ORGANIZING COMMITTEE

Secretary General, The Network: Towards Unity For Health (TUFH)

Elsie is also the Director of the MEPI Coordinating Centre at The African Centre for Global Health and Social Transformation (ACHEST).

Executive Director, The Network: Towards Unity For Health (TUFH)

Nicholas Torres (M.Ed.) works at the cross section between the private sector, government, and not-for-profits and aligns them toward collective social impact goals and public policy. Nick has over 20 years of experience in executive management. Nick founded and currently leads a social sector “think-tank” organization; and teaches at the University of Pennsylvania.

TUFH Program Manager, The Network: Towards Unity For Health (TUFH)

Aricia is the TUFH Program Manager for The Network: TUFH. She is responsible for the annual conferences, coordinating with the co-host. She coordinates the Organizing and Scientific Committees for the TUFH conferences. She oversees Virtual Programming, Student Development and Mentoring, Digital Development and Technology, and the Social Media and Membership Support. She works closely with the Regional Board Members to support their roles in membership growth and attract new members. She is responsible for the TUFH Online Community and is the first point of contact for all current and new members. In addition, Aricia is the liaison to the Student Network Organization Aricia holds a Masters in Health Education and Promotion from Ghent University and a Bachelor in Midwifery from Erasmus Hogeschool. She works as an independent midwife in Belgium and gives prenatal lessons, prenatal care, and postnatal follow-up. Prior to The Network: TUFH Aricia worked as a midwife in Gambia, Finland, United Kingdom, and Belgium in low-risk birthing units. She co-founded and was the first president of the Student Network Organization in 2015. She has been attending TUFH annual conferences since 2012.

President, Student Network Organization (SNO)

Veronika is a 22-year-old Global Health and Medical student at Maastricht University, The Netherlands. She is half-Polish and half-Dutch. In November 2017 she joined SNO as a Regional Representative for Europe, she was the Public Relations manager. Now, she is the President for SNO and wants to continue working in a multidisciplinary and multicultural environment with students and professionals.

North American Regional Board Member, The Network: Towards Unity For Health (TUFH)

Amy Clithero-Eridon is a faculty member in the Department of Family & Community Medicine at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine.  Amy has a PhD in Family Medicine from the University of Kwazaulu-Natal in Durban, South Africa as well as a Masters of Business Administration with a health systems concentration and a Masters level certification in Medical Education.  In addition to teaching medical students about social determinants of health, health policy, and health services research, Amy participates in numerous educational research initiatives focusing on educational best practices and social accountability within medical education. 

Executive Director, Rural Coordination Centre of BC

Dr. Ray Markham is Executive Director of the Rural Coordination Centre of BC and a clinical professor in the UBC Department of Family Practice in the Faculty of Medicine. He has also recently been appointed Special Advisor to the Vice-President, Health on Health Systems with UBC Health.

Dr. Markham has worked in rural family practice for over 20 years and currently lives in Valemount, BC, Canada, where he practices full-service rural generalist family medicine in the Robson Valley. His diverse and productive medical career has taken him across the globe, including South Africa, the United Kingdom, Antarctica, Kenya, Haiti, and Zimbabwe. He is passionate about rural medicine in BC, where he helped establish the Northern Interior Rural Division of Family Practice as one of its founding directors and led its primary care network implementation.

Chief Executive Officer, BC Patient Safety Quality Council

Christina Krause is the Chief Executive Officer of the BC Patient Safety & Quality Council and an Adjunct Professor, School of Population & Public Health, Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia. Her interests include the use of social change models and network theory in efforts to engage and mobilize stakeholders, as well as the role of culture, teamwork and communication to advance quality of care. Christina is an EXTRA Fellow with the Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement, a member of the Board for the OSNS Child & Youth Development Centre, and a member of the Board Quality Committee at Canuck Place Children’s Hospice.

Acting Executive Director of Primary Healthcare & eHealth, First Nations Health Authority

Megan began her journey with the First Nations Health Authority (FNHA) in 2014 as the Project Director of eHealth as she lead the First Nations Telehealth Expansion Project. Following this, Megan became the Director of eHealth to support the ongoing implementation and transformation of Action Item 23 of the Transformative Change Accord: First Nations Health Plan to create a fully integrated clinical telehealth network. 

