Our Team

Role at Santis

Dan co-founded Santis in 2012 after serving in a variety of senior advisory roles in the Ontario government. At Santis, Dan provides strategic advice to boards and executives across the Canadian health care sector. Over the past decade, Dan has led dozens of leading organizations through successful strategy development, management and execution processes. He has also worked with clients to reshape public opinion and public policy through the development of policy proposals, business cases and white papers aimed at improving health system performance. Dan’s clients include Fortune 500 companies, leading national and provincial health care organizations, government agencies and a range of health charities.

Experience

Prior to Santis, Dan spent almost a decade at the intersection of health care strategy, policy and politics. He served as the senior advisor for health care to the Ontario premier, deputy premier, and two ministers of health. During his time at Queen’s Park, Dan helped drive forward the government’s health care transformation agenda, which included the expansion of interprofessional primary care, regional care integration, digital health reform, and wait times reduction. Before coming to Ontario, Dan worked in the UK as a parliamentary researcher for a member of parliament and health critic; in this role he was responsible for monitoring legislative and regulatory activity and researching heatlh policy issues. Dan’s private sector experience also includes a stint in the investment banking industry in the United Kingdom, where he worked for Goldman Sachs and UBS Warburg.

Volunteerism and Education

Dan is past Chair of the Board at St. Jude Community Homes, a provider of supportive housing for people living with mental illness. He has also served on several corporate advisory boards over the past 5 years. Dan has an MSc. with Distinction from the London School of Economics and a BA Hons from McGill University. He lives in Toronto with his wife and four daughters.

Role at Santis

Dr. Brendan Carr is a distinguished health system leader who served as the President & CEO of the Nova Scotia Health Authority, William Osler Health System, and Island Health in British Columbia.

He brings an array of expertise in strategic health system leadership and governance with a focus on improving outcomes and rethinking the delivery of care. Dr. Carr’s vast experience in enacting positive improvements and large scale initiatives make him uniquely-suited to providing guidance to Santis clients in the areas of stakeholder engagement, transformation, and strategic implementation.

Experience

Prior to joining Santis, Dr. Carr served as the President and Chief Medical Officer of Innoneo Health Enterprise, an organization focused on dramatically impacting health through an innovative ecosystem model that addressed systemic issues such as provider fatigue, service fragmentation and affordability. In this role, Dr. Carr led efforts to rethink health care delivery in response to global trends in patient expectations, demographics, emerging technology and artificial intelligence.

Dr. Carr also served as the President & CEO of the Nova Scotia Health Authority where he led the province’s comprehensive COVID-19 response and ensured minimal disruption to the health system’s core services. As President & CEO of William Osler Health System in Ontario, Dr. Carr led the shift to a learning organization culture, commissioned several large capital projects, and collaborated with government and external stakeholders to position Osler as an efficient and high-performing organization. Dr. Carr spearheaded the rebranding of the Vancouver Island Health Authority in British Columbia to Island Health as President & CEO. In this capacity, he also established regional leadership nodes to promote community engagement and partnerships to address local health needs.

Volunteerism and Education

Dr. Carr holds a BSc, MBA and MD from Dalhousie University. He completed his medical residency at the University of Ottawa in emergency medicine and family medicine. He has served as a director of numerous Pan-Canadian and provincial organizations including Canada’s Drug Agency, Canadian Resident Matching Services (CaRMS), and HealthCare Can. He has also worked extensively with boards to strengthen governance, manage enterprise risk, and build agile, future-ready organizations.

Dr. Carr is the recipient of several distinctions including the Healthcare Excellence Canada Naimark award and a Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal. Brendan holds a Certified Health Executive (CHE) designation with the Canadian College of Health Leaders, a Certified Canadian Physician Executive (CCPE) designation with the Canadian Society of Physician Leaders and is an EXTRA Fellow.

Role at Santis

Victoria is an experienced member of the Management Consulting team with strong health policy knowledge, strategy development expertise, and stakeholder engagement experience. She has a strong ability to facilitate strategic discussions, identify opportunities and needs, and work collaboratively to develop tailored solutions and strategies to address pressing organizational and health sector challenges. During her time at Santis she has worked closely with the Boards and leadership teams of hospitals, community service providers, provincial health organizations, and national and international health and life sciences organizations to help them navigate uncertainty and position themselves for long-term success.

