The Healthcare Hub Podcast

Creating the Healthcare Hub podcast was an intellectually stimulating endeavour. We had the privilege of connecting with leaders throughout the healthcare industry, whose stories and words of wisdom resonated with us in each episode. Through their narratives, we were able to gain insight into the various motivations that drive individuals to pursue careers in healthcare. For many, their passion for the field was palpable, with many describing how the opportunity to serve their communities and make a meaningful impact on the lives of others. Others shared their excitement about the evolving nature of healthcare, with the constant adaptation and drive towards improvement being a source of inspiration.

As we reflect on the journey we've taken together throughout this series, we are struck by the vastness of the healthcare system. From the latest advancements in medical research and healthcare technology, to the process of commercializing new medicines, to the challenges facing government and public institutions in delivering sustainable models of care, we have delved into a diverse range of topics.

Thank you for being a listener. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to you for joining us on this journey. 

Welcome back to the HealthcareHub!

We kick off episode 26 with a discussion of Buurtzorg, a nurse-led holistic care model revolutionizing community care in the Netherlands. We then speak to Katie Devine, a veteran at Johnson and Johnson and a recognized leader in the global life sciences industry. With more than 25 years of experience working in both consumer health and pharmaceuticals, today Katie Devine is the President of Janssen General Medicines, including Cardiovascular & Metabolism as well as Infectious Diseases and Vaccines in the U.S. We cover a range of topics, from innovation in the pharmaceutical industry, managing change in large organizations, career growth and reflection, and the importance of taking care of yourself. We hope you enjoy this episode! 

Welcome back to the HealthcareHub!

We are so excited to ramp up with season two of the show. We first introduce our new cohost, Sarosh, and dive a little bit into Woebot, a mental health application powered by AI. We then speak to Chelsea Sumner PharmD, Healthcare AI Startups Lead at NVIDIA. Chelsea shares some of her insights bringing her knowledge from the pharmaceutical industry to the growing health tech space. We get to learn some amazing ways NVIDIA is working to empower researchers, hospitals, and start-ups to bring innovative solutions to patients. Finally, we close off the episode with a discussion on reducing medical disparities by understanding the needs of diverse communities.

Welcome back to HealthcareHub!

This week we had the chance to speak with Keltie Gale, Director of Strategy and Policy at Santis Health. Keltie gave us some incredible insights into the process of stakeholder engagement and how change can be accelerated in the Canadian healthcare system.  We had the chance to learn about some unique projects at the growing practice at Santis, definitely check this one out! To kick off the episode Abhinav dives into Pillcheck, a Toronto-based DNA testing service that helps identify the right medication at the right dosage while minimizing negative side effects.

Sponsors 

DIHLC (Degroote Interprofessional Health Leadership Conference): https://dihlc.mystrikingly.com/

Fares Issa Instagram: @Mortgages.by.fares  

Welcome back everyone!

Today we had the pleasure to speak with Karen Belaire, the President and CEO of Shared Services West! SSW is a not-for-profit shared services organization with expertise in supply chain management, process optimization, and redevelopment planning. Karen told us all about what it's been like climbing up the ranks in public healthcare organizations through financial skills, being a leader in the McMaster University administration, acting as a board member in a range of organizations, and now leading Canadian healthcare from a logistics standpoint!

Abhinav kicks off the episode with an intro to blockchain and some of it's applications in healthcare, so there is a lot to learn in this episode all around.

Thanks for listening!

Hey Everyone!

We're back with a new guest from a new industry in Episode 22! This time around we met with Amanda Daley, the Head of Medical at Canopy Growth, one of Canada’s leading cannabis producers with a focus on research, product development and innovative production capabilities. Amanda’s role includes all Canadian commercial medical activities for Spectrum Therapeutics, the medical division of Canopy Growth, including overseeing sales & marketing, and the creation and implementation of continuing medical education (CME) programs for healthcare professionals. 

With other previous experience in the pharmaceutical industry at Solvay and Pfizer, Amanda brought some great insights on how education can be used to drive uptake of new products, along with how she shook the stigma of jumping from pharmaceuticals to medical cannabis, where she sees the industry headed in the future, and other fun tales from Canopy Growth!

Before we jump into the interview, Tyler brings forward some new research breakthroughs from the field of developing animal organs for use in human transplants. We certainly learned about some interesting new topics this time around and we can't wait for you to join us!

