Alistair Forsyth appointed VP, Digital Health at VHA

TORONTO – Alistair Forsyth (pictured) has been appointed to the newly created role of Vice President, Digital Health and Chief Information Officer for VHA Home HealthCare (VHA), effective January 1st, 2023. Digital Health is a critical priority for VHA. The elevation of this portfolio and VHA’s increased investment in cutting-edge technology and digital tools signals the organization’s commitment to delivering more client-facing digital services, improving the work experience and capacity of its care teams and building digital bridges to enable seamless information-sharing with its partners.

“I’m thrilled to be taking on this exciting new leadership role in support of VHA’s digital transformation journey,” said Forsyth. “I look forward to working with our strong and growing digital team to achieve our bold vision to deliver a customer-centred digital experience that meets the needs of our teams, our clients and our partners going forward.”

VHA’s ambitious plans for this area are outlined in a three-year digital transformation strategy Alistair and his team have developed. It highlights numerous priorities, including implementing a remote care monitoring platform, building out a digital client experience hub that will include expanded virtual care options and tools for self-management for our clients.

New enterprise-level applications and enhancements to VHA’s Electronic Health Record will offer staff and providers a modern digital experience that delivers smart automation, advanced analytics and seamless integration to support high quality integrated care with VHA’s partners.

These projects will build on the great progress that has been achieved since Alistair joined VHA almost three years ago.

“Under his leadership, we have built out robust business intelligence and data governance programs to ensure we have the tools and information we need to make data-driven decisions,” said Dr. Kathryn Nichol, president and CEO of VHA.

“Our digital infrastructure has been modernized with the majority of our systems moving to the cloud, while strengthening I.T. security and support for our staff. We have built VHA’s virtual care program from the ground up, including developing our own volunteer “digital geek squad”. And Alistair and his team are leading one of our most exciting initiatives this year, the MyVHA client portal.”

“In addition,” said Dr. Nichol, “Alistair’s extensive experience managing digital initiatives with healthcare partners is helping to advance digital priorities for many Ontario Health Teams in regions where VHA provides service. Alistair lends his expertise to regional and provincial digital health tables including the Toronto Security Operations Table and the Digital Health Advisory Council.

Before joining VHA, Alistair Forsyth worked at North York General Hospital (NYGH), where his role included management of the digital innovation portfolio and IT service desk, establishing and co-chairing NYGH’s data governance program and leading clinical transformation projects.

He has also held management roles at eHealth Ontario, where he worked on privacy policy and governance frameworks with sector partners. Alistair holds a Master of Health Administration degree, a Graduate Diploma in Law and Certificates in Information Privacy and IT Contract Drafting and Negotiation.

Dr. Nichol said she’d also like to recognize Jennifer Blum, VHA’s chief financial officer and VP, operations support, for her dedicated oversight of our digital portfolio for many years. She has played a pivotal role in advancing this work and this next stage of development wouldn’t have been possible without her strategic leadership.