TOPHC’s 2026 Virtual Convention

Featuring:

• Dr. Kieran Moore, Chief Medical Officer of Health

• Michael Sherar, President and Chief Executive Officer, Public Health Ontario

Explore the transformative role of AI in shaping the future of public health and beyond.

This plenary session brings together leading voices in Canada’s AI and health innovation landscape to explore the transformative role of AI in shaping the future of public health and beyond. This session will offer a forward looking conversation leveraging the panelists’ experiences in AI deployment in complex health environments, advancing predictive analytics and AI enabled public health tools. The discussion will also explore the intersection of clinical AI, health equity, and the ethical implications of AI systems. 

By the end of the session, participants will be equipped to:

• Describe the current and potential uses of AI in the public health context.

• Reflect on the public health landscape and ethical implications of AI systems.

• Discuss strategies to leverage AI tools responsibly to improve health outcomes with their communities.

Featured Speakers

• Dr. Kyle Wilson, M.Sc., Ph.D., MBA, VP, Information Systems & Digital Innovation, Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health

• Dr. Damian Jankowicz, Ph.D., Executive Vice President, Chief Information and Artificial Intelligence Officer, Unity Health & Adjunct Professor, Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto

• Dr. Rawan Abulibdeh, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University Health Network

Moderator

• Dr. Jessica Hopkins, MD, MHSc., CCFP, FRCPC, FCFP, Vice President and Chief, Communicable Disease Control, Public Health Ontario

Learn more about our speakers on the Virtual Speaker Spotlight page.

Please use this time to take a break and log into the next session using the link provided in your welcome email.

Move beyond definitions to explore strategies for addressing mis- and disinformation and its impacts on communities. This session will also examine the role of AI in public health communication.

This featured panel moves beyond definitions to explore practical, real-world strategies for responding to false and misleading information, understanding its impacts on communities, and strengthening public trust. This session offers actionable insights that can be applied across practice, policy work, and community engagement efforts.

By the end of the session, participants will be equipped to:

• Describe the specific impacts of mis and disinformation on the populations served by public health programs.

• Discuss evidence-informed strategies for addressing false and misleading information in their public health practice.

Featured Speakers

• Jennifer McWhirter, Hons. B.Sc., Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Population Medicine, University of Guelph & Director, Health by Design Lab

• Dr. Blair Bigham, MD, M.Sc., Assistant Professor, University of Toronto's Dalla Lana School of Public Health

• Neil Seeman, JD, MPH, Senior Fellow & Associate Professor, University of Toronto

Moderator

• Dr. Alex Summers, MD, MPH, CCFP, FRCPC, Medical Officer of Health, Middlesex-London Health Unit

Learn more about our speakers on the Virtual Speaker Spotlight page.

Please use this time to take a break and log into the next session using the link provided in your welcome email.

Discover approaches to measuring progress, maximizing impact, and collaborating across sectors. This panel will cover metrics, storytelling, ROI, and priority setting in alignment with the new Ontario public health standards. 

This panel provides a focused look at how quality improvement is accelerating across Ontario’s public health landscape. The session will introduce and define key QI concepts, outline Public Health Ontario’s framework and roadmap for ongoing QI work with Public Health Units (PHUs) and highlight current work underway to support all PHUs in building QI capacity and consistency. This will include sharing results from the Fall 2025 QI maturity survey, highlighting system-level insights and opportunities for collective growth.

By the end of the session, participants will be equipped to:

• Describe the culture and background context of Quality Improvement in public health in Ontario

• Compare the different tools and QI strategies shown by the presenters and interpret how they can used for their public health practice

• Explain how program planning, evaulation and resource allocation can be impacted when applying quality improvement framework in public health.  

Featured Speakers

• Rob Haile, M.Sc., Public Health Planner, Foundational Standards, Southwestern Public Health

• Dr. Kelly A. Pilato, PhD., M.Sc., Assistant Professor, Department of Health Sciences, Brock University

• Jessica Brett, RN, BScN, CCHN(C), Nurse Project Officer, Ottawa Public Health

• Nastassia McNair, MPH, Manager, Effective Public Health Practice, Public Health Sudbury & Districts

Moderator

• Dr. Na-Koshie Lamptey, MD, MPH, CCFP, FRCP, Deputy Chief, Medical and Scientific Support, Population Health, Public Health Ontario

Learn more about our speakers on the Virtual Speaker Spotlight page.

Please use this time to take a break and log into the next session using the link provided in your welcome email.

Explore an evidence-based framework and key indicators for emergency preparedness, with a focus on how these tools can inform preparedness measurement, action, and quality improvement across public health systems. 

After large-scale emergencies with significant population health impacts such as the COVID-19 pandemic, we are challenged to reflect on how prepared our public health system is for the next emergency. Our Canadian Institutes of Health Research-funded team has led research to address two key questions: Are we prepared? and How do we measure preparedness?. This session will present recently completed research and describe how an evidence-based framework and indicators for public health emergency preparedness has been used to inform preparedness measurement, action and quality improvement in public health agencies across Canada.

By the end of this session, attendees will be equipped to:

• Discuss preparedness priorities across Canada following the COVID-19 pandemic using a framework and indicators for defining and measuring public health emergency preparedness.

• Describe how the framework and indicators can be used to advance preparedness priorities within the public health system

• Explain how a quality improvement lens can be used to support progress toward enhanced emergency preparedness.

Featured Speakers

• Dr. Yasmin Khan, MD, MPH, FRCPC, Emergency Preparedness Physician, Population Health, Public Health Ontario

• Dr. Madelyn Law, Director, Quality, Patient Safety and Risk, Niagara Health

• Dr. Mark Lysyshyn, MD, MPH, FRCPC, Deputy Chief Medical Health Officer, Vancouver Coastal Health

• Jessica Deming, M.Sc., MSW, Advisor, Public Health Intelligence, Peel Public Health

Learn more about our speakers on the Virtual Speaker Spotlight page.

Wrap-up and preview of upcoming networking opportunities.

Featuring:

• Helen Doyle, Ontario Public Health Association (OPHA)

• Loretta Ryan, Chief Executive Officer, Association of Local Public Health Agencies (alPHa)

• Michael Sherar, President and Chief Executive Officer, Public Health Ontario

Students will have the opportunity to connect with public health professionals in an engaging networking environment. This session will help students explore career pathways, gain insights, and ask questions about working in public health that can inform and inspire their next steps.

Featured Panelists

• Rohit Garg, MBBS, MPH, CIC, LSSGB, Infection Prevention and Control Specialist, Public Health Ontario

• Tania Toffner, MLT, BSc., Director, Operations, Laboratory Services, Public Health Ontario

• Elisabeth Marks, MPH, Manager, Evaluation & Knowledge Mobilization, Public Health Ontario

Moderator

• Dr. Karl Kabasele, MD, MPH, FRCPC, Public Health Physician, Public Health Ontario