What if we could rebuild primary care from scratch – knowing what we know now about AI, robotics, and the lessons from eHealth Ontario?

Patricia Thaine sits down with Adam Cole (Senior Solutions Architect, Smile CDR) and George Smitherman (former Ontario Deputy Premier and Minister of Health) to explore the gap between healthcare's $100 billion budget in Ontario and its struggling digital transformation.

They dig into the real blockers: how 17 hours of weekly admin burden is pushing physicians away from practice ownership, why your EMR can't talk to the local hospital despite decades of "interoperability" promises, and what happens when venture capital starts eyeing those 10,000 primary care clinics.

The conversation spans from George's insider view of eHealth's ambitious failures to Adam's vision of AI handling 80% of routine cases – while tackling the thorny questions around privacy walls, innovation sandboxes, and whether grandma's Alexa companion is just the beginning of ambient AI monitoring.
From the minister who wrote Ontario's privacy legislation to the architect building tomorrow's clinical systems – they're mapping the path from good intentions to actual implementation.
About the Guests:

Adam Cole is a veteran healthcare technology leader with over two decades of experience driving digital innovation across enterprise and startup ecosystems. Currently Senior Solutions Architect and Head of Sales Engineering at Smile CDR, Adam has held senior roles with organizations like McKesson, the Canadian Clinical Trial Network, and HealthChain. A Canadian IT Professional of the Year and Smithsonian Laureate, he combines deep technical expertise with a passion for ethical, sustainable, and ROI-driven innovation in digital health.

Hon. George Smitherman is a trailblazing public servant, entrepreneur, and advocate with over three decades of leadership across government, healthcare, and social impact sectors. As Ontario's first openly gay MPP and former Deputy Premier, he led major portfolios including Health, Energy, and Infrastructure, overseeing transformative policies and major healthcare expansions. Since leaving politics, George has founded organizations driving innovation in workforce development, aging, and sustainability, continuing to champion pragmatic solutions to healthcare recruitment and community well-being.

Healthcare moves at the speed of trust – and right now, trust is the bottleneck.

Patricia Thaine sits down with Michael Lynch (Product Manager, Providence Health) and Sam Schifman (Innovation Architect, Vantiq) to talk through what it actually takes to build AI infrastructure that works in healthcare.

They cover the messy reality: sparse data, 40+ ways to encode "negative" in a single COVID report, why physicians need blood pressure context (not just raw numbers), and how agents might coordinate patient discharge without anyone hunting down a physical therapist.

The conversation moves from HL7's AI transparency standards and FHIR interoperability to MCP-based agent communication, federated learning, and the shift from deterministic code to systems you teach rather than program.

If you're dealing with unstructured clinical data, building tools clinicians will actually use, or trying to scale AI without breaking trust – this one's for you.

- About the Guests -

Michael Lynch is a product manager with nearly two decades of experience building and launching healthcare solutions that truly make an impact. His focus is on leveraging AI and machine learning to create smart tools that reach millions of patients and help clinical teams deliver their best work. He has led major transformations, founded a startup, and stays hands-on with the latest advancements by teaching and contributing to open-source projects. While pursuing his PhD in computer vision for medical imaging, he focused on creating datasets to teach machines human-like intelligence – a foundation that continues to drive his approach to AI innovation today.

Sam Schifman is a seasoned software architect with deep expertise across industries including healthcare, finance, education, and cybersecurity. He entered Healthcare IT in 2019 as Chief Architect at Diameter Health, where he focused on unlocking clinical data for government agencies, insurers, and Health Information Exchanges. A longtime advocate for responsible AI, Sam has worked with HL7 on AI standards, explored NLP and GenAI in clinical contexts, and frequently shares his insights as a speaker and guest lecturer at institutions like Harvard and conferences such as HIMSS. Now at Vantiq, he's focused on how Adaptive Automation / Agentic AI will empower the future of healthcare and improve outcomes for all.

- Links -

Michael's Aggregate Intellect Talk: Opportunities for Agent-Based Applications in Healthcare

Michael's LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/michaellynchphd

Sam's YouTube: youtube.com/@Schifman_health

Sam's LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/samschifman