CHIEF Executive Forum Fall25 Symposium

Shelagh Maloney’s career has been defined by a passion for digital health and its transformative ability to improve the patient and provider experience. Prior to assuming the role of CEO, Digital Health Canada, Shelagh held national executive leadership roles in both the public and private sectors where she earned widespread recognition for her business development, relationship management, consensus-building, and communication skills.

A dedicated advocate for innovation and equity through digital health, Shelagh has shaped policy and practice through influential volunteer roles. She is currently Vice -Chair, Vision Loss Rehab Canada and has served as Vice Chair of SNOMED International, Board Chair of Digital Health Canada, and Board Director, Mississauga Halton Local Health Integration Network (LHIN). Shelagh holds a B.Sc . in Applied Health Sciences from the University of Waterloo and is a Certified Professional in Health Information & Management Systems (CPHIMS-CA).

In recognition of her contributions to the industry, Shelagh was an inaugural recipient of the Women Leaders in Digital Health in 2017 and was named a Digital Health Canada Fellow in 2023.

Jaason Gerts is:
- Vice-President of Research and Leadership Development, Canadian College of Health Leaders (CCHL)
- an associate at the Centre for International Human Resource Management (CIHRM) Cambridge Judge Business School
- an adjunct professor at the Telfer School of Management (University of Ottawa)

Jaason earned a PhD from the University of Cambridge and three postgraduate degrees from the University of Toronto and Cambridge.
He is a TEDx and keynote speaker, publishes in international peer-reviewed journals and the Globe and Mail, and gives interviews for CBC national news and CTV news. He was an invited expert consultant for the International Hospital Federation (IHF) and a WHO symposium on pandemic recovery. His model of leadership in a crisis is the theoretical basis for a recent $450,000 CIHR grant.
Jaason is also a program director and instructor at the Telfer School of Management and the Schulich School of Business (Toronto).
Jaason is also a qualified teacher and was nominated for the Toronto Star’s Teacher of the Year.

Ted Alexander is Vice President of Partnerships and Clinical Innovation at Amplify Care, where he has played a key role in forging strong relationships across sectors, crucial in advancing our mission to improve healthcare delivery. With 25 years of experience in governance, public policy, and healthcare communication, Ted is a strategic leader dedicated to driving healthcare innovation. His work focuses on transforming primary and integrated care through change management, data standardization, and knowledge translation.

Dr. Laura Copeland is an Emergency Physician practicing Medical Psychotherapy, a certified change facilitator, and a medical informatics specialist. She has 18 years of experience planning and implementing electronic solutions, while advocating for and supporting the adoption of technology in healthcare.

Dr. Copeland has assumed key leadership roles in many complex hospital-based health information systems across Canada and the United States. She is a proven leader in clinical standardization, change leadership, governance, strategic planning, and innovative solutioning. Dr. Copeland’s dream job is to mentor colleagues learning to be informatics specialists, sleuth out root causes, create networks for sharing best practices, and leverage her experience and clinical background to inspire change and happiness within organizations.

Kyle is a healthcare Account Executive with proven a background and experience leading teams to create innovative solutions and services to solve customer challenges. His sales background is coupled with extensive experience in solutions selling and business development by utilizing technical, marketing and operations teams. He has a background which includes 19 years devoted to the Canadian public sector in Canada including healthcare, education, federal, provincial and local governments. He has also developed extension relationships with healthcare strategist and senior leadership in the United States from his experience at Dell and VMware.

Kyle is responsible for Amazon Web Service’s (AWS) relationships within the Ontario Healthcare market. In addition to his direct role Kyle also serves as a healthcare lead within AWS Canada. AWS aims to help Canadian healthcare customers employ cloud services to reduce cost, drive efficiencies and increase innovation across the country. In his role, Kyle is responsible for the awareness, education and adoption of AWS by healthcare customers in Ontario and across Canada. He is also an active participant with Digital Health Canada as well as continued involvement with CHIEF (Canadian Health Informatics Executive Forum).

Kyle has an honorus degree from Wilfrid Laurier University, resides in Port Credit, Mississauga and is an active coach with the Port Credit Hockey Association and Mississauga Majors baseball association.

