Our innovators in residence are internationally recognized leaders in their areas of specialty. They’re exceptional individuals—clinicians, startup founders, leaders, researchers, and mentors—who wear many hats. As thought leaders with our clinical teams, administration, and executive leadership, these seasoned innovators champion the implementation of new technologies, services, and solutions, adding clinical insight, process recommendations, and policy change proposals that make our projects better. Our innovators in residence are positioned locally, nationally, and beyond to drive new business opportunities for the organization and mentor the next generation of health leaders.
Meet our Innovators in Residence
Dr. Amanda Caissie
Dr. Amanda Caissie is focused on digital oncology, patient engagement and artificial intelligence. Through her roles at Nova Scotia Health as an innovator in residence and Medical Director of the Cancer Care Program’s Oncology Transformation Project, she aims to align clinical and research priorities for digital health solutions, advancing research and innovation across the continuum of cancer care and beyond.
An Associate Professor and Department Head (interim) at Dalhousie University’s Department of Radiation Oncology (DRO), Dr. Caissie’s current research interests focus on Patient Reported Outcomes and Big Data as radiotherapy quality improvement (QI) initiatives fostered through inter-disciplinary collaborations such as the Learning from Analysis of Multicentre Big Data Aggregation (LAMBDA) consortium.
She is co-founder/co-lead of the recently formed Canadian Artificial intelligence and big Data in Radiotherapy Alliance (CADRA). Other contributions to national and international radiotherapy QI initiatives include being Chair of the Canadian Association of Radiation Oncology (CARO) Quality and Standards Committee, committee member of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM)’s Big Data Subcommittee and Canadian Partnership for Quality Radiotherapy (CPQR), as well as international liaison in the European Association of Radiation Oncology (ESTRO)’s Radiation Oncology Safety and Quality Committee (ROSQ).
Dr. Karen Cross
Dr. Karen Cross is CEO and Co-founder of MIMOSA Diagnostics Inc. She is a Plastic, Reconstructive & Aesthetic Surgeon with a specialization in Advanced Tissue Injury & Wound Care. She is the first Surgeon-Entrepreneur at the University of Toronto, a designation she received for her knowledge translation of taking technology from the bench to the bedside. Her passion is creating equity within the healthcare system by improving access to care with technology. She currently resides in Halifax, Nova Scotia and is building the next generation of wound diagnostics.
Dr. Michael Dunbar
Michael Dunbar, a native Haligonian, is a Professor of Surgery at Dalhousie University with cross appointments to Biomedical Engineering and Community Health and Epidemiology. He completed his orthopaedic residency at Dalhousie University with subspecialty training in arthroplasty from the University of Western Ontario. He completed a PhD in Lund Sweden as a member of the Swedish Knee Arthroplasty Registry, concentrating on subjective outcomes after knee replacement surgery. He is currently co-chair, Canadian Joint Replacement Registry; Past-President and Director of Research, Canadian Arthroplasty Society; member of and Past-Chair of the Membership and Research committees of The American Knee Society. In 2015 he was awarded the inaugural QEII Endowed Chair of Arthroplasty Outcomes at Dalhousie University. In 2017 he was inducted as a fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences. He is currently the Director of Research, Department of Surgery, at Dalhousie University and Orthopaedic Outcomes Scientist at the Nova Scotia Health Authority in Halifax, Nova Scotia. His credits include the 2010 J. Edouard Samson Award for Outstanding Canadian Orthopaedic Researcher over a 5-Year Period, named as one of the “Top 22 North American Knee Surgeons” by his peers and one of “10 Orthopedic Surgeon Tech Entrepreneurs to Know” by Becker’s Spine Review. Dunbar, with an h-index of 37, is the author of 300+ peer reviewed journal articles cited over 3000 times and has been invited to deliver over 400 presentations locally and in countries around the world. He has been involved as principle or co-investigator in local, national, and international grants with total capture of over $30 million dollars. He has supervised dozens of Master’s and PhD students as well as dozens of residents and fellows from health jurisdictions across the world. As a key opinion leader, he is shaping a new way of thinking about total joint replacement by increasing the precision of surgical techniques. His overarching approach to research is to incorporate the concept of “phased innovation” as a paradigm shift in the manner which new surgical technologies are introduced. He has a special interest in the confluence of surgical robotics and mobile technology to reimagine the delivery of arthroplasty care on patient specific basis.