We’re back with Episode 21!

On this episode we had the chance to meet Philippe Leblond. Formerly a marketing leader with Paladin Labs, Shire, and Takeda, Philippe is now leveraging his experience in the pharmaceutical by founding OpenHuddle, a media agency focused on delivering strategic marketing campaigns in the healthcare industry. He brought us some great insights on how to first enter the industry, how to bring value to a pharmaceutical role without a clinical background, and the challenges and triumphs of starting your own firm!

Abhinav kicks off the episode with a quick lesson on some lesser-known information about the global pharmaceutical supply chain as well.

Can’t wait to hear your thoughts!

Welcome to Episode 20! 

This time around we are joined by Muhammad Mamdani, the Vice President of Data Science & Advanced Analytics at Unity Health Toronto, the Director of the Li Ka Shing Centre for Healthcare Analytics Research and Training at St Michael's Hospital, and the Director of the Temerty Centre for Artificial Intelligence Research and Education in Medicine at the University of Toronto.

With so many interesting roles on his plate, Muhammad brought us some exciting tales from throughout his career like developing an analytical tool that centralize information about homeless patients during the pandemic, conducting research on the health outcomes of hospitalized COVID-19 patients, and much more!

Before hearing all of Muhammad's fantastic insights about careers in data science and leveraging a diverse educational background, Tyler kicks off the episode with a rapid-fire news update on vaccine development.

Thanks for listening everyone!

Welcome to Episode 19!

This week we had the chance to chat with Greg Chow, the Vice President of Finance and Partnerships and Chief Financial Officer at Women’s College Hospital in Toronto! Greg gave some fantastic insights into how he translated his business education into the healthcare setting, the art of aligning financial planning with strategic thinking, bringing innovation to hospitals, and Women’s College Hospital’s mission focused on health equity!

Abhinav also brought forward some interesting insights on 23andMe entering the pharmaceutical space.

Can’t wait to hear your thoughts!

Welcome to Episode 18!

We’re joined this time by Dr. Carmine Simone, an Assistant Professor in the Thoracic Surgery Division at the University of Toronto, as well as a thoracic surgeon and Interim Vice President of Clinical Programs at Michael Garron Hospital. He brings some fantastic insights on implementing clinical projects, staying in the loop on new clinical technologies, acting as a link between business leaders and healthcare providers, and much more!

We also start off the episode with a quick update on current views on COVID-19 vaccine boosters from Tyler.

Thanks for listening!

Episode 17 has arrived! Anshita Rai, the Director of Healthcare Markets for Commercial Financial Services at the Royal Bank of Canada, joins us on this episode to discuss her career journey from biotechnology innovation research into the exciting world of commercial banking. 

Anshita provided some fantastic insights on the skillsets that translate from science to business, how banking services play a critical role in clinical success, and what innovations are coming to commercial banking in healthcare in the future.

Abhinav then finishes off the episode by providing some info on starting a career in investment banking in healthcare.

Thank you to Anshita for joining us and to all of our listeners for following along!

Hey everyone!

We're back this week in a conversation with Bella Yoro, the Director of Strategy at conversationHealth. Bella boasts an academic and professional background spanning from Asia to Canada that took her on a journey from clinical trial research to personal coaching to consulting to digital health strategy! ConversationHEALTH is a conversational AI (artificial intellignece) platform that uses chatbot technology to help life sciences companies deliver clinical, medical, and commercial messaging.

To kick of the episode, Tyler provides a brief introduction to some of the venture capital opportunities available for health care and biotechnology companies in Canada.

Thanks for tuning in!

Hey everyone!

While we get ready for our next set of interviews, we thought we'd take a moment to reflect on what we've learned during our first 14 episodes!

Abhinav and Tyler go over some of the key themes and takeaways that really caught their attention in past interviews and look forward to what's coming up in the future.

We'd also love to hear your thoughts on the show thus far so we can make it even better. If you have a chance we'd love your feedback at the following link: https://forms.gle/adpuujs3MiQjggZY6

Thanks for listening!

Welcome to Episode 14!

On this episode we welcome to the show Greg Kennedy, the Director of Strategy at the Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids). We learned all about how he balances operational efficiency with the upbeat culture at SickKids, how navigating through the USA healthcare system was different, how innovation will play a huge role in technological progression in hospitals, and more!