Experience

Prior to joining Santis, Victoria worked at the Business + Higher Education Roundtable (BHER) as an Associate, conducting and coordinating skills, innovation, and labour market equity research, as well as managing Board and member relations and supporting on strategic planning and operations.

She brings additional experience from her psychiatry research at Queen’s University, where she focused on the mental health of older adults, pharmaceutical prescribing practices and health care quality in long-term care. She was previously a member of the Queen’s University Board of Trustees.

Volunteerism and Education

Victoria holds a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Life Sciences, with a specialization in Epidemiology, from Queen’s University.

Role at Santis

Eden supports clients seeking expertise in federal government relations and management consulting. With a foundation in health sciences, Eden brings expertise through in-depth research, detailed analyses, and writing to inform policy and decision-making. She is also experienced in project management and supports stakeholder engagement initiatives. Eden is driven to tackle complex challenges and contribute to the development of a stronger health care system.

Experience

Prior to joining Santis, Eden worked as a research assistant at the University of Ottawa’s Placenta Lab. In this role, she conducted and analyzed scientific research, co-authored a systematic review, analyzed large data sets, reviewed grant submissions, and assisted with ongoing research projects. During her studies and two internships at Santis, Eden has experienced the current and emerging health policy environment.

Volunteerism and Education

Eden holds an Honours Bachelor of Health Sciences from the University of Ottawa with a Minor in Psychology. She has also volunteered with Kids Help Phone, the uOttawa Interprofessional Health Association, the CARE Lab at the University of Ottawa, and Ausome Ottawa.

ROLE AT SANTIS

Sarah is a Senior Consultant on the Management Consulting Team, helping to execute effective stakeholder engagement, facilitations with Boards and leadership teams and overall strategy development. With a background in data analytics and demographics and a passion for the health care industry, Sarah brings a unique set of skills to help clients understand their needs and create successful and meaningful outcomes in an ever-changing environment.

EXPERIENCE

Sarah brings experience in synthesizing data, managing large, complex projects and creating high- quality deliverables for clients. Prior to joining Santis, Sarah worked at Environics Analytics as the Director of Demographic Data, leading a team of data analysts and scientists. Through her 8 years of experience at Environics Analytics, Sarah helped produce many data products related to demographics, behaviours and lifestyles. She led the development of new methodologies, project management and strategic support for the team. She also assisted in leading webinars on the topic of demographics in Canada with a focus on the senior population.

VOLUNTEERISM AND EDUCATION

Sarah holds a Master’s of Spatial Analysis from Toronto Metropolitan University and a Bachelor of Environmental Studies in Geography and Environmental Management, with a minor in History and a Specialization in Geomatics, from the University of Waterloo.

Role at Santis

Jonathan brings senior strategic counsel and decades of executive and advisory experience to Santis.

Experience

For seven years, Jonathan served as the CEO of the Ontario Medical Association, gaining significant exposure to all facets of the health care system. Upon his arrival, he worked with the board to initiate and implement a Strategic Plan designed to cover the fundamental issues facing the OMA. Based on the plan, the board implemented a major governance realignment, and a communications and public affairs strategy (implemented by Patrick Nelson), which guided the Association’s approach in two rounds of negotiations. Jonathan was also responsible for the turnaround of the OMA subsidiary, OntarioMD, which placed Electronic Medical Record (EMR) technology in the hands of over 11,000 Ontario physicians.

Prior to his tenure at the OMA, Jonathan ran the Credit Union Central of Ontario for over twelve years, where he envisioned and engineered the merger with BC Central Credit Union to create the pan-Canadian Central1. Prior to that he served as a lawyer and diplomat in the foreign service.

Volunteerism and Education

Jonathan has also served on numerous boards, including the University of Guelph, the Harvard Alumni Association, Credit Union Central of Canada, OntarioMD, the Institute for Quality Management in Healthcare, a trust company and two insurance companies. He was Chair of the University of Guelph’s Health for Life initiative and is chair of Board of the Pine River Institute. Jonathan has a law degree from the University of Toronto and a degree in economics from Harvard University.

