QEII Foundation’s Innovation Den

NEW PATH AWARD FOR HEALTH INNOVATION
$100,000

DR. EMILY JOHNSTON, Clinical pharmacist in orthopaedics, Nova Scotia Health; Founder and CEO, Pain Coach Inc

Dr. Emily Johnston is a clinical pharmacist with Nova Scotia Health, caring for patients on the orthopaedic surgery trauma unit. She also works closely with the orthopaedic research team focusing on post-operative pain control. Dr. Johnston graduated from Dalhousie University with a pharmacy degree in 2008 and began her career as a community pharmacist. During this time, she completed her PharmD through the University of Florida and transitioned to her current role in acute care in 2018. Hailing from Cape Breton, Dr. Johnston loves hiking and the ocean. She is a proud mom of two, who have been some of her biggest champions in her new role as founder of Pain Coach Inc. At the inaugural Innovation Den in 2023, Dr. Johnston received a $10,000 One to Watch award to support the early days of Pain Coach.

Pain Coach

Pain Coach Inc is creating digital health tools for personalized pain control. Patients of orthopaedic surgery often struggle at home with pain management and adherence to their pain medication regime can be complex. Pain Coach provides prescribers support to be more intentional and specific when prescribing. It also helps patients with scheduled notifications and tracking for medications and pain assessment. This makes pain easier to manage for patients of all levels of health literacy and reduces the likelihood of patients requiring further medical attention. Our vision is to personalize post-operative recovery so that all patients can get back to doing the things they love with the support they need.

ACCELERATOR AWARD FOR HEALTH INNOVATION
$50,000

DR. ROBERT CHEN, Co-founder, Kardio Diagnostix

Dr Robert Chen is a co-founder of Kardio Diagnostix and an interventional pediatric cardiologist with 30 years of experience. Dr. Chen has a great passion for technology and bringing changes to our healthcare system using AI.

Kardio Diagnostix

Kardio Diagnostix uses AI to detect and analyze heart murmurs affecting eight in ten children. Their team has focused on pediatric care because most children have a heart murmur but very few have heart disease. This leads to a large number of unnecessary referrals and investigations while still missing significant numbers of patients with heart disease who are at risk of fatal outcome. Kardio Diagnostix aims to overcome long wait times and anxiety for patients and parents by removing the need for these unnecessary referrals.

RISING INNOVATOR AWARD FOR HEALTH
$20,000

JOHANNA MERCER, CEO and co-founder, Scotiaderm Inc.

Johanna traveled solo around the world at age 21. Ever curious, she is a serial entrepreneur with 30 years of experience in real estate and education, with more than 60 theatre and film credits including the Shaw Festival, Wooster Group (NYC), Canadian Stage. Her corporate clients include the AIDS Foundation of Canada, Pfizer, the BC Nurses Union. She founded the Booker School in Port Williams, N.S., which won the Governor General’s Award for Teaching Excellence. Her first job was in her father’s pharmacy. Johanna sees the world through many lenses, builds great teams and solves problems creatively at the highest level.

Scotiaderm

Scotiaderm‘s innovative, proprietary topical product line (rebranded as Dermategrity) prevents and treats moisture associated skin damage — including incontinence associated dermatitis and intertrigo — massive, unmet problems that disproportionately affect elders, women, obese, immobile and chronically ill persons and those who care for them. Scotiaderm’s mission is to transform the standard of care.

Health Innovation Leader Award
$12,000

DR. JANIE WILSON, Affiliate scientist, Nova Scotia Health Professor; Dalhousie University School of Biomedical Engineering and Surgery; Co-creator, KOAST

Dr. Janie Wilson is a professor of biomedical engineering and surgery at Dalhousie University, an affiliate scientist with Nova Scotia Health, and a Fellow of International Orthopaedic Research. Recognized internationally as a leader in orthopaedic research and innovation, Dr. Wilson has decades of experience in developing biomechanical tools and models to advance the understanding and treatment of knee osteoarthritis including innovative technologies for joint replacement surgery. She is the co-director of the Dynamics of Human Motion lab, an instrumented human movement lab at Dalhousie University, and has led longitudinal multidisciplinary investigations into the biomechanical implications of knee osteoarthritis and knee replacement surgery for decades. Her pioneering work in biomechanics, data analytics, and computer vision technologies is shaping the future of orthopaedic care.

