Committee Members

The FPSC is a partnership of the Government of BC and Doctors of BC that works on behalf of doctors to strengthen full-service family practice and patient care in BC.

The committee is comprised of six representatives from the Doctors of BC and six representatives of the Government of BC, and has guest members from each health authority and BC Family Doctors.


Doctors of BC and Ministry of Health Representatives*

Please click on name for member biography.

Ted Patterson (Co-Chair)

Ministry of Health

Ted Patterson is the Assistant Deputy Minister (ADM) of the Primary Care Division at the Ministry of Health. Prior to this appointment, Ted seconded a number of ADM portfolios in the Ministry, including Primary and Community Care policy, as well as the Health Sector Workforce. Previously, Ted was Executive Director at the Public Sector Employers' Council (PSEC) Secretariat in the Ministry of Finance, where he was responsible for collective bargaining and compensation strategies for the Health, K-12 and University sectors. In this role, Ted also served as a member of the Board of Directors for the BC Public School Employers' Association and represented government at a number of major negotiation tables.

Ted has also worked in a number of other senior level positions within the Ministry of Health, including Director of Labour Relations and Special Initiatives in the Office of the Chief Administrative Officer.

Ted holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts in Political Studies, both from the University of Saskatchewan.

Dr Sari Cooper (Co-Chair)

Doctors of BC

Dr Sari Cooper is the physician Co-Chair of the Family Practice Services Committee (FPSC). She has been a member of the Committee since 2019, and was appointed to the Co-Chair role in 2022. She looks after a panel of complex patients in Victoria, and has been practicing longitudinal family medicine since finishing her residency in 2001.

Sari has worked in several different models of primary care across different provincial systems, and she understands from experience the value of team-based care, system evolution, and collaboration. In 2010 she was part of the development team that created a thriving family medicine residency program in Barrie, Ontario, which has been a driving force of recruitment and retention in the area. During her time as a family medicine residency preceptor in Barrie, Sari received a teaching award for Role Modeling Clinical Excellence from the Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto. 

She moved to British Columbia with her family in 2014, and holds a clinical appointment at UBC. She previously served as a Division Head for Geo 4 with Island Health's Department of Family Practice.

Outside of her medical career, Sari has a busy and active family, and she has recently become a published author of a middle-grade novel.

Dr Greg Costello

Doctors of BC, Fraser Health region representative

Dr Greg Costello is a family physician primarily working in Bella Bella, BC. He grew up in Abbotsford and graduated from the UBC Southern Medical Program (SMP) in 2016. His medical school training included an Integrated Community Clerkship in Fort St John through the Northern Medical Program, where he developed a passion for accessible, high quality longitudinal primary care across settings, and for rural/remote communities in particular.

After completing his family medicine residency training in Chilliwack, Greg locumed around the province before signing on to a part time practice in Bella Bella. In addition to outpatient care at the Bella Bella Medical Clinic, he provides emergency department, acute inpatient and long term care services at the Heiltsuk Hospital.

>When not in Bella Bella, Greg provides a combination of casual hospitalist coverage at the Kelowna General Hospital as well as episodic virtual and in person care to keep his perspective and skill set as broad as possible.

Supported by the Specialist Services Committee, Greg completed a "Mini-MBA for Physicians" through York University in 2023 with the goal of considering how emerging technology may improve the efficiency and accessibility of existing and new primary care services. Teaching at the SMP since 2020, he is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the UBC Department of Family Practice, with an interest in combining basic clinical skills training with Point of Care Ultrasound.

When not working or teaching, Greg can usually be found in Kelowna spending time with his wife and infant son, playing video games, reading or out for a run.

Greg is very excited to be joining the FPSC at this critical moment to provide a rural and remote lens to the committee's work, and help shape the programs and supports that will guide how family medicine evolves in the post-pandemic world.

