Sandy Whitehouse

Dr Sandy Whitehouse had taken several lateral career steps to bring creativity into the clinical encounter for patients, and innovation for health care providers. She is a Paediatrician and Clinical Associate Professor with the Division of Adolescent Health at BC Children’s Hospital, Vancouver, Canada with 25 years of medical and leadership experience. She is past Medical Director and Division Head of the Paediatric Emergency Department BC Children’s Hospital and co-founder of Shift Health Paradigms. In 2010 she completed a Master of Liberal Studies, a journey that took her through the Western Canon of literature and philosophy. She realized that while there has been dynamic and groundbreaking advancements in the science of medicine, the communication between patients and providers was neglected and lacking. This void was affecting outcomes particularly for those most at risk. Health literacy among the general population is poor, and even lower in vulnerable populations, youth, indigenous people and those of low economic status. She then cofounded Shift Health Paradigms, with Daniel Penn and created TickiT to address this need and to improve health care outcomes. Steeped in understanding clinical care, TickiT uses technology and design to address these communication issues, on the patient’s level.