Tuesday, June 16 | 8:00 – 9:30 a.m. ADT | Halifax Convention Centre – Convention Hall Level
How AI can Amplify the Primary Care Experience
The Tuesday Opening Plenary will bring together leaders to explore how AI can amplify the primary care experience.
As the landscape of AI in healthcare rapidly evolves, with innovations like AI-powered receptionists, summarization tools, scribes, and clinical decision support, primary care teams face both exciting opportunities and complex challenges. How can physicians, staff, and patients truly unlock the value of these technologies? This dynamic panel brings together leading experts in health system strategy, data, AI and primary care to guide you through the journey: from discovering the latest solutions and addressing the most pressing pain points, to practical strategies for implementation and adoption.
Drawing on real-world experience at the provincial and clinical levels, our panelists will share actionable insights, strategic and system perspectives, and lessons learned on how AI can transform and amplify the primary care experience for all.
-
Tuesday Opening Plenary Panel Sponsored by Amplify Care
-
Conference Emcee
Rachel Gillespie, Senior Consultant and Strategic Advisor, Mariner Innovations
Rachel Gillespie is a Senior Consultant and Strategic Advisor with Mariner Innovations, working at the intersection of digital health and complex transformation. She has led major initiatives across provincial health systems, post-secondary modernization, and national corporate organizations, advancing accessibility and broader public sector reform. Her work centres on organizational readiness, human-centred design, and the creation of the conditions for sustainable change.
Rachel holds a Master of Arts in Strategic Communications and Leadership, grounding her approach in clear communication, thoughtful engagement, and a strong commitment to the human experience within complex systems. She is also a public speaker and writer with a particular interest in how proximity, empathy, and design shape better outcomes.
Based in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Rachel brings clarity, warmth, and strategic curiosity to her role as Emcee for e-Health26, guiding audiences through the conversations shaping the future of digital health and connecting each dialogue back to what matters most: people, purpose, and better care through better systems.
-
Conference Emcee
Jordan Warford, Executive Director of Planning, Performance, and Data, Department of Health and Wellness, Province of Nova Scotia
Dr. Jordan Warford is Executive Director of Planning, Performance, and Data at the Nova Scotia Department of Health and Wellness, where he leads province-wide strategy across health system performance, data governance, analytics, and strategic investment.
With a foundation in translational research, Jordan focuses on turning data and evidence into decisions that improve how care is delivered. He played a key role in establishing Atlantic Canada’s first clinical trials network, creating a coordinated entry point for global partnerships and expanding the use of integrated health data to support research and care.
His current work focuses on building the infrastructure and governance required to scale responsible health data use, including cloud-based analytics, modern public reporting, and real-world evidence generation to inform clinical and economic outcomes.
Jordan serves on the boards of N2 Canada and Research Nova Scotia. He holds a PhD in Pathology and an MSc in Pharmacology and Neuroscience from Dalhousie University, and is a Certified Health Executive and Project Management Professional.
Outside of work, he enjoys woodworking with his kids, building projects that are ambitious in design and occasionally forgiving in execution.
-
Moderator
Mohamed Alarakhia, Chief Executive Officer, Amplify Care
Dr. Mohamed Alarakhia is the founder of and visionary force behind Amplify Care (formerly the eHealth Centre of Excellence), where his extensive experience in primary care as a practicing family doctor at the Centre for Family Medicine FHT and deep expertise in health informatics have shaped the organization’s bold approach to digital health and AI adoption. As a leading influence in the field, Dr. Alarakhia is dedicated to transforming Canada’s healthcare system by driving ground-breaking, patient-centred solutions that reduce administrative burden for clinicians, while creating more efficient and proactive workflows that can improve patient outcomes. His passion for actioning evidence and championing co-design with clinicians and patients has made him a transformative player in the Canadian digital health ecosystem, continually pushing boundaries to ensure Amplify Care remains at the forefront of innovation and that care is delivered efficiently and effectively.
Dr. Alarakhia was awarded the Digital Health Executive of the Year Award in 2019 and the College of Family Physicians of Canada Award of Excellence in 2018 and 2022. He was recognized by Digital Health Canada as the Clinical Innovator of the Year in 2023, and in 2024, he was the recipient of the John C. Sibley Award for Excellence in Education for Part-Time Faculty. Dr. Alarakhia and Amplify Care won the Innovation Award in 2022 from the Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber of Commerce. Amplify Care also received a Canadian Medical Association Joule Innovation Grant and an AFHTO Team Award in 2020, as well as a Patient Care Innovation Team Award at the 2019 Canadian Health Informatics Awards, and a 2019 Ingenious Award from the Information Technology Association of Canada.
-
Panelist
Ashley Miller MD MSc FRCPC, Chief Medical Information Officer, Nova Scotia Health/IWK Health
Dr. Miller is an academic general internist, virtual care advocate, and passionate champion for digitally-enabled health care transformation. After graduating from medical school at University of Ottawa, she completed her residency in Internal Medicine and General Internal Medicine at Memorial University. She also holds a Masters of Science in Health Policy, Planning and Financing from the London School of Economics and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. Ashley is an Associate Professor in Dalhousie University’s Department of Medicine.
She enjoys a parttime academic role and clinical practice in diverse settings in addition to her role as Chief Medical Information Officer for IWK Health and Nova Scotia Health. As CMIO, she is championing digital transformation across Nova Scotia, including as a clinical leader of the One Person One Record (OPOR) initiative.
-
Panelist
Dafna Carr, Chief Digital Health Officer, Ontario Ministry of Health
Dafna Carr recently joined Ontario’s Ministry of Health as the Chief Digital Health Officer, a newly created role focused on advancing Ontario’s Digital First for Health Strategy. Her mission: to ensure people, healthcare providers, and care teams have seamless access to the information, tools, and services they need—anytime, anywhere.
This strategy is a major step toward connected, convenient, and person-centred care for Ontarians. It tackles challenges like administrative complexity, privacy and security concerns, and disconnected systems—while driving innovation and improving the health care experience.
Dafna brings extensive experience in digital transformation and leadership. Before joining the Ontario Ministry of Health, she served as Associate Deputy Minister of ServiceOntario, where she led efforts to improve the customer experience and make government services simple and accessible for millions of Ontarians. She was also Corporate CIO of Government Technology Ontario and CIO for the Children, Youth and Social Services Cluster in Ontario.
Dafna’s career includes over 26 years in health care leadership at organizations such as Health Quality Ontario, Cancer Care Ontario, University Health Network, and Gamma-Dynacare Laboratories.
-
Panelist
Kate Ebril, Business Development Manager, Product Manager, The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Australia
Kate works with the Australian e Health Research Centre of CSIRO as the Interoperability Lead. Kate has over 22 years of experience in leading delivery and implementation programs in health care with a key focus on initiatives that build community and drive the adoption of standards to enable an interoperable, digital health system. Kate is responsible for the global business development of Ontoserver and other associated terminology and FHIR based products, working with government, healthcare and industry organisations to enable the meaningful adoption of clinical terminologies and FHIR.
Kate is a Director of HL7 Australia. Kate is National Coordinator for Sparked- Australia’s FHIR Accelerator responsible for developing nationally agreed data models, FHIR Implementation Guides and SNOMED CT ValueSets.
Kate is also a Strategic Advisor for the CSIRO Strengthening Standards Capability Program, which is funded by the Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
