Announcement: Director of Data Management and Evaluation

We are thrilled to announce that Vlad Kushnir, has been selected as the new Director Data Management and Evaluation with the YWHO Provincial Office, effective September 29, 2025. 

Vlad Kushnir is a health data and research leader with over 15 years of experience in program operations, data governance, multi-site program management, and system-level evaluation. He is passionate about building collaborative partnerships and leveraging high-quality data to improve care, inform policy, and drive innovation across healthcare systems.

Vlad is no stranger to CAMH, having completed all his graduate training at the Institute for Mental Health Policy Research. He earned his MSc in Pharmacology & Toxicology (Neuroscience) before joining the Institute as a staff member, and later pursued his PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences (specialization in Addiction Studies) at the University of Toronto while continuing to work at CAMH.

Most recently, Vlad served as Director of Operations & Strategic Partnerships at Unity Health Toronto’s St. Michael’s Hospital, where he provided executive leadership to GEMINI, Canada’s largest hospital data network for research, quality improvement, and advanced analytics. Over seven years, he helped scale GEMINI to 40+ hospitals, establishing it as a cornerstone of Ontario’s learning health system and advancing data governance, hospital quality reporting, and multi-site research.

In his new role as Director, Data Management and Evaluation at YWHO’s Provincial Office, Vlad will lead the strategic vision for evaluation and data systems management. He will work collaboratively with communities, youth, service providers, government, and provincial organizations to evaluate YWHO initiatives and implement the integrated data platform that supports measurement-based care.

We would also like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the significant impact that Debbie Chiodo has made to YWHO as the inaugural Director of Data Management and Evaluation over the last three years.  We are so glad that Deb will continue to support YWHO through her role as Director at the IYS Collaboration Centre and Lead Scientist for YWHO.

Please join us in welcoming Vlad to the YWHO team!