ROLE AT SANTIS

Dr. McNally has held strategic leadership roles in health care for over 20 years. She has worked in various care settings in both northeastern Ontario and on PEI as a practising family physician. 

Her wealth of acumen in primary care, strategic leadership, and firsthand practitioner experience make her uniquely-suited to providing guidance to Santis clients in the areas of public affairs, stakeholder engagement, and policy analysis.

EXPERIENCE

A distinguished leader in health care, Dr. McNally has over 20 years of experience as a practising family physician both in northeastern Ontario and on PEI. Her work in advancing primary care has garnered her numerous health sector accolades. She has worked in a wide range of settings  including full scope community family medicine, long-term care, emergency medicine and acute hospital medicine. Her most recent clinical work is with the homeless population on PEI and in community family medicine.  

Prior to joining Santis, she served as the Chief Medical Officer of Health PEI, the province’s health authority. In this role Dr. McNally was accountable for physician leadership structure, appointment & privileging, and the Medical Affairs team, among other responsibilities. Dr. McNally co-authored and was instrumental in the initiation of the Provincial Primary Care Road Map (PCRM) leading to the province-wide implementation of Patient Medical Homes and Neighbourhoods. 

She previously held the role of Director of Health Services with PEI’s Department of Health & Wellness.

Dr. McNally received the Health PEI Board Leadership Excellence in Quality & Safety award in 2024 and the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC) Award of Excellence for leadership in primary care in 2020. She received her first CFPC Award of Excellence for leadership in hospitalist medicine in 2009 in recognition of creating and implementing the first Hospitalist program on PEI.

VOLUNTEERISM AND EDUCATION

Dr. McNally graduated from Dalhousie University’s M.D. program and the University of Ottawa Family Residency program. She holds a B.Sc. Major in biology obtained from the University of Prince Edward Island. She completed a Master’s Certificate in Physician Leadership with the Schulich Executive Education Center at York University and is a Canadian Certified Physician Executive (CCPE).

A strong advocate for physician health and wellness, Dr. McNally was the inaugural chair of the Medical Society of Prince Edward Island (MSPEI) provincial steering committee on physician health and engagement from 2016 to 2021 and was pivotal in the creation and implementation of the first provincial physician health program. For over a decade, she was the provincial representative and advocate for physician health attending national meetings and conferences on behalf of MSPEI.  She was awarded the MSPEI President’s Leadership award in 2018 for her years of advancing awareness and advocacy in the area.

ROLE AT SANTIS

Alexia supports research and project management on the Management Consulting Team. She specializes in policy and environmental research and analysis, and supports clients in achieving their goals from project start to finish. Driven by a strong passion for improving health systems, she is committed to developing high-impact knowledge products that foster meaningful change.

EXPERIENCE

Before joining Santis, Alexia worked at the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO), where she played a key role in managing and facilitating information exchange among 180 Collaborating Centres across the Americas. Her work focused on optimizing digital knowledge-sharing networks to strengthen collaboration and enhance the impact of knowledge products.

VOLUNTEERISM AND EDUCATION

Alexia holds a Master of Science in Global Health and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Windsor.

ROLE AT SANTIS

Saäd provides high-value counsel to executives navigating complex organizations, landscapes and challenges, utilizing his decades of experience as a change leader in the public and private sectors.

EXPERIENCE

For nearly 30 years, Saäd has served as a leader in challenging public and private sector environments, honing his expertise in financial administration, leadership of complex organizations, risk management, health care and, critically, as a changemaker who delivers results.

Saäd has held some of the most critical Deputy Minister positions in the Ontario Public Service including public safety and policing, transportation, energy and infrastructure and health and long-term care. During his time at the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care, he oversaw one of the largest government budgets in Canada, $48 billion. Shepherding the Ministry through the challenging landscape after the 2008 to 2009 financial crisis, Saäd also drove impactful change in the realms of infrastructure, digital health and hospital funding modernization.

After his successful tenure with the public service, Saäd was named CEO of the 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games in Toronto. He re-established shareholder and sponsor confidence implementing the largest multi-sport event in Canadian history, returning a significant surplus of funds to taxpayers and increasing the economic activity above normal levels in Toronto and the surrounding 16 municipalities.