Abhinav also sheds light on some experimental research that studies the re-opening of clubs in the UK, while Tyler takes a look at CANImmunize, a new Canadian online vaccination booking platform that has established itself during the pandemic.

We're excited to be back and can't wait for you to see our exciting upcoming lineup of guests!

Welcome to Episode 13 of the HealthcareHub Podcast! We’re back with one of our most exciting episodes yet.

This week we welcome Fabien Paquette, Vaccines Canada Lead and General Manager at Pfizer. Fabien has obviously had quite the adventure over the course of the pandemic this past year, but he also boasts a long history of business leadership in the pharmaceutical industry even prior to joining Pfizer. We of course dove into the journey of bringing a vaccine to the public in record time, as well as where vaccine rollout seems to be headed from Fabien’s perspective.

Ahead of the interview, Tyler sets the stage with a rapid-fire update on a variety of news for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, while Abhinav finishes us off with a spotlight on Zipline, a life-saving drone delivery company for medical supplies.

Thanks for tuning in and we can’t wait to hear your thoughts!

References:

https://www.coastreporter.net/bc-news/pfizer-accelerates-summer-vaccine-deliveries-moves-up-5m-doses-to-june-3589147

https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/coronavirus/pfizer-says-its-covid-19-vaccine-protection-lasts-at-least-six-months-1.5371115

https://yaledailynews.com/blog/2021/04/04/pfizer-vaccine-leads-to-signficantly-lower-case-rates/

https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2021/03/pfizer-biontech-covid-vaccine-effective-teens

https://globalnews.ca/news/7690900/pfizer-children-coronavirus-vaccination7690900/

Welcome back to the Healthcare Hub!

On this episode we meet Neil Shah, the Executive Director at Queen Square Family Health. Neil has experience in a vast range of public health organizations since his completion of the DeGroote MBA program and shared some great insights with us in this interview. We discuss his progression between project management roles in differing clinical areas, working with a board of directors, how to continue learning after graduation, and much more!

Abhinav also brings us an update on the deal between Canada and the USA to acquire more AstraZeneca vaccine doses, while Tyler takes a look at Raziel Health, the smart home device for remote patient monitoring.

Welcome back to HealthcareHub!

This week we had the chance to speak with Mike Heenan, currently a professor in Health Services Management at the DeGroote School of Business, as well as Assistant Deputy Minister of Hospitals and Capital at the Government of Ontario. Mike had some great stories about how you can have a big impact on public health at the government level, how to get your hands on new opportunities within your organization, and how a lifelong journey through education has helped mold the way he approaches healthcare leadership.

To start off the episode, Tyler takes a look at how vaccine distributions have been handled for Canada's Indigenous population so far, while Abhinav closes off the episode with our guest Joel Muise, Co-founder & CEO of Tranquility Online -- a new platform to receive affordable help for anxiety & depression.

Let's dive into it!

Welcome back to the Healthcare Hub!

In this episode we had the chance to speak with Andrew Casey, President and CEO of BIOTECanada. This organization is the national industry asociation advocating on behalf of over 200 member organizations in the biotechnology field. Andrew shared some great insights on a career in politics, where he sees various industries within biotech trending in the future, and Canada's response to the quick demand for vaccines.

Abhinav kicks off the episode with a look into how Israel has become a world leader in vaccine distribution while Tyler closes us off with a spotlight on Acorn Biolabs, a cell cryopreservation company looking to keep you prepared for future regenerative medicine use. 

All that and more this week on the Healthcare Hub!

Welcome to our first Healthcare Hub double-header interview! 

This week we take a deep dive on consulting careers in healthcare. First, Tyler takes a quick look at how consulting firms are supporting vaccine rollouts around the world. Then our interview this week features Sahar Dawi, Manager of Health and Public Service at Accenture, and Sukhman Kalra, Global Health Executive at KPMG. They provide some great insights on different paths involved with breaking into consulting, the ins-and-outs of their roles, and how those roles have changed during the pandemic. To finish us off, Abhinav provides his review of a great book on Change Management!

Looking forward to hearing everyone's thoughts!

