Centre for Innovation in Health & Wellness (CIHW)

SHAPING THE FUTURE OF HEALTH AND WELLNESS

Vanita Varma, PhD Director, Centre for Innovation in Health & Wellness (CIHW) Faculty of Health Sciences & Wellness

HEALTHY AND INCLUSIVE COMMUNITY IS one of the three main pillars of Humber College’s 2018-2023 Strategic Plan. The strategic priorities under this pillar are:

• Optimize student success by embedding health and wellbeing into all aspects of campus culture x

• Continue to build a diverse and inclusive community of exceptional students, faculty and staff x

• Provide national leadership in developing sustainable campuses

Over the last two years, healthy and inclusive community became particularly important as the COVID-19 pandemic impacted our lives, our well-being and, above all, overwhelmed our healthcare system. Among many other uncertainties, the pandemic also brought to the surface the deep-rooted systemic health inequities and gaps that have existed for years but have never been fully addressed. Humber, with its successful history in providing high-quality education to those pursuing careers in the healthcare and wellness sectors, has taken a leadership role to address these gaps and to shape the future by creating a new Centre for Innovation in Health & Wellness (CIHW).

CIHW is part of Humber’s Centres of Innovation (COI) Network, which includes the Barrett Centre for Technology Innovation, Centre for Entrepreneurship, Centre for Creative Business Innovation, and the Centre for Social Innovation. The COIs bring together faculty members, staff, researchers, scholars, students and community members to collaborate on new ideas, solve problems, and push the boundaries of innovation.

CIHW key priority areas

The premise for the work of CIHW is student-centric with a focus on applied research and initiatives around supporting diverse communities in receiving equitable, inclusive and high-quality healthcare. With support from experienced faculty members and staff, Humber students will join hands with community and industry partners on new initiatives through testing the latest technologies and innovative tools and developing new strategies and practical solutions that contribute to a healthier tomorrow for all. Jason Powell, Senior Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences & Wellness, shares the following about the goal of CIHW:

This is an ambitious goal, one that will be delivering on bold ideas with cross-sector collaboration across Humber’s academic faculties, groups, industry partners and Centres of Innovation (COI) Network.

—Jason Powell, Senior Dean, Faculty of Health Sciences & Wellness

To bring CIHW to life, multiple diverse stakeholders were engaged, including Humber’s staff and faculty, healthcare practitioners and community leaders. What emerged was a collective vision for the Centre to be a change agent in leading, developing and implementing new ideas in healthcare.

The key priority areas of CIHW are:

• Exploring next-generation solutions & prevention strategies for improving health outcomes in chronic diseases, supporting behaviour change, and self-care x

• Delving into alternate & traditional healing strategies for well-being and resilience—Humber’s ongoing work related to the Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioner program and Indigenous Ways of Being Knowing and Doing will be vital to this priority.

• Analyzing technology-enabled care, which will support curriculum enhancements to build capacity while providing hands-on experience and training with health technologies such as virtual care, health apps, and wearable devices

CIHW Leadership

In February 2022, Vanita Varma was appointed the Director of CIHW. Reflecting on the future of CIHW, Vanita states:

CIHW will be a game-changer in the education and health care sectors as our students, staff and faculty come together to explore, share and solve complex healthcare challenges while gaining invaluable real-world industry experience along the way.

—Vanita Varma, Director, Centre for Innovation in Health & Wellness

Collaboration with COIs

Cross-collaboration with the other COIs in the COI Network is embedded in CIHW’s work to ensure that students, staff, and faculty members adopt a holistic approach to solving complex challenges that may not have a ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution.

Here is what Tyler Charlebois, Director of COI Network and Partnership Development, says about the collaboration among the COI Network:

“We pride ourselves on leveraging our diverse expertise and skills to provide innovative solutions that consider a multitude of factors and variables.”

— Tyler Charlebois, Director, COI Network and Partnership Development

For more information about CIHW, please contact Vanita Varma, Director of CIHW.

ABOUT

Vanita Varma, PhD (She/Her) Director, Centre for Innovation in Health & Wellness, Faculty of Health Sciences & Wellness

Vanita Varma, PhD (She/Her)

Director, Centre for Innovation in Health & Wellness, Faculty of Health Sciences & Wellness

linkedin.com/in/vanita-varma

vanita.varma@humber.ca

Vanita Varma is Director of Centre for Innovation in Health and Wellness at Humber College. Vanita is a high-performance strategist with 20+ years of executive leadership experience in the community healthcare sector. Vanita is passionate about contributing to organizations that are human-centric, impact-oriented, and are continuously learning to make this world inclusive for all. Vanita completed her PhD from the University of Toronto, specializing in educational leadership and policy. Her current Board leadership roles include Crossroads International and Alzheimer Society of Ontario. She was the Past Board Chair & Board Director at William Osler Health System.

Her community leadership includes being a social entrepreneur coach at Ryerson University's Social Ventures Zone and a mentor at the Quadrangle Society in Massey College, University of Toronto. Vanita's specialties include strategic visioning & planning, operational leadership, community partnerships, stakeholder engagement, DE&I, board relations & governance, and change management.