Prior to joining Santis as an Executive Advisor, Saäd was a National Leader for the Government and Public Services Industry at Deloitte. He has also consulted and advised a wide number of clients in pharmacare, long-term care, municipalities and major health care organizations.  

VOLUNTEERISM AND EDUCATION

Saäd serves on the Board of Directors for several organizations including the Hospital for Sick Children, Baycrest Seniors Care, Ellis Don and the Canadian Olympic Committee. He has received an Honorary Degree from Humber College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning and was recognized as a one of the “75 for 75^th” distinguished alumni honored as part of the 75^th anniversary of the Faculty of Public Affairs at Carleton University.

Role at Santis

Veronica serves as the Practice Lead for Santis’ Management Consulting service area. She brings over a decade of experience in Management Consulting across the public, private and non-profit sectors. During her tenure with the firm, Veronica has been pivotal in shaping and expanding Santis’ strategic advisory offerings. Her expertise lies in aligning organizations’ goals with actionable strategies, fostering seamless collaborations, and crafting comprehensive strategies that pave the way for long-term success. Veronica works directly with Boards and leadership teams of health authorities, health care providers, and associations. Her health care provider clients have spanned across sectors, including hospital and acute care, specialty care, community care, home care, mental health and addictions and primary care.

Experience

Prior to joining the Santis team, Veronica worked at the Ontario Public Service. During her time, Veronica led a diverse range of policy files and provided recommendations to senior management related to various strategic priorities and stakeholder issues.

Veronica also worked on multiple teams at United Way Greater Toronto. At United Way, Veronica assisted in scoping and developing new initiatives for future investments, supported the organizational strategic planning and implementation of the strategic plan, as well as worked with key partners to advance the organization’s research and public policy agenda.

Volunteerism and Education

Veronica holds an M.A. in International Relations, and a B.A. (Honours) majoring in political studies with a minor in global development studies from Queen’s University.

Role at Santis

As an Associate, Marcel serves as an advisor to the Santis team and its clients on key health initiatives and supports them in achieving their strategic policy, health care policy and government relations objectives.

Experience

Marcel joined Santis after 30+ years of experience in the federal government focusing on strategic policy, health care policy, and intergovernmental relations. After holding several positions as a Policy Analyst, Marcel became a Policy Advisor for the Director of Policy in the Prime Minister’s Office, where he provided advice on key issues in the Health, Justice and Human Resources Development Portfolios.

Marcel has since held various leadership positions as the Director of Policy Research for the Canadian Medical Association, Director General of Policy Coordination and Director General of Health Care Strategies for Health Canada. Most notably, Marcel worked as the Executive Director, Secretariat for the Advisory Council on the Implementation of National Pharmacare for Health Canada. In this role he oversaw the work of the Advisory Council, provided leadership for the Council’s cross-country consultations, and collaborated with senior officials at Finance Canada, the Privy Council Office and Health Canada.

Prior to joining Santis, Marcel served as an Associate Assistant Deputy Minister for the Strategic Policy Branch of Health Canada. In his role he advised the Minister and Deputy Minister on health care policy and led Federal-Provincial-Territorial negotiations on bilateral agreements for mental health, home care and virtual care.

Volunteerism and Education

Marcel holds a Bachelor of Social Sciences in Economics from the University of Ottawa, along with a Master of Science in Economics from the University of Montreal. Marcel is fluently bilingual in English and French and has significant experience as a member of the Board of Directors of several pan-Canadian health organizations.

ROLE AT SANTIS

Annie plays a key role in project management and research on the Management Consulting Team. She conducts policy and environmental research and analysis, develops and executes engagement plans, and helps address high-priority client goals. Annie’s passion for innovative solutions and improved health outcomes drives her work, as she develops high-impact products—such as reports, frameworks, and recommendations—that inform critical decision-making and drive meaningful change.

EXPERIENCE

Before joining the Santis team, Annie worked at Women’s College Hospital, Toronto, where she collaborated with investigators, doctors, patients, and stakeholders to assess and expand virtual mental health supports. She also played a key role in developing research protocols for hospital program implementation and evaluation. Before working in clinical research, Annie worked as a graduate researcher and teaching assistant at the University of Toronto.

VOLUNTEERISM AND EDUCATION

Annie holds a Master of Arts in Psychology and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Toronto.