Danielle Daigle

Ministry of Health

Danielle Daigle is a Family Nurse Practitioner providing longitudinal primary care in Campbell River, BC at the North Island Medical Clinic and with the Positive Wellness North Island team. Dani works with vulnerable and medically complex populations including those who are homeless, experience issues with mental health and substance use, women at risk, First Nations, and those living with hepatitis C and HIV. She holds a subspecialty certification from the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV care.

In 1996, Dani obtained her Bachelor of Nursing degree from the University of Manitoba and worked collaboratively at the bedside and held various nursing leadership roles, both in acute care and in the community. In 2014, Dani graduated with her Master of Nursing from the University of Victoria and brings to her NP practice a passion for patient advocacy and an earnestness to ensure low-barrier access to primary health care. Since the Ministry of Health’s announcement in May 2018 to improve access to and the provision of primary health care, Dani has provided leadership and dedication to ensuring the success of this strategy at both the community and provincial levels. Dani brings to her leadership the insight and perspective from a primary care provider lens working collaboratively within a Primary Care Network (PCN) community. Dani also played an instrumental leadership role in the development and implementation of the first PCN NP Primary Care Clinics (NP-PCCs) in British Columbia.

In her previous role as Executive Director with Nurses and Nurse Practitioners of BC (NNPBC), Dani was responsible for the innovative programming associated with the Nurse Practitioner Provincial Initiatives and Programs (NP-PIP) portfolio funded by the Ministry of Health. NNPBC's NP-PIP provides a regional NP leadership program and a practice support program to support NPs working in PCN settings, along with funding for NPs to participate in Quality Improvement and PCN planning. Dani has been known to wear many leadership hats including co-chairing the Ministry of Health/NNPBC NP Provincial Services Committee, serving as President for the NP Council of NNPBC, being Director on the NNPBC Board of Directors, and was the former BC Nurse Practitioner Association's NP Conference Chair.

Dani enjoys skiing at Mount Washington and has volunteered for the Mount Washington Ski Patrol Association for 14 years. She also has two children and loves to get out on the water kayaking with her family. 

Dr Jaron Easterbrook

Doctors of BC, Northern Health region representative

profile photo of Dr Jaron Easterbrook

Dr Jaron Easterbrook is a family physician at Three Cedars MD in Sidney, BC. He attended medical school at the University of Calgary and completed his Family Medicine Residency at UBC’s Faculty of Medicine in 2018. Dr Easterbrook also has a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Victoria and an MBA in International Marketing from the University of Toronto.

Before he started practicing medicine, Jaron spent 15 years in marketing, most recently as a National Marketing Manager for Apple and a Product Manager for EMR & Integration with Canada Health Infoway. He made the switch to medicine after shadowing an ICU physician.

Jaron currently co-chairs the FPSC Information Sharing Task Group and the Greater Victoria COVID Community Task Group. Among other medical leadership activities, he was Vice Chair of his Division as a resident, previously on the board of the Health Data Coalition, and is the Treasurer for BC Family Doctors (formerly the Society of General Practitioners; which he led through a successful rebrand).

He is passionate about knowledge transfer, sharing tools, and resources to reduce workloads and improve practices for family doctors across the province. He is committed to longitudinal family medicine; he recently opened a new clinic in Sidney and is working as a hospitalist at the local community hospital on the peninsula. 

Dr Janet Evans

 Doctors of BC, Island Health region representative

profile photo of Dr Janet Evans

Dr Janet Evans is a family doctor and medical director at CGB Medical in Kelowna, BC. She graduated from family medicine at the University of Alberta.

Among Janet's passions are billing education, team-based care, and quality improvement. Chair of the Patterns of Practice Committee with Doctors of BC since 2020 (and committee member since 2016), Janet has also been very active in the Central Okanagan Division of Family Practice, where she helped pilot the nurse-in-practice initiative and mentored doctors on team-based care as part of the division’s primary care network working group.

She continues to mentor family doctors across B.C. on team-based care and is always on the lookout for practice innovations that make family doctors' work more efficient and enjoyable.