In 2016, Megan was the Regional Director for the Northern Region and this position provided her with an opportunity to utilize her leadership experience in health and child and family services within Northern Indigenous communities and organizations in a very integrated manner. Most recently, she held the role of Director of Primary Care and eHealth with responsibility for the strategic leadership and direction to operationalize fully aligned and integrated primary health care and eHealth, including Joint Project Board (JPB), First Nations Led Primary Care Initiatives and the First Nations Virtual Doctor of the Day to advance First Nations health and wellness in BC.  

In this role, Megan has provided strategic leadership in the ongoing development and implementation of the FNHA Primary Care ++ model of health services and the important role that building inter-professional team-based care plays in the delivery of quality indigenous health services. 

Assistant Director, Strategic Initiatives, UBC Health

As Assistant Director, Strategic Initiatives, Victoria Wood works towards ensuring that UBC Health’s vision, strategy, priorities, and objectives are understood, supported, and advanced. 

She has been with UBC since 2007, working to advance collaborative health education and practice. In collaboration with both internal and external stakeholders, Victoria has supported the planning, development, and implementation of programs to meet the strategic priorities of the units that she works with. She has facilitated cross-disciplinary collaborations to enhance existing programs and develop new programs that are innovative and align with best practices. She has developed, delivered, and evaluated educational initiatives across the continuum of learning, including university- and practice-based education and professional development for practicing professionals. 

Victoria has a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Anthropology, a Master of Arts in International Relations, and is currently completing her EdD in Educational Leadership and Policy at UBC. 

Associate Director, Rural Coordination Centre of BC 

Dr. Woollard completed two terms as Head of the Department of Family Practice, Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia. He has chaired senior committees, councils and task forces for the BCMA CMA and CFPC in the areas of medical education, environmental health and ethical relations with industry. He was CoPI on a large IDRC grant developing a community of practice in ecosystems health and has provided leadership in a number of major initiatives grant-funded through the Science Council of British Columbia, the Tri Council Research Fund, CIHR and a Major Collaborative Research Initiative with SSHRC. He works extensively in the issue of the social accountability of medical schools and is currently actively involved in a national medical school founded on these principles in Nepal—a school based on a feasibility study he conducted in 2004. He is also working in East Africa on social accountability, primary care and accreditation systems. He has completed a five-year, five-university project on localized poverty reduction in rural Vietnam.

He has chaired senior committees, councils and task forces for the BC Medical Association, Canadian Medical Association and the College of Family Physicians of Canada in the areas of medical education, environmental health and ethical relations with industry. His primary research focus is the study of complex adaptive systems as they apply to the intersection between human and environmental health.

Networks Director, Rural Coordination Centre of BC

Kim Williams has been with the Rural Coordination Centre of BC since 2017 as Networks Director.

Kim Williams received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Victoria and her Master of Science in Nursing from the University of British Columbia. She also has certificates in both leadership and engagement. Her passion for perinatal nursing began as a frontline nurse over 25 years ago at BC Women’s Hospital & Health Centre. She worked with Fraser Health across many leadership roles, including clinical educator, unit manager, health service administrator, project manager, and system planner. She then returned to PHSA in 2008 and became the Provincial Executive Director of Perinatal Services BC (PSBC) in 2010. Kim’s commitment to interdisciplinary collaborative care and equitable access to safe maternity care as close to home as possible have become the underpinnings for many other provincial initiatives.

Specified Projects Manager, Rural Coordination Centre of BC

Executive Assistant, Rural Coordination Centre of BC

Ashley Medwid is an Executive Assistant with the Rural Coordination Centre of BC (RCCbc). She joined RCCbc in 2018 and is located on the ancestral, traditional, and unceded territories of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), Stó:lō and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (TsleilWaututh) Nations, also known as Vancouver.

Throughout her time with RCCbc, she has taken part in many provincial conferences and gatherings. This is her first TUFH Conference and she is excited about taking part.

Executive Assistant, Rural Coordination Centre of BC

Daniel Harper is an Executive Assistant with the Rural Coordination Centre of BC (RCCbc). He joined RCCbc in 2021 and is located on the ancestral, traditional, and unceded territories of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), Stó:lō and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (TsleilWaututh) Nations, also known as Vancouver.

Before joining RCCbc, Daniel worked for four years in the UBC Department of Sociology. He has a dual honours BA in Spanish and Chinese and a Masters in Languages & Cultural Research from the University of Manchester. He is passionate about his new career path in the healthcare field and is looking forward to being part of TUFH 2022.

