Heidi Kutz, Deputy Consul General – Consulate General of Canada, New York

Heidi Kutz has been Canada’s Deputy Consular General  in New York since 2013.  She began her career in Canada’s Department of External Affairs and International Trade in 1995, where her positions have included working in Peacebuilding and Human Security and as Canada-U.S. Advocacy and Liaison in Mexico and North America Divisions.

In 2001 Ms. Kutz become program manager of Canada’s Embassy in Mexico and Director of the Central America and Caribbean Division in 2007. In 2010, she was named Director General of the Security and Intelligence Bureau, and served as Canadian Ambassador to Portugal between 2011 and 2013.

Brenda L. Banwell, MD, Chief, Division of Neurology, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Professor of Neurology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania

Dr. Banwell graduated with a degree in medicine from The University of Western Ontario in 1991. She pursued a residency in pediatrics at The Hospital of Western Ontario, University of Western Ontario, from 1991-1994 and a pediatric neurology residency at The Hospital for Sick Children, University of Toronto from 1994-1997. Dr. Banwell then spent two years completing a neuromuscular disease fellowship at the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota.

In 1999, Dr. Banwell was appointed as an assistant professor of pediatrics (neurology) at the Hospital for Sick Children and University of Toronto. She was promoted to associate professor in 2006 and full professor in 2012. As of July 1, 2012, Dr. Banwell has taken on the role of chief of neurology at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

Judd E. Hollander, MD, Associate Dean for Strategic Health Initiatives at Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University and Professor & Vice Chair of Finance and Healthcare Enterprises in the Department of Emergency Medicine.

Dr. Hollander  is currently a Deputy Editor for the Annals of Emergency Medicine; has served as Associate Editor for Academic Emergency Medicine and as a reviewer for NEJM, JAMA, Circulation, JACC as well as many other EM and Cardiology journals. Dr. Hollander is a past President of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine, and past member of the SAEM Board of Directors (2000-2003, 2006-2009).

Dr. Hollander was the awarded the ACEP Award for Outstanding Research in 2001, the Hal Jayne SAEM Academic Excellence Award in 2003 and the SAEM Leadership Award in 2011.

Steven D. Freedman MD, PHD, Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School Chief, Division of Translational Research Director, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA

Dr. Freedman has a major focus on health care delivery reform that addresses structuring the doctor-patient encounter to build informed partnerships leading to sustained improvements in health outcomes (Passport to TRUST).

He has played a leadership role in clinical/translational research both at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and at Harvard Medical School through his prior role as the Associate Dean for Clinical and Translational Research and Co-director of the Harvard CTSA (Harvard Catalyst).

Currently Director of the Grant Review and Support Program (GRASP) of the Harvard Clinical and Translational Science Center, Dr. Freedman is also an internationally recognized leader in exocrine pancreatic disease with a particular focus on pancreatitis and cystic fibrosis.

Cricket Mitchell, PHD, Clinical Research Psychologist and Senior Associate, The California Institute for Behavioral Health Solutions (CIBHS), Sacramento, CA

Cricket Mitchell is a clinical research psychologist and Senior Associate with the California Institute for Behavioral Health Solutions (CIBHS).  Her areas of expertise are in research design and methodology, program evaluation, behavioral medicine, and cognitive behavioral interventions.

She is a graduate of the Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology between the University of California at San Diego and San Diego State University; and is particularly interested in the adoption of evidence-based practices in usual care settings, as well as data-driven decision-making in clinical service delivery.

Stephen Scroggs, Ph.D, Vice President, Government Affairs & Development, LTC (Ret), US Army, Infantry, Beacon Health Options, Washington, D.C.

Dr. Steve Scroggs has significant expertise in government affairs at the state, national and international levels.  He is responsible for strategic outreach and the establishment and strengthening of federal, state and local government relationships on behalf of ValueOptions Federal Services’ behavioral health and wellness programs.

 Dr. Scroggs has focused on developing more effective outreach and engagement solutions tailored for the nation’s military service and family members and he currently serves on the Board of Governors of the National Military Family Association (NMFA).

