and has been working to fully implement the recently developed quality standard at her own hospital. She is currently undertaking an audit of existing practices around hip fracture care at St. Michael’s Hospital, with the goal of using this baseline data to direct future improvement work.

Tricia Wilkerson
Director, Quality Improvement & Evaluation
Guelph Family Health Team

As Director, Quality Improvement & Evaluation with the Guelph Family Health Team, Tricia supports 85 family physicians to improve care within their individual family practice offices and works with community partners across Guelph to address priority problems. During her previous roles Tricia has had the privilege of working with and coaching partners from primary care, community care, long-term care and acute care.

Hazel M. Wilson
Retired Medical Office Assistant
Member, SPOR - Patient Partnership Advisory Working Group BeACCON

Hazel is a retired medical office assistant who lives in London, Ontario. She has been a member of the national group Patient Partners in arthritis for over 20 years. Hazel was a Patient/Caregiver Advisor beginning in 2015 and has been involved in various research activities such as:

Grant reviewer for the Canadian Institute of Health Research
Rapid Recs Publication to BMJ McMaster University
National Project to Develop a core set for Rheumatoid Arthritis – University of Calgary
Implementation and use of patient portals – Western University

Walter Wodchis, PhD
Associate Professor, Institute of Health Policy Management and Evaluation
University of Toronto

Dr. Wodchis is an Associate Professor at the University of Toronto, and Scientist at both the Institute for Clinical Sciences and Toronto Rehabilitation Research Institute. His main research interests are health economics and financing, and health care policy evaluation. He leads a number of research programs focused on care for complex populations across multiple health care sectors.

Ivy Wong

Network Director, BeACCoN

Senior Health Advisor, National Institute on Ageing

Policy Lead, WIHV

Ivy is the Network Director for BeACCoN (Better Access and Care for Complex Needs), the Ontario node of a pan-Canadian CIHR (Canadian Institutes for Health Research) SPOR (Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research) research network focusing on primary and integrated care innovations (PIHCI). BeACCoN’s focus is connecting research and evaluation to policy and practice to improve outcomes, quality and efficiency of care for high needs, high cost patients and their caregivers in the community. 

Ivy is also Senior Health Advisor to the National Institute on Ageing (NIA) at Ryerson University, where she advises on policy issues at the intersection of health and finance, key areas include employment and caregiving, immunization in older adults and incontinence.

Based at Women’s College Hospital, Ivy is Policy Lead for the Women’s College Hospital Institute for Health System Solutions and Virtual Care (WIHV), her work includes projects with the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care and OTN (Ontario Telemedicine Network). 

Previously, Ivy spent several years as a senior civil servant in the Department of Health and in the National Health Service (NHS) in London, England. Her focus was on funding reform, integrated care and financial incentives. Before working in health policy, Ivy was an IT consultant, specialising in financial services, and also worked as an Account Director in digital marketing and advertising.

Ivy holds a Master of Public Administration from the London School of Economics, a Master of Public Affairs from L’Institut d'études politiques de Paris (Sciences Po) and a BA cum Laude from the University of Pennsylvania.

Jennifer Zadravec, MRT (R) (MR)
Patient Safety and Risk Specialist
North York General Hospital

Jennifer Zadravec is currently a Patient Safety and Risk Specialist at North York General Hospital. Jennifer holds a diploma in Medical Radiation Technology from NAIT and is studying for a Bachelor of Health Administration at Ryerson University (2012-2018). Previously at NYGH, she was the Manager of MRI and Clerical Services in Medical Imaging (2014-2016) and MRI Clinical Coordinator (2006-2014); she has over thirty years of experience in Medical Imaging in BC, Alberta and Ontario. Jennifer is part of the lead team for the ARTIC Choosing Wisely - An Idea Worth Spreading project and co-chair for the Choosing Wisely Patient Advisory Committee.

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