At home, Janet is mom to four boys: Denzel (26), Theo (23), Julian and Gabriel (17).

“I am looking forward to working on FPSC to help find solutions to the current challenges facing family doctors,” says Janet. “I believe changes can be made to improve and make family practice sustainable.”

Kelly Gunn

Ministry of Health

Kelly Gunn is Vice President, Primary and Community Care and Chief Nursing Executive for Northern Health. She has 26 years of experience in the health care field, having worked as a nurse in both acute and speciality acute care, as well as in community health.

Kelly spent eight years in Medical Affairs with Northern Health before assuming her current role in 2014, and later assuming responsibility for professional practice in her role as Chief Nursing Executive.

Shallen Letwin

Ministry of Health

Shallen Letwin was appointed Vice President, Clinical Operations IH South beginning in April 2019. In this role, he leads clinical services for IH South, including: the Kootenay Boundary, Central and South Okanagan, as well as several IH-wide clinical programs and networks. These include: cardiac; home and community care; long-term care; cancer; and the Southern Medical Program – operational liaison.

Shallen has wide-ranging operational and leadership experience in the areas of acute care, community/primary care, long term care, pharmacy services, and cancer care across the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia spanning over two decades. Shallen has previously served as the Vice President Regional Operations for BC Cancer and Vice President, Clinical Operations for Fraser Health where he has provided leadership and direction to clinical services in regional cancer centres, hospitals and community services.

Shallen holds a Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy from the University of Alberta and a Doctor of Pharmacy from the University of BC. He is also a Certified Health Executive.

John Mah

Ministry of Health

John Mah serves as the Vice President, Health Benefits and Services with the First Nations Health Authority in British Columbia. He is responsible for delivering a variety of health services (Pharmacy, Dental, Medical Transportation etc.) to over 155,000 First Nations residing in British Columbia. He also has responsibility for Primary Care and E-Health with the goal to transform access to primary care services through a combination of First Nations led Primary Care Clinics and Virtual Services. 

He was born and raised in Edmonton, Alberta and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy from the University of Alberta. He has since obtained his master's in business administration from Simon Fraser University.

He began his career in indigenous health as a clinical pharmacist with Bigstone Cree Nation in Northern Alberta. He then transitioned into health administration by joining First Nations and Inuit Health Branch in Health Canada. He operated the Federal Drug Warehouse before working as the Director of the Non-Insured Health Benefits program before joining the First Nations Health Authority.

He is a husband and father to three adult children. In his spare time, he loves to find and try new recipes and then work it all off by walking multiple rounds of golf when weather permits.

Kelly McQuillen

Ministry of Health

Kelly is the Executive Director, Planning, Implementation & Oversight (PIO) branch for Primary Care Division at the Ministry of Health. The Primary Care Division is responsible for implementing the provincial primary care strategy. The PIO branch actively and collaboratively works with health system partners to support quality improvement in the planning, implementation and oversight of primary care strategies, policies, and programs to provide comprehensive primary care. Through Kelly’s leadership the branch is committed to the delivery of high-quality models of primary care throughout the province.

Kelly has over 30 years experience as a strategic health care professional, leading work for the federal, territorial (Yukon) and provincial (Manitoba and British Columbia) governments. Kelly began her career as a registered dietician and in her leadership and professional roles has developed an in-depth knowledge of public health, primary health care, health promotion, patient and family-centered care and nutrition.

Kelly is committed to patient-and family-centered, team-based care as an innovative approach to care, redesign and quality improvement of the health care system.  This approach is grounded in mutually beneficial partnerships/relationships among individuals, families/caregivers, communities and providers.

Dr Tracy Monk

Doctors of BC, Vancouver Coastal Health region representative

Tracy is a generalist family physician practicing in Burnaby/Coquitlam. She completed her medical degree at McGill University, followed by a rotating internship at St Paul’s Hospital.