Kevin began his healthcare journey with Strata Health in 2003, answering support calls.
During that time, he developed great respect and compassion for healthcare workers, which
nurtured his commitment to providing value through technology. Strata Health’s
vision of improving patient care, reducing healthcare costs, and supporting healthcare workers through technology aligned with his personal values.
As his career progressed at the company, so did his passion for digital health solutions

His passion for digital health has grown through my work, leading to international travel to
work with health systems beyond our country’s borders and connections with organizations
like Digital Health Canada, CHIEF, and ANHIX

Michael Millar is the CEO and Founder of Verto Health and an Adjunct Lecturer at the Institute of Health Policy, Management, and Evaluation at the University of Toronto. As a computer scientist and a Master of Health Informatics, Michael combines his deep understanding of modern technology with a system-level understanding of the complexities of healthcare management to create innovative solutions for long standing problems in care coordination. Michael's experience in health administration at the Ministry of Health, AVP of Business Intelligence in finance, and 18+ years of software development helps him navigate the complicated world of digital health with confidence and clarity as he works to transform healthcare.

Alisa Simon brings more than 30 years of leadership experience in health-care access and non-profit management to her role as Group Head and Executive Vice President, e-Mental Health Transformation and Clinical Services at Kids Help Phone. As a champion of innovation, Alisa is integral to the organization’s development of virtual health solutions for youth. Using comprehensive data and research, Alisa drives improvements in e-mental health services and strategies that respond to evolving technologies and the changing needs of young people. Under Alisa’s leadership, Kids Help Phone has evolved from a phone-based helpline to a comprehensive solution that fully integrates a growing number of access points, programs and resources. In her role, Alisa oversees Kids Help Phone’s 24/7 clinical services as well as the organization’s knowledge translation, quality assurance and equity programs.

Alisa holds a Master’s degree in Public Health from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. She received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2013 and was named the Digital Health Canada 2021 Digital Health Executive of the Year. Alisa volunteers on many national boards and committees.

In her spare time, Alisa enjoys being a mom and travelling the world with her husband.

Dr. Tania Tajirian is an associate scientist and currently serves in dual leadership roles as the inaugural Chief Health Information Officer (CHIO) and Chief of Hospital Medicine at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). She is also an associate professor and academic hospitalist in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Toronto.

Dr. Tajirian’s contributions to patient care and health innovation have earned her numerous awards, including the 2022 Most Influential Women in Health IT Award from the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) and recognition from Women Leaders in Digital Health Canada.

Mannie Chhabra,

Dr. Damian Jankowicz joined Unity Health Toronto in 2023 from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), where he was most recently the Vice President, Information Management, Chief Information Officer and Chief Privacy Officer.

He is a visionary and strategic leader with a track record of delivering complex initiatives, building highly effective teams, and fostering relationships to propel clinician engagement and digital transformation. With established credibility in digital healthcare environments, Damian will co-lead the implementation of Unity Health’s Electronic Patient Record (EPR). Damian has significant experience engaging clinical teams to transform care. In 2021, Damian received the international HIMSS Changemaker in Health Award for clinician engagement and harnessing the power of information and technology to transform care and research.

Damian holds a PhD from McMaster University specializing in artificial intelligence, machine learning and computational modelling. He is an Adjunct Professor at Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto where he teaches health informatics.

Yassine Lazraq is Investment Director at Scale AI, Canada’s artificial intelligence innovation hub, where he leads national investments in AI-powered innovation across all industries, with a focus on transforming value chains and driving impact in sectors such as healthcare. In this role, he oversees the identification and evaluation of high-potential projects, conducts in-depth technical and financial due diligence, structures funding agreements, and manages strategic partnerships with private and public sector leaders to drive large-scale AI adoption.

Before joining Scale AI, Yassine was Vice President in the Quantitative Research group at JPMorgan Chase in London, developing advanced models for derivatives pricing. He brings a deep background in applied mathematics and combines analytical depth with strategic capital deployment to accelerate AI adoption at scale.

Jennifer Sheils is the Vice President of Strategy, Transformation and the Chief Innovation Officer for Horizon Health Network. To ensure a focused and coordinated approach to strategy and innovation, Jennifer leads this unique portfolio that encompasses the programs of continuous improvement, transformation, change management, and business intelligence.

She is also the executive leader responsible for the oversight of our IT systems, technology, cybersecurity, and e-health strategy for digital transformation.

Jennifer is part of the Executive Leadership team at Horizon, is a Board Director for the Canadian College of Health Leaders, sits on the Advisory Committee for Digital Health Canada Atlantic Chapter, and is a member of the Canadian Health Information Executive Forum (CHIEF). Jennifer is also a member of the CAN Health Network National Board of Directors and an advisory member for the National AI Council in Healthcare.