Previously, Dr. Scroggs was Co-Founder and EVP of Government Affairs at Calvert Health Partners; Vice President of Government Affairs at Sierra Military Health Services in TRICARE; and served as the Director of Asia Operations for the State of North Carolina in Tokyo, Japan working with Governor Jim Hunt and state legislators and officials where he received the highest civilian honor the Governor of North Carolina can bestow.

Darren Sudman, Executive Director, Simon’s Fund

Following the sudden death of his son Simon in 2012, Darren Sudman and his wife founded Simon’s Fund, raising awareness about conditions and warning signs that can lead to sudden cardiac arrest in children.

In his tenure as Executive Director, Mr. Sudman has helped Simon’s Fund surpass the 10,000 free heart screening mark; led efforts to pass the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Prevention Act in six states; expanded the cardiologist network to over 50 physicians; and recorded numerous PSAs with celebrities and professional athletes.

Mr. Sudman has taken the message about Simon’s Fund to the media including the TODAY Show, People Magazine, and the Wall Street Journal; he has launched Screen Across America, a collaborative site that promotes groups conducting heart screening across the country; and developed HeartBytes, a national cardiac youth registry of seemingly healthy kids.

Prior to his involvement in Simon’s Fund, Sudman practiced law, lobbied on Capitol Hill and managed marketing campaigns and business development deals for two Fortune 500 companies.

Gary Baksi, SVP Sales & General Manager, NexJ Health

Gary Baksi is responsible for the strategic direction and execution of NexJ Systems’ activities and success in the healthcare industry.

NexJ Connected Wellness is a revolutionary platform for patient empowerment. It is used to address poor health literacy and non-adherence with infographic patient education, foster greater collaboration between patients and their extended care team, and provide on-going support through personal health coaching to drive sustainable behavior change.

Since joining NexJ in 2011, Gary has applied his experience in enterprise, mission-critical IT solutions and health domain expertise to extending NexJ’s presence in the healthcare market and guiding product direction to support a people-centered approach to health care.

Gary’s experience extends across the entire spectrum of healthcare, having worked with acute, ambulatory, and primary care organizations, as well as payer organizations and governments.

Genady Knizhnik, VP Sales, North America, Forcare Canada Inc.

Genady Knizhnik has spent most of his career in healthcare IT. Before joining Forcare Canada Inc, he spent 12 years with Agfa HealthCare, helping with R&D, Sales and Business Development. In 2011 he relocated to Belgium (Agfa HQ) to develop Agfa’s Regional Health business across the EMEA region.

Genady returned to Canada in 2014 to join Forcare in the role of VP Sales, responsible for expanding Forcare’s partner and customer base in North America.

Forcare is one of the top providers of the standards-based clinical interoperability solutions for the healthcare market with a proven ability to enable different clinical systems to discover, exchange and visualize patient data.

Dr. Brian Morris, President and CEO, DoctorDirect

Dr. Morris received  a B.Sc. from McGill in 1970 and  a Doctorat en Médecine from Université de Reims, France, in 1977. He has a urology practice at the Westmount Medical Building in Montreal and operates at St. Mary’s Hospital, where he also conducts clinical teaching.

Dr. Morris is President and CEO of DoctorDirect, a free online service that allows patients to search for healthcare professionals and book appointments instantly, helps promote better access to healthcare in Canada. Founded in 2007, DoctorDirect.com has over 175 000 patients and over 250 healthcare professionals registered in Canada. DoctorDirect.com is located in Montreal, Quebec.

Dr Morris is Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and is a member of medical associations including the  Canadian Medical Association (CMA), Quebec Medical Association (QMA), Canadian Urological Association (CUA), and the European Association of Urology (EAU).

Rajiv Muradia, President and CEO, MobileWellbeing Inc.

President and CEO Rajiv Muradia has founded several companies successfully and has helped a number of startup efforts with their product strategy, positioning and technology visions. He has a wealth of experience in technology, management and business development capacities in various domains from web e-commerce, m-health as well as mobile application platforms.

His company MobileWellbeing Inc. (MWB) develops mobile healthcare applications for the wellness and chronic disease management markets in developing and emerging countries.

For the developed markets, MobileWellbeing supports applications for prevention and the management of various disease conditions, ranging from the “worried-well” to chronic disease. For emerging markets, MobileWellbeing supports applications in the community through kiosks and healthcare case workers visits helping with consultations between patients and remote specialists.