Knee OA Decision Support Tool (KOAST)

Decades of research by the KOAST team has determined that individuals with knee osteoarthritis walk with considerable deficits that progress through the course of their disease. These deficits are linked with important clinical and diagnostic indicators, and do not measurably improve for many patients after treatment with joint replacement surgery, leading to poor quality of life outcomes and dissatisfaction. The team is developing an intelligent and objective knee OA decision support tool (KOAST) to empower patients and clinicians to make informed shared treatment decisions for knee osteoarthritis. This tool will provide rapid, precise, and personalized insights into a patient’s risk of decline while waiting for treatment, as well as their likelihood of specific postoperative outcomes after arthroplasty, and provide the clinical team with ready tools and evidence to support difficult, personalized clinical decisions with objective evidence.

HEALTH CARE CHAMPION AWARD
$10,000

ANDREA MEADE, Pharmacist and quality improvement lead, Nova Scotia Health

Andrea Meade (left) is a pharmacist and quality improvement lead with Nova Scotia Health’s Central Zone Pharmacy Department. Andrea graduated from Dalhousie with her Pharmacy degree in 2011 and began her career as a community pharmacist before completing a hospital pharmacy residency at the QEII in 2014. Working in various areas of care with Nova Scotia Health, Andrea has led the implementation of clinical pharmacy key performance indicators and pharmacist prescribing at Nova Scotia Health. She has most recently found a passion project in helping pharmacy providers reconnect with their meaning and purpose in health care, co-designing strategies to improve their well-being and joy in work. Andrea was born in Moncton but lives in Tantallon with her husband and two children and can be found enjoying the outdoors, at the rink, or learning the latest dance moves to all the Taylor Swift songs.

LISA NODWELL, Central Zone pharmacy director, Nova Scotia Health

Lisa Nodwell (right) is the Central Zone pharmacy director at Nova Scotia Health. Lisa worked as a hospital pharmacist for 28 years with a diverse clinical practice in oncology and surgical care before transitioning to leadership roles in professional practice and management. Lisa graduated from Dalhousie University with a pharmacy degree in 1995 then completed a residency in hospital pharmacy in 1997. Lisa later returned to her passion for learning, graduating from St. Francis Xavier University with a MEd in Health and Curriculum in 2022. Lisa is an active member of the N.S. branch of the Canadian Society of Hospital Pharmacists, serving as advocacy representative for several terms and was recently elected to serve as the Nova Scotia College of Pharmacists Council Zone 5 hospital pharmacy representative. Lisa is a mother, a daughter, and an ally who values diversity and views social roles and expectations as fluid and dynamic.

Pharmacy FORWARD: A dose of joy in work quality initiative

The Pharmacy FORWARD team is on a quest to improve joy in work one healthcare professional at a time. Burnout among healthcare workers impacts recruitment and retention, and affects personal well-being, job satisfaction and professional accomplishment — all of which compromise an individual’s ability to provide high quality patient care. The Dose of Joy in Work initiative aims to reconnect staff with the emotion of awe, bringing back meaning and purpose in their daily work. Learning through real time measurement and continuous employee experience feedback, the team aims to co-create meaningful strategies using data and analytics to stretch beyond the prevention of burnout to cultivate thriving and interpersonal connection in ways that improve well-being, joy in work and a culture of caring.

ONE TO WATCH
$8,000

DAN CASHEN, Provincial director, Trauma Nova Scotia

Dan Cashen (right) is the provincial director of Trauma Nova Scotia, where he leads initiatives to improve patient outcomes and advance trauma care across the province. With a clinical background in intensive care and extensive experience in health education and simulation, Dan has a deep commitment to enhancing trauma services through innovative approaches. Outside of work, Dan enjoys exploring the culinary arts and is an avid lawn bowler.

BREANNE GILLIS, Provincial manager, Trauma Nova Scotia

In 2022, Breanne received a Nova Scotia Health Making Waves Award of Distinction for her work as a clinical leader and registered nurse in the QEII’s Charles V. Keating Emergency & Trauma Centre. Currently pursuing an MBA, Breanne enjoys exploring new restaurants and travelling, and spending time with her partner and three dogs.

TraumaLink

TraumaLink aims to streamline trauma care across Nova Scotia by leveraging simulation training, knowledge sharing and advanced technology. This approach will significantly reduce travel costs for simulation leaders, optimize physician time and eliminate the need for additional physicians to cover for those traveling. Moreover, it will ensure that clinicians outside Nova Scotia Health’s Central Zone are properly trained to handle trauma cases, ultimately improving patient care and increasing the chances of survival. By ensuring patients receive high-quality care at the initial site, before being transferred to Central Zone, the project enhances the overall effectiveness of trauma care across the province.