Welcome to another jam-packed episode of HealthcareHub! This week our focus is on medical devices. First, Tyler gets into the increasing need for cybersecurity in medical devices. Then we had the chance to speak with Susan May, General Manager of Healthcare Systems at GE Health Canada. She let us in on how she’s gradually climbed up to new positions at GE and approached opportunities to launch new projects throughout her career. Finally, Abhinav puts a spotlight on Prismatic Sensors, a CT scan technology recently acquired by GE Health.

Thanks for listening!

Welcome to Episode 7! This episode focuses on the way healthcare is being transformed using digital innovations. We begin with Abhinav providing an update on Deloitte's new deal with Canada's federal government to build a computer system to manage Canada's COVID-19 vaccine rollout. Then we had the chance to speak with Kirsten Creber, Manager of Digital Care on Deloitte's Health Transformation team. She provided some great insights on how she used her diverse range of experiences to kick off a career in consulting. Finally. Tyler sheds a spotlight on Aetonix, a patient monitoring platform being used to connect patients with both their caregivers and healthcare providers. Enjoy!

Welcome to the Healthcare Hub! We start this episode with Tyler talking about the Kitcherner-Waterloo region and their recent investments in health tech innovation. We then speak to Alex Senson, Senior Business Strategist at the Research Innovation Commercialization (RIC) Center, who explains his role in helping new technology startups get off the ground.  Finally, Abhinav closes off the episode with some thought leadership on crisis management for a new startup and the role of a mentor or startup coach.

Welcome to the Healthcare Hub Season 2! We start this episode with Abhinav talking about the new variant of COVID-19, and what this means for vaccine development and efficacy. Next, we speak to Arpit Chabra,  a Medical Science Liason at AMGEN who explains his role and the importance of clear, patient-centered communication in a pharmaceutical setting.  Finally, Tyler closes the episode by providing more information on the biotechnology and clinical advancements at Medicago, Canada's frontrunner for the COVID-19 vaccine. 

In this episode, we take a look at healthcare, hospitals, and community health from a business perspective! In our news segment, Tyler updates us on vaccine dissemination in Ontario and requests the Ontario Hospital Association has made to the Ontario government. Then we interviewed Hazim Hassan, Vice President of Business and Strategy at the Ontario Hospital Association. We discuss his transition from a business-focused background to a career in healthcare, how his business skills help him lead the Ontario Hospital Association, and how the hospital system can learn from the pandemic moving forward. Finally, Abhinav gives us some background on H1 – a networking platform for healthcare professionals.

You’re not going to want to miss this one!

In this episode, we take a deep dive into artificial intelligence! First Abhinav provides an update on GE Healthcare's AI Platform, Edison Marketplace. Then, we sit down with Shreshth Gandhi, Machine Learning Lead at Deep Genomics, to discuss his career in AI research and work in drug development. Finally, Tyler puts a spotlight on Aifred Heath, a startup focusing on AI in mental health treatment. Thanks for listening!

Welcome to Episode 2 of the Healthcare Hub! The focus of this episode is community care!

We begin this episode with our HealthHub News segment,  where we talk about St. Joseph's Health Systems and their new COVID Care @ Home model. This new model will provide 24/7 access to high-quality care from one integrated team in the home and in community settings such as retirement homes, shelters, and hospices. We then follow with an interesting discussion with John Yip, where he talks about his career in consulting, role as President and CEO of Kensington Health, and passion for long-distance running. 

Welcome to Episode 1 of the Healthcare Hub!

We begin this episode with our HealthHub News segment,  where we explore the global supply chain of Pfizer for the distribution of their COVID-19 vaccine. We then follow with an interesting discussion with Carl Duda, Business Head of Oncology and Hematology at Jazz Pharmaceuticals, where he talks about his progressive roles throughout the company and gives advice to young professionals looking to work in the pharmaceutical space.  We finish the episode with our StartHub Spotlight segment, with a discussion on Aspect Biosystems, a biotechnology company based out of Vancouver working on 3D printing of cellular tissues.

How can the healthcare system integrate digital technologies to improve the continuum of patient care? How can new startups leverage AI advancements for early detection of infectious diseases and cancer screening? How do pharmaceutical companies ensure a secure supply of vaccines and essential medicines for countries around the world? 

At the HealthcareHub Podcast, we are interested in the business of healthcare. Welcome to our first episode, where we introduce ourselves as hosts. and provide a description of the overall structure of our podcast series. We look forward to sharing new insights with you in the months to come. 

Abhinav Bhatnagar & Tyler Boulanger