Tracy has served as president of the Society of General Practitioners of BC from 2012 – 2013, chair of the Health Data Coalition Clinical Data Stewardship Committee from 2016 - 2018, and board member of the Fraser Northwest Division of Family Practice from 2011 – 2014. She currently serves as Physician Lead for the provincial Pathways initiative, and is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Family Practice Research Office at UBC. In 2013 she was honoured with the BC College of Family Physicians Award for Excellence in Family Medicine.

Tracy has a passion for policy and believes that the FPSC has been a shining example of bringing policy into action. She feels strongly that health care initiatives that increase the delivery of Barbara Starfield’s 4 C’s of primary care—Contact accessibility, Coordination, Comprehensiveness, and Continuity—are key to building sustainable health systems and improving population health.

Dr Baldev Sanghera

Doctors of BC, Interior Health region representative

Dr Baldev Sanghera provides longitudinal patient care at a multicultural, full-scope community-based family practice in Burnaby. He brings with him 25 years of experience in a wide range of settings including community practice, long-term care, obstetrics, and in-hospital patient care. He is a founding board member of the Burnaby Division of Family Practice and continues to be actively involved in the work of the division.

Baldev was enrolled in the pharmacy program at UBC when he decided to shift to medicine.

He has maintained his community-based practice since 1998 and has a special interest in employing technology to improve delivery of care. Baldev also has experience working with all levels of government, health authorities and community agencies, with a focus on building community wide team-based care and advocating for vulnerable citizens through improving social determinants of health.


Health Authority Representatives

Dr Colin Siu - Program Medical Director, Primary Health Care and Chronic Disease Management, Fraser Health Authority
Jason Giesbrecht - Executive Director, Primary and Community Care Transformation, Interior Health Authority
Yasmin Jetha - Vice President, Community Services, Vancouver Coastal Health Authority
Dr Leah MacDonald - Executive Medical Director, Primary and Seniors Health Care, Vancouver Island Health Authority
Dr Terri Aldred Medical Director, Primary Care, First Nations Health Authority
Pam Mulroy - Executive Lead: Community and Primary Care, Northern Health Authority

 


Division of Family Practice Representatives

Dr Jennifer Rogerson - Delta Division of Family Practice
Dr Nazia Niazi - Surrey-North Delta Division of Family Practice
Dr Kevin Hill - South Okanagan Similkameen Division of Family Practice
Dr Juliann Aitchison - Shuswap North Okanagan Division of Family Practice
Dr Onuoura Odoh - Pacific Northwest Division of Family Practice
Dr Navpreet Sidhu - Northern Interior Division of Family Practice
Dr Raymond Chaboyer - North Shore Division of Family Practice
Dr Karin Kausky - Sea to Sky Division of Family Practice
Dr Taylor Swanson - Nanaimo Division of Family Practice
Dr Tracey Thorne - Rural and Remote Division of Family Practice

 


Organizational Representatives

Dr Cathy Clelland, BC Cancer
Dr Danette Dawkin, BC Family Doctors Representative Alternate
Dr Navi Dhaliwal, Resident of Doctor of BC Representative
Dr Tahmeena Ali, BC Family Doctors Representative

 


Support Staff

Dr Brenda Hefford - Vice President, Physician Affairs and Community Practice, Doctors of BC 
Sarah Lusk - Vice President, Communications & Public Affairs, Doctors of BC
Joanna Richards - Acting Director, Primary & Community Care Transformation, Doctors of BC
Jennifer Killam - FPSC Senior Communications Manager, Communications and Public Affairs, Doctors of BC
Kate Lyons - Primary & Community Care Portfolio Liaison, Doctors of BC

 


Partners

Dr Renee Fernandez - Executive Director, BC Family Doctors
Kelly McQuillen - Executive Director, Primary Care Division, Ministry of Health
Jennifer Gough - Executive Director, Divisional Services, Primary Care, Ministry of Health
Jeremy McLay - Executive Director, Primary Care Strategy, Policy and Quality, Ministry of Health 
Zachary Matieschyn - Clinical Director, Nurse Practitioners, Nursing Policy Secretariat