Networks Coordinator, Rural Coordination Centre of BC

Paul Kendal is Networks Coordinator with the Rural Coordination Centre of BC (RCCbc). He is located on the ancestral, traditional, and unceded territories of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), Stó:lō and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (TsleilWaututh) Nations. He has participated in one previous TUFH conference and is excited to bring TUFH to BC, where he is thrilled to help BC communities tell their stories on the world stage.entation.

Leader, Strategic Initiatives, BC Patient Safety Quality Council

Breah Talan is a Leader of Strategic Initiatives at the BC Patient Safety & Quality Council and works to advance special projects across the organization. Breah completed her Master of Arts in Health Geography at Queen’s University, where she analyzed wait times for MRI services throughout the province and the impact of waiting on patient outcomes and experience. She has completed her Basic Certificate in Quality & Safety through the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, is a graduate of the BC Quality Academy and fellow with the International Society for Quality in Health Care. Breah is passionate about ensuring everyone has access to high-quality health services, regardless of who they are or where they live.

Communications Lead, Rural Coordination Centre of BC

Communications Officer, Rural Coordination Centre of BC

Olivia joined RCCbc in 2021 and is located on the ancestral, traditional, and unceded territories of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), Stó:lō and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (TsleilWaututh) Nations, also known as Vancouver.

Before joining RCCbc, Olivia worked as a communications designer within the Technology Planning and Integration, Population and Public Health at Fraser Health Authority.  She has a BA in Communications and Interactive Arts and is currently working towards her certificate in Web Technologies at British Columbia Institute of Technology.  Olivia is passionate about making an improvement in systems change within public health and is driven by how we can shape and design things for social, environmental, and economic good.   

Senior Director, Ministry of Health | Mental Health & Addictions | Elders, Metis Nation BC

Tanya Davoren is in her 14th year as a Senior Director for Metis Nation British Columbia. She has been married for 24yrs to her husband Rob and is a proud mother of 3 children. Tanya is passionate and committed to her work and the relationships she has built across numerous sectors. Tanya’s career started as a Registered Nurse over 20 years ago, working in hospital as a full-time float RN and then as a Patient Care Coordinator/Nursing Care Clinician. In 2008, she took a “leap of faith” and left the formal healthcare system, and started a career supporting the health needs of the Métis community. This position allowed her to highlight and put her knowledge, advocacy skills, and unique leadership style to work for her Nation. Tanya has grown the MNBC Health | Mental Health & Addictions | Elders Ministry team to 17 staff positions across the province.

As the Senior Director, she has negotiated many contribution agreements at both the federal and provincial levels. In addition, Tanya is the lead on the information-sharing agreement between the BC Ministry of Health and Metis Nation British Columbia’s central registry resulting in a Metis Client File of almost 18,000 Citizens. Tanya is well known in BC for her collaborative working style, program development, and community outreach. Tanya has combined the celebration of her Métis heritage and her passion for health, where she actively works towards improved health and wellness for her fellow Métis Citizens as MNBC’s Senior Director of Health | Mental Health & Addictions | Elders.

Director, Urban and Away from Home, Office of the Chief Operating Officer, First Nations Health Authority

Wayne Wallace is a descendant of the Wolastoqey Nation and a member of the Madawaska Maliseet First Nation with First Nation and French family roots in northwestern New Brunswick. After acquiring a Bachelor of Education from the Université de Moncton and a Law Degree from the University of Ottawa, Wayne began a career as a federal public servant with Indian and Northern Affairs Canada where he spent 22 years working with First Nations in the context of Band governance, Specific Claims and treaty negotiations. Throughout his public service career, he gained valuable leadership competencies and skills as well as experience in negotiations, consultations, conflict resolution, establishing and maintaining partnerships,  providing strategic advice, program and policy development, managing interdepartmental and intergovernmental files, financial and human resource management – to name a few.

From May 2017 to May 2021, as part of the Interchange Canada program, Wayne worked with the First Nations Health Authority as an Executive Advisor. During this period, Wayne supported, amongst other projects and initiatives, the organization in its response to the 2017 BC wildfires crisis; co-led the planning, development and delivery of the First Nations Primary Care + Mental Health and Wellness Summit, and; led work in support of the urban and away-from-home population including the research and development of the FNHA’s Urban and Away-from-Home Health and Wellness Framework which launched in October 2020. On May 3 2021, Wayne joined permanently the FNHA as the inaugural Director, Urban and Away from Home and looks forward to continuing to support the health and wellness of all First Nations people in BC, including the urban and away-from-home population and the broader Indigenous population.