Switch Health Announces New Medical and Scientific Advisory Board to Continue Guiding Evidence-Based Growth

TORONTO, Jan. 31, 2022 /CNW/ - Switch Health today announced that it has formed a new Medical and Scientific Advisory Board, with four leading physicians and scientists, Dr. Mark Gelfer, Dr. Christopher McCudden, Dr. Helen Tran, and Dr. Robert Petrella as the first appointees to the Board. The Board will be chaired by Dr. Gregory Taylor, Switch Health's Chief Medical Officer and Canada's former Chief Public Health Officer.

This new Board builds on Switch Health's commitment to reliable, science-based, and independent guidance on diagnostic testing as well as other patient-focused solutions. The Medical and Scientific Advisory Board's work will be critical as Switch Health identifies new opportunities and brings more innovative products and services to market.

Together, Doctors Petrella, McCudden, Tran and Gelfer will be working to advise the leadership team and Dr. Gregory Taylor, who was appointed Chief Medical Officer in May 2021 to lead Switch Health's growing team of healthcare professionals and advise on medical operations. As Canada's former top doctor in 2014 in his role as Chief Public Health Officer, Dr. Taylor provides a unique understanding and expertise in what Canada has learned to date on global disease prevention and is helping forge a strong future for Switch Health through more Canadian-based innovative digital solutions to protect Canadians through this pandemic and in the future.

"We are extremely pleased that this respected group of physicians and scientists have agreed to join our Medical and Scientific Advisory Board," said Dilian Stoyanov, Chief Executive Officer at Switch Health. "It's imperative for us to get reliable and independent science-based advice from experienced and esteemed medical and scientific professionals to help guide our growth as a company. These experts have had a profound impact in academia and research across many medical fields in Canada."

"We are very proud to welcome Dr. Petrella, Dr. McCudden, Dr. Tran and Dr. Gelfer to Switch Health's growing team of medical and scientific experts," said Dr. Gregory Taylor, Chief Medical Officer at Switch Health. "I will rely on their advice to continue to re-tool how Canadians receive safe and reliable decentralized testing, and as Switch Health continues to play a lead role in transforming healthcare in Canada with innovative new diagnostic solutions and services."

The Board identified four pillars to guide its mandate, including: credibility; accuracy and validity in Switch Health's testing practices; ensuring best practices; and maximizing value of Canadian delivery models regarding integration, support, and innovation within the Canadian health care system.

Dr. Robert Petrella is Head (Chair) of the Department of Family Practice at the University of British Columbia (UBC) and Professor Emeritus at the Center for Studies in Family Medicine at Western University. He also serves as Professor of Kinesiology at both UBC and Western. Dr. Petrella's research is focused on lifestyle interventions for chronic disease prevention and management. Dr. Petrella's has dedicated his career to furthering multi- and inter-disciplinary research on lifestyle management, physical activity, chronic diseases, and innovative technologies to improve the lives of all Canadians.

Dr. Mark Gelfer is a family physician specializing in Preventive Medicine at the TELUS Health Care Centre in Vancouver, British Columbia and until recently he was Corporate Medical Officer. He is a longstanding member of Hypertension Canada and as Co-Chair of the Hypertension Canada Guidelines Blood Pressure Measurement and Diagnosis sub-committee , Dr. Gelfer led the drafting of substantial medical advances in accurate measurement and diagnosis of high blood pressure. Dr. Gelfer gained global recognition for developing the BpTRU device, the first automated office blood pressure monitor, enabling the standardization of office blood pressure assessment through Automated Office Blood Pressure (AOBP), a practice now recommended by guideline bodies worldwide. Dr. Gelfer received the Hypertension Canada Innovation Award in 2019 and the George Fodor Award in 2021. Dr. Gelfer is also Co-Founder and Chairman of GenXys, a digital health company focused on precision prescribing with integrated pharmacogenomics.

Dr. Christopher McCudden is a Clinical Biochemist at the Ottawa Hospital and Vice Chair of the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of Ottawa, where he also serves as Associate Professor. He is the Deputy Chief Medical Scientific Officer and Medical Director of Informatics and Information Technology for the Eastern Ontario Regional Laboratory Association. Dr. McCudden's scientific expertise spans the disciplines of automated chemistry, laboratory informatics, quality improvement, plasma cell dyscrasias, and audit and feedback for laboratory test utilization.

Dr. Helen Tran is an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto in the Department of Chemistry. She obtained a BS in Chemistry (minor in Chemical Engineering) from UC Berkeley and a PhD in Chemistry from Columbia University, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at Stanford University. Dr. Tran is currently researching next-generation electronics that will autonomously respond to local stimuli and be harmonious with the human body, which will open doors for remarkable opportunities in environmental monitoring, advanced consumer products, and health diagnostics for personalized therapy. Dr. Tran has been awarded the Agilent Cary Recognition for Scientific Innovation Award, the Dorothy Shoichet Women Faculty in Science Award of Excellence, and the George Pegram Award.

About Switch Health

Switch Health Holdings Inc. (Switch Health) is an industry leader that is transforming how healthcare is delivered in Canada through cutting-edge decentralized next-generation diagnostics and patient-focused digital solutions. Switch Health developed an end-to-end, innovative, and accessible testing solution in Canada's fight against COVID-19, with its at-home and mobile collection kit to test Canadians safely, rapidly, and reliably for COVID-19. Switch Health's services are driven by its secure, proprietary patient portal, ASMO. Switch Health offers its gold standard of rapid and PCR testing in over 200 languages from the comfort of peoples' own homes or workplaces, with the guidance of trusted healthcare professionals and the delivery of results through some of Canada's top laboratories.

SOURCE Switch Health Inc.

Media Relations: Jordan Paquet, Switch Health, [email protected]