MELANIE NADEAU

CEO, Cove | Chair, QEII Foundation's Innovation Den

Melanie Nadeau is a trailblazer and recognized thought-leader. As the Chief Executive Officer for COVE, Melanie drives high-tech innovation and entrepreneurship in the marine sector. She is a firm believer that ideas become solutions, technologies become ventures, and opportunities become world leading change. Melanie is an award-winning Canadian business woman who is an expert in the commercialization of emerging technologies into mature revenue generating engines. As a member of the QEII Foundation Board of Directors, Melanie has a passion for harnessing collective strengths to transform care through the QEII Health Sciences Centre.

GREG DOBSON

Member Engagement Manager, Digital Nova Scotia | Host, Innovation Den

With more than a decade of experience in digital marketing, business development, and account management, Greg recently joined Digital Nova Scotia as their member engagement manager, looking after their growing membership base of over 330 businesses across the province. In this role, he is committed to promoting our province’s thriving tech sector, supporting members, and building on the growing member network.

Greg and his family worked in partnership with the QEII Foundation for over a decade, raising $1.2 million for the Jordan Boyd Inherited Heart Disease Clinic at the QEII in honour of his late brother through the Jordan Boyd Celebrity Hockey and Golf Challenges. Outside of work, Greg enjoys playing hockey, playing guitar, designing brand identities, and spending quality time with his wife and two young daughters.

DR. COLIN AUDAIN

Anesthesia Site Chief, QEII’s Victoria General Hospital | Judge, Innovation Den

Dr. Audain is very familiar with refining systems through innovative problem solving. For more than 10 years, he was the physician responsible for scheduling more than 80 physicians for 40 operating rooms and clinics throughout five sites, with his critical decision-making on proper allocation leading to lives saved, reduced wait times, and operating rooms staying open. A proud Dalhousie Medical School alumnus, along with specialty training at Memorial University of Newfoundland, Dr. Audain was recently named president of Doctors Nova Scotia. A husband and father to two children, you will also find Dr. Audain on the soccer field, playing and coaching a sport he loves.

ROB BARBARA

Managing Partner, Build Venture | Judge, Innovation Den

Rob Barbara has a passion for investing in early-stage Atlantic Canadian technology companies. As managing partner of Build Ventures, a privately managed venture capital fund based in Halifax, Rob focuses on identifying and supporting the next generation of entrepreneurs who are solving the world’s biggest problems. His background in investment management and capital markets has led to a successful career in asset management and the launch of several start-ups. A true sailor at heart, Rob is a regatta chairperson at the Lunenburg Yacht Club, where he, his wife and children enjoy time together.

CATHY BENNETT

Founding and General Partner, Sandpiper Ventures | Judge, Innovation Den

Cathy Bennett is disrupting the venture capital environment. She is one of the founding and co-managing partners at Sandpiper Ventures, a venture capital fund created to invest in women and women’s innovation — one of the first venture capital funds in Canada investing in women-led companies. With 35 years of business leadership, she has served on more than a dozen private and public corporate boards related to real estate, natural resources, manufacturing, industrial construction, technology, and business services. Cathy has also spent significant time in the Newfoundland and Labrador political landscape, serving in Cabinet in various roles including Minister of Finance and Minister Responsible for the Status of Women.

DR. JENNIFER JOHNSTON

Family Physician and Founder, Elle, MD Biotechnologies | Judge, Innovation Den

Dr. Jennifer Johnston is a practicing family physician from the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia. She completed her medical school and residency training at Dalhousie University and later became board certified in Lifestyle Medicine by the American College of Lifestyle Medicine. Dr. Johnston was the top winner from the inaugural Innovation Den in 2023 for her project, The Better Ring, a nonhormonal, reliable, reusable, convenient and user-controlled contraceptive ring that will double as an emergency contraceptive.

TRAVIS MCDONOUGH

Founder and CEO of Wellnify.ai | Judge, Innovation Den

Travis McDonough was the CEO and founder of Kinduct, a Canadian software company that specialized in human performance in professional sports and clinical health applications. After selling Kinduct to a Silicon Valley company in 2020, he founded a new technology company with a mission to help improve the health of communities around the world by leveraging a Community Wellness Engagement Platform. By combining the science of behaviour change with the fun of gamification, Wellnify.ai is re-inventing the way that democratized wellness is being delivered around the world. His passion is helping people all over the world make data-driven decisions about their health and wellness. 

Travis has a long list of both company and personal awards such as Company of the Year, Best Places to Work Award, EY Entrepreneur of the Year, Top 50 CEO Hall of Fame Award. He is an active community volunteer in sports and raising funds for various charities and enjoys mentoring the next generation of local technology founders and CEOs.