By Katie Bryski and Shelagh Maloney
Katie: Hello and welcome to Digital Health in Canada, the Digital Health Canada podcast. It is just us today: myself, Katie Bryski, a podcaster turned digital health professional.
Shelagh: And Shelagh Maloney, a digital health professional turned podcaster. We thought we would spend a little bit of time today to talk about the podcast so far: the highlights, some of the surprises. And so, Katie, maybe I’ll ask you the first question. We’ve got five or six episodes under our belts. How’s the experience been for you?
Katie: I am always continually amazed by the breadth and depth of talent in the digital health field. It is such a privilege to be able to sit down with leaders from across the health system. Sometimes I almost feel like I have to pinch myself to say, “You’re going to have an hour to talk to X and Y. What are you going to talk about with them?” How about you?
Shelagh: I was actually surprised at how consistent the themes are, even though we talk about different topics every month. Everybody is really passionate and very committed, regardless of whether they’re running a startup, whether they’re in the mental health field… And the other thing I think for me is this whole idea of people really recognizing the value of teams, and working collaboratively and listening. Every voice at the table matters.
Katie: In one episode, you said that you felt that that had been a bit of a shift over time, moving to this more sort of consultative style of leadership.
Shelagh: Yes, historically, and early on in my career, the bosses were, “Show no weakness.” You are the boss, you are in control at all times. And now it’s really common for people and leaders to be vulnerable and to be empathetic. That’s a good change. Certainly all of our guests have shown that in spades, and that’s an important part of servant leadership.
Katie: I’ve always liked that term, servant leadership. Another term that I read once that I often think of is, consultative autocrat. At the end of the day, you are still the one that will make the decision, but you will do so in a consultative and inviting way.
Shelagh: Speaking of consultations and listening, one of the things that I really love is when, during a podcast, our guests speak with one another and we’re very much in the background. I love that! We know that they’re connecting after the podcast and that makes my heart glad, when we can facilitate a connection that wasn’t there before.
Katie: I hope the same is true for listeners as well. Whether it’s a topic they previously hadn’t known much about, or a toolkit that they’re able to download, I hope that the learning continues for our audience.
Shelagh: I would just encourage anyone who’s listening to provide us feedback. It’s really important to us. If there are specific topics that people want to hear about, we’d love to hear from you – you can reach out through Digital Health Canada. On that note, I’ll ask you: going forward in 2025, what are the topics that you would like to hear about?
Katie: Speaking purely personally, I’m interested in that career transition where you move from being wholly an individual contributor to starting to work through others. It’s a real mindset shift. I’ve been asking leaders in my own life how they have navigated it, and I’m sure other people in similar positions are going through similar things, so that might be a good one to speak to.
Shelagh: It’s an interesting point. We often begin the episodes with the question around asking people how they got to where they are, and so it’s really interesting to see different career paths.
Katie: And this is your first podcast that you’ve been regularly part of. What’s it been like being on the other side of the mic?
Shelagh: I think you have a real gift—and you always have—of making guests feel comfortable. You do the same with your co-host. I think just being curious and asking questions of people feels pretty natural. It took me a little bit of getting used to listening to my own voice. I’m over that now. I’ve really been enjoying it. I would encourage anyone to give it a try. We’ve had a lot of first-time podcasters on our episodes, and we always get really positive feedback. What about for you?
Katie: I have done many different types of podcasts, but this is the first time that I’ve really had a co-host. So I’d say the nice thing about podcasting is no matter how many shows you do, there’s always something new to learn. It’s a lot more fun with a co-host, especially because it is you, and we do have a good relationship as a foundation. It’s nice to have someone else to bounce ideas off of, and to work with Digital Health Canada. It feels good to have a team.
So if you had to think about a key highlight or a key lesson, what would yours be for 2024?
Shelagh: I guess a couple of things come to mind. Working with Digital Health Canada and brainstorming our first episodes: “Oh, yeah, we could talk about this! Oh, yeah, let’s do this!” The second one was the episode on leadership in challenging times with Victoria Lee and Tracey MacArthur. I just remember something that Dr. Lee said. We were talking about COVID as a challenging time, and she suggested that, you know, we are perhaps even in more challenging times than COVID, because of addiction, mental health issues, housing crises, natural disasters. We are in a very polycrisis time, and that really resonated with me. Just the fact that leaders – and anybody working in the health industry – is dealing with so much, and to see the resilience, and the passion, and the dedication of the leaders, but also the people with whom they work. I often quote that episode. It meant a lot to me, and I hadn’t thought of it that way.
Katie: There are many highlights, but if I only have a few to talk about right now… When we talked about “Health Care for the Whole Person,” with Dr. Andrew Boozary and Pam Nolan from First Nations Digital Health Ontario. First of all, the way in which they approach their work was really inspiring to me. And also, that reframing on how we think of health and wellness and determinants of health. I’ve always deeply resonated with the notion that health care is so much more than health care, right? It’s everything that makes up a person and their context. The way that they have embedded that in their work was really powerful for me. Something that I often quote to myself, is our second episode, with Jennifer Urosevic, when she said she had a leader who told her, “We want to do scary things.” I think about that a lot. “I want to do scary things.” And seeing that chain: a leader instilled that in her, she’s now shared that, and I’ve taken it on. We teach and influence each other as people, and we pass on the best of our leadership experiences.
What are you looking forward to in 2025?
Shelagh: I want to nail saying, “I’m a digital health professional turned podcaster.” But honestly, I think really more of the same and I look forward to hearing more from listeners. We’ve got so many challenges, but there’s so much progress being made, and it’s an interesting time to be in digital health. There are so many great people in this industry as well, and having that opportunity to sit down and get their advice and their wisdom, is an amazing privilege. I’m really looking forward to that continuing in 2025.
Katie: Echoing all of the above. Also, my hope for the podcast is that it can really be this resource that people can use to learn more about specific digital health topics, but also to enhance their own leadership and career journeys. I hope that people are reflecting on and sharing things that they’ve learned. And I hope we can bring these conversations to many more people as well.
We hope you enjoyed this bonus behind the scenes chat. Until our next episode, further your career journey by exploring Digital Health Canada’s many learning resources. Thank you for tuning in to Digital Health in Canada, the Digital Health Canada podcast, and our best wishes for 2025!
Shelagh Maloney is an accomplished healthcare executive with a proven track record in portfolios as diverse as business development, stakeholder engagement and governance. She is a Digital Health Canada Fellow and recipient of Digital Health Canada’s Inaugural Women Leaders in Digital Health Award. Katie Bryski is a podcaster and health professional with interests in policy, strategy, engagement, and digital health.