Howard Rosen, MBA, President, CEO LifeWIRE

Howard developed the LifeWIRE patent pending population management communication platform to provide personalized, responsive interactions between parties such as health care providers and patients, to help with treatment adherence and patient engagement.

An mHealth thought leader having been named one of the top 100 Innovators of the Next Century (Rockefeller Foundation) and one of the Top 30 mHealth Innovators of  by the mHealth Alliance (United Nations Foundation).

Howard has written policy for the sector on behalf of the Province of Ontario, regularly represents the Government of Canada on the subject in international symposiums, is an industry reviewer for the U.S. department of Health and Human Services. Mr. Rosen has addressed the Congressional subcommittee’s on the subject and is a member of the working task force for mHIMSS as well as one of their conference speakers.

John Semple, MD, Founding Partner, Healthcare Strategy – QoC Health and Surgeon in Chief at Women’s College Hospital, Toronto.

QoC help reduce healthcare costs and improve outcomes with patient engagement technology.

Dr. Semple has a special interest in converging mobile technologies that improve the quality of care and efficiencies in the ambulatory surgical setting. For more information: www.QoChealth.com

Michael Smit, VP Marketing,  QHR Technologies

As VP Marketing at QHR, Smit is responsible for brand management and aligning go-to-market strategy with the software product portfolio. He is also an advisor for TEDxVancouver.

QHR Technologies is a company that delivers technology innovations to improve patient-provider relationships.

CEO Mr. Smit has an extensive career in business, brand, and digital product leadership: Previous roles included leading web, mobile, and interactive TV strategies at Modem Media in London, and launching Academy, a world-class digital content agency.

For over 10 years at Blast Radius, Michael led innovations in digital sports strategies for Nike, a long-time client. Most recently, in the role of CEO, Mr. Smit rebuilt Invoke Media’s professional services.

Alice Solomon, Senior Director  – Pulse Infoframe Inc.

Alice has more than 20 years experience providing management and business development consultation to entrepreneurs, emerging growth companies and major corporations.

She is currently Senior Director of Pulse InfoFrame, a cloud-based health care analytics company that provides data, management and integration systems for medical specialists.

Before joining Pulse, Alice was Assistant Vice President of Business Development for Select Greater Philadelphia, an affiliate of the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce.

She has successfully supported the efforts of numerous international companies as they expanded into the US market and has worked closely with the Trade Commissioner of the Canadian Consulate and mentored companies participating in the Canadian Technology Accelerator located in Philadelphia.

Dr. Steve Weatherbee, President/CEO, eCenter Research

eCenter Research manages worldwide distribution of validated online mental health and addictions screening, assessment, and outcomes reporting systems.YourHealthCheck is a public service initiative of eCenter Research. Individuals can complete a free anonymous mental health and substance use checkup. Organizations can find information about our validated assessments, web based outcomes reporting system, and connect with organizations currently utilizing our solutions.

Dr. Weatherbee manages worldwide distribution of the DUSI-R (multivariate mental health and substance use assessment developed by Dr. Ralph Tarter).  The DUSI-R helps organizations efficiently and accurately conduct client intake assessment; monitor client response to treatment; adapt treatment protocols; determine intervention/treatment effectiveness; help determine program improvements, and show accountability through real-time access to client and program outcomes.

Dr. Weatherbee developed eINSIGHT™ for data collection, single portal integration of disparate data sources, and reporting automation.

eINSIGHT™ is a HIPAA compliant,  web-based platform that can be customized to meet the needs and challenges of data collection, automated analysis, and client outcomes reporting needed for complying with state and federal reporting and performance requirements, and for using data locally for accountability and improvement of service delivery systems.

Thomas Jefferson University 901 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107

Welcome & Introductions

Keynote Speakers

Panel Discussion

Break

Canadian Thought Leader Introductions

Breakout Sessions

The audience will be invited to take part in five breakout sessions dealing with key pain points in the U.S. healthcare system. Canadian Tech CEOs will be asked to facilitate the sessions and share their experience from the Canadian prospective. The breakout session topics to be announced.

Networking Lunch & Canadian Exhibition

End of Program