Andrew has a wide variety of experience from across Canada. He started his career as a RN in London, Ontario working in the Emergency Department there at the Victoria General campus. During his time there he also worked as an Agency Nurse through Southwestern Ontario and taught clinical rotations with the University of Western Ontario. He then moved into Clinical Education and was part of the implementation team on the HUGO project at LHSC, taking the lead role on the physician informatics track of that project. He then joined Cerner for almost 2 years as the Engagement Leader at LHSC on the Managed Services team, helping ensure their system ran smoothly. Next was a year long consulting engagement in Vancouver helping the CST project in a variety of areas including physician workflow, order sets, training and education and go-live support. Andrew then moved out to Nova Scotia working with the Nova Scotia Health Authority in a variety of roles including Director of Clinical Applications, Chief Information Officer and lastly as the Chief Nursing Informatics Officer. Most recently Andrew has re-joined the Cerner team as a Client Accountable Executive, looking after the Atlantic provinces. Here he’ll be helping drive adoption of digital health tools and assisting with the optimization of the clinical information systems used by clients in this area.
How long have you been a member of Digital Health Canada?
7 years
Why do you want to join the Digital Health Canada Board of Directors at this point in your career?
I’ve gained a lot of experience in digital healthcare and healthcare more broadly since becoming a Registered Nurse in London, ON in 2006. I believe I’ve developed a lot of skills and knowledge that will assist Digital Health Canada in its priorities of Empowering Individuals, Knowledge sharing and life-long learning, and Advancement and advocacy. I have served on several other boards both within and without of digital health, with a strong desire to help those various groups and organizations be as effective and successful as possible. I have worked in a multitude of areas from front line nursing, to executive leadership and believe that that combination of perspectives and experience will allow me to provide guidance and knowledge to Digital Health Canada as it carries on with its work advocating for stronger digital health across the country.
How does your experience align with the Digital Health Canada strategic plan and mandate?
My experience is very much aligned with the Digital Health Canada strategic plan and Mission, Vision, and Values. I have been on the path of life-long learning since going back to university at age 25 to get my bachelor’s in nursing and then my master’s in health informatics later in my career. I’ve continued to pursue educational opportunities and taken the time to share my knowledge through mentoring opportunities and volunteer boards of various groups in the communities I’ve lived in. Empowering individuals has been a strong driver through my career, from my days doing clinical education of 2nd and 3rd year nursing students at the University of Western Ontario, to participation in mentorship programs for emerging health informatics professionals. Getting all people involved in digital health regardless of position, rank, or experience provides a richer experience for us all and helps to ensure knowledge is shared broadly. Lastly, my advocacy days began at the bedside. Advocating for safe and compassionate care for my patients and their families. It has continued in my informatics career, still maintaining the patient at the core of my advocacy but becoming broader. I’ve continued to look at ways we can improve access to care across the country, reduce costs in what is one of the more expensive healthcare systems across the globe, and reduce unnecessary barriers to the sharing of data and knowledge across health systems and geographies. All of this is done with a view to advancing digital health in Canada and to increase the adoption of standardized tools wherever possible to help improve healthcare delivery.
What unique skills, perspectives and contributions would you bring to the Digital Health Canada Board?
I bring with me years of front-line clinical knowledge combined with more years of healthcare IT expertise gained in both the public and private sectors. The combination of those experience and perspectives allow me to provide insights from multiple angles, being as inclusive as possible of all groups and ways of tackling problems. All of us involved in healthcare want to do better for patients and citizens across the country and I believe my knowledge and experience can help move that agenda forward in collaboration with the rest of the Board at Digital Health Canada.
Do you or have or have you ever had any direct patient care experience (clinical)?
I worked in London, Ontario from 2006-2012 as a front-line Registered Nurse in the Emergency Department at Victoria Hospital. Additionally, I worked with a nursing staffing agency in St. Catharines and Niagara Falls from 2008-2010 in various Emergency Departments in the Niagara region.
What segments within the Digital Health Canada community do you feel you will best represent? Select all that apply.
- Executives/CIOs
- Telehealth
- Clinicians
- Vendors
- IM/IT Practitioners
- Leaders
With which Digital Health Canada committees, task groups or activities have you volunteered in past five years? Describe your most significant contributions to Digital Health Canada’s mission.
I have been involved in the planning of eHealth previously, on the presentation review committee. I’ve also assisted in developing/reviewing material for the CPHIMS-CA study guide. Additionally, I’ve served as part of the CHIEF Advisory Board for the past year, assisting with white paper development, and advising on priority areas for Digital Health Canada and the CHIEF group to focus on such as Virtual Care which has been so important for the COVID pandemic response.
What other board appointments or relevant leadership experiences have you had in the past five years?
I currently sit on the Council of the College of Paramedics in Nova Scotia and have been there for over a year. As part of that council, I chair the Appointment committee which selects new membership to join the Council. • For the past 2 years I’ve volunteered with the Global Health Conference Education Committee with HIMSS, helping to select the presentations for HIMSS20, HIMSS21, and HIMS22. • I’ve been part of the HIMSS ELF Mentorship program since 2020, providing mentorship for emerging professionals on digital health in Canada. • I’m also currently part of the CHIEF Advisory Board, which is part of Digital Health Canada. • I previously served on the Board of the Bluenose Chapter of the Canadian College of Health Leaders in Atlantic Canada. • Lastly, I’m part of the local volunteer fire department in LaHave, Nova Scotia.
Please tell us why you feel Digital Health Canada members should vote for you.
I believe my knowledge as a clinician, combined with my expertise in Health Informatics qualify me to help guide Digital Health Canada on where their areas of focus should be and how we advocate for greater collaboration and integration of digital health across the country. I have always believed in life-long learning and the need to constantly educate myself and continue to encourage that behaviour in those I lead and work with. Digital Health is one of the many venues I leverage for that continuous learning. Lastly, I believe in the power and strength of relationships and value what we can learn from each other. You don’t need to be 20 years into your career to have valuable input or insights, we can and should all take the time to listen to all perspectives and integrate other points of view into our work.
Do you currently hold the Certified Professional in Healthcare Information and Management Systems – Canada (CPHIMS-CA) credential?
Yes
What is your educational background? Please list all degrees and designations.
Bachelors of Science in Nursing – University of Western Ontario, 2006 Masters of Science – Health Informatics – University of Victoria, 2020 CPHIMS-CA, Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMMS), 2018 EXTRA Fellow (Cohort 15), Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement (CFHI), 2020
