Telehealth

Schinbein named executive director of telehealth forum

TORONTO – COACH is pleased to announce the appointment of John Schinbein (pictured) as the Executive Director of CTF: Canadian Telehealth Forum. “John brings extensive health system and association leadership experience to COACH and our new telehealth forum,” said CEO Don Newsham. “His background in supporting the Canadian Society of Telehealth’s (CST) Boards of Directors and as the Chief Information Officer (CIO) for the British Columbia Ministry of Health will be most valuable.”

A senior member of the COACH management team, John is responsible for leading, managing and overseeing CTF and all associated programs, services and events.

CTF was established as a COACH forum upon the COACH-CST merger April 1. CTF brings together the many stakeholders involved in furthering the development and implementation of telehealth practices.

It acts as a major resource for information and knowledge sharing, contributes to telehealth policy and standards development and, as an integral part of COACH, is the Canadian voice for telehealth both nationally and internationally.

Prior to joining COACH, John was the Executive Director of CST for four years. He has more than 35 years experience in the health sector in senior clinical, management and leadership roles.

As the BC Ministry of Health CIO, he was responsible for all aspects of the ministry’s Information Technology Services, as well as providing leadership and coordination of eHealth-related IT activities across the BC health sector. John was the founding Chair of the BC Health CIO Council, Chair of the BC Health Information Standards Council, Co-Chair of the Canada Health Infoway National CIO Forum and an active member of numerous provincial, inter-provincial and national committees.

In addition to his professional work, John has been actively involved in the academic and not-for-profit community for over 25 years, having held positions on a number of advisory and policy committees including Royal Roads and Dalhousie Universities, the Justice Institute of British Columbia and the British Columbia Institute of Technology.

He has been both a clinical and management educator and international consultant. He holds as Master’s Degree in Leadership, a Master’s Certificate in Project Management and a Diploma in Public Sector Management.

John encourages COACH members to contact him through the COACH office or by email at jschinbein@coachorg.com. Visit www.coachorg.com/CTF to learn more about CTF.

Posted May 20, 2010