Steven Lewis

Steven Lewis is a health policy and research consultant based in Saskatoon, and Adjunct Professor of Health Policy at Simon Fraser University. Prior to resuming a full-time consulting practice he headed a health research granting agency and spent 7 years as CEO of the Health Services Utilization and Research Commission in Saskatchewan. He has served on various boards and committees, including the Governing Council of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Saskatchewan Health Quality Council, the Health Council of Canada, and the editorial boards of several journals, including Open Medicine. He writes frequently on improving quality, equity, and performance in health care, and is the moderator of the M.A.S.H. blog - Meaningful Analogies in Sports and Health.

Shauna Fenwick

Shauna Fenwick's career of origin is nursing. She worked in the health system for more than 30 years as a front line nurse, educator, administrator, and volunteer. Clinically her background is in cancer care and acute care medicine. She also spent several years on the board of the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario. Shauna has a BNSc from Queen's University, a MA in Leadership and Training from Royal Roads University, as well as a Graduate Certificate in Executive Coaching from Royal Roads, and several other certifications. 

Shauna is an accomplished facilitator, coach, educator, and designer of leadership development systems. She works with individuals to strengthen their leadership capabilities, and with teams and groups to create conditions for optimal function and innovation. From 2006 through 2009, Shauna was the Research Coordinator, Program Manager, and Learning Services Consultant with leadersforlife, a health leadership development initiative in BC. Shauna was a key member of the team that developed the LEADS in a Caring Environment health leadership capability framework and LEADS education programs.  Currently Shauna facilitates in the health, public, and voluntary sectors, coaches individual leaders and project teams, and teaches in the graduate program at Royal Roads University.   

Shauna's passion is the development of effective leaders and healthy, productive communities and organizations, especially in the health sector.

Debra Bournes, RN, PhD

Dr. Debra Bournes was appointed Provincial Chief Nursing Officer in the Ontario Ministry's Health Human Resources Strategy Division, effective June 13, 2011. She has had a leadership role in healthcare research and administration for more than 16 years. Her work in nursing theory-guided practice and research, health services research and leadership has been widely presented and published. It has also sparked international interest and led to collaborations among provincial healthcare organizations and nursing unions interested in the recruitment and retention of nurses. Her work has been cited as a promising practice by the Canadian Health Services Research Foundation, and named a national best practice by the Canadian Council on Health Services Accreditation.
Dr. Bournes is also known nationally and internationally for leading and providing consultation in areas such as patient-centered care, academic practice and professional development for health professionals, health human resource analysis, strategic planning in nursing, and quality workplace/quality patient care indicator dashboards for healthcare leaders.
In 2008, Dr. Bournes received the University of Toronto, Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing Award of Distinction and the Ontario Hospital Association Award of Excellence in Nursing Leadership. In 2009, she received the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario's Leadership Award for Nursing Research for her work on developing a research culture among health professionals.

Lauren Donnelly

Lauren Donnelly is the Assistant Deputy Minister at the Saskatchewan Ministry of Health. She holds a Master’s in Health Administration from the University of Ottawa and a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the Concordia University in Montreal. Lauren was appointed Assistant Deputy Minister in Spring 2006. 

She is responsible for the Community and Primary Health Division which oversees public health protection, health promotion, primary health services and health system human resources. The division is comprised of four branches and one secretariat:  Population Health Branch; Primary Health Services Branch; Workforce Planning Branch; Saskatchewan Disease Control Laboratory and the Nursing Secretariat.

Prior to 2006 Lauren served as Executive Director of Acute & Emergency Services Branch.

Suann Laurent, RN, BScN, MHS

Suann Laurent is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Sunrise Regional Health Authority in Saskatchewan, Canada.
Throughout her career, Suann has held a number of senior positions including: Senior Vice-President of Health Services, Executive Director of Health Services, Director of Acute Care Programs, Quality Improvement Analyst, Director of Nursing, and Director of Long term Care. She has also worked in a wide variety of nursing practices.
Suann graduated with a nursing diploma from the Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing from the University of Saskatchewan.  She is a graduate of the University of Saskatchewan, College of Commerce and has her Masters in Health Studies-Leadership from Athabasca University. Suann is currently taking Lean Leadership Certification through John Black and Associates.
Suann holds active registration status with the Saskatchewan Registered Nursing Association and has professional affiliation with the Canadian Council of Nursing, the International Council of Nursing, and is a member of the Canadian College of Health Leaders. Suann is actively involved in numerous Saskatchewan Ministry of Health committees and is the Chair of Accreditation Canada's National Surveyor Advisory Committee. She has extensive experience accrediting health systems in Canada and internationally.

Marlene Smadu, RN, EdD

Marlene Smadu, is Vice-President of Quality and Transformation, Regina Qu’Appelle Health Region, Regina, Saskatchewan. Prior to assuming this role in July 2012, she was the Associate Dean, Southern Saskatchewan Campus and International Student Affairs for the College of Nursing, University of Saskatchewan, Assistant Deputy Minister of Health and Principal Nursing Advisor for the government of Saskatchewan, and Education Consultant and Executive Director at the Saskatchewan Registered Nurses Association. Dr. Smadu is a member of the Board for the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) and is the 3rd Vice President of the International Council of Nurses. She served as a member of the board and Chair of the Saskatchewan Health Quality Council (2002-2011) and co-chaired the Canadian Nurses Association (CNA) National Expert Commission on the Health of the Nation and the Future of the Health System (2011-2012). Dr. Smadu served as the facilitator at the Partnership Table of the Saskatchewan Union of Nurses and the Government of Saskatchewan from 2008-2012. Her research program includes health human resource planning and development, Aboriginal health, quality improvement, health and nursing policy, and leadership.