Shauna Kingsnorth has spent over 15 years at Holland Bloorview in a variety of roles – serving as manager of Evidence to Care, as well as post-doctoral fellow and researcher with the Bloorview Research Institute (BRI). She is also active in the academic world as an educational scholar with over 20 principal-authored publications and 50 co-authored, peer-reviewed publications.

As the new interim director of the Teaching and Learning Institute, Shauna reflects on how her years of experience will support her in this new role, how the department will advance the hospital’s new strategic plan and its vision for training the next generation of health system leaders in the field of childhood disability.

“I’m keen to bring different disciplines together to learn from and with as part of continuous learning, meaningful engagement and knowledge mobilization,” says Shauna, who also emphasizes the importance of building a learning culture that is humanistic. “Who we are as individuals – our strengths, our lived experiences, our hopes and aspirations, are just as critical as our skills and abilities as educators and learners.”

“We are thrilled to see Shauna in this new role and how she will draw on her experiences training as a researcher and knowledge mobilization specialist,” says Dr. Golda Milo-Manson, vice president, medicine and academic affairs, Holland Bloorview. “Collaboration and partnership-building are key when it comes to strengthening relationships with internal and external partners, and we’ve seen Shauna excel in these areas and beyond.”

Endorsed by the Board of Directors in 2009 and established in 2011, the Teaching and Learning Institute is the only academic health science centre in Ontario providing advanced education in the field of childhood disability, and partners with clients and families to provide immersive education opportunities in client- and family-centred care. In its mission to transform education, Shauna points to its award-winning Family as Faculty training program in collaboration with Family Leadership program as a tremendous asset, along with the department’s successes with student-led learning environments (SLEs) to address unmet needs or clinical gaps.

To fuel Holland Bloorview’s 2030 strategic goals, with a focus on “care that’s transformed by research and education,” Shauna references the Teaching and Learning Institute’s belief in working together to grow and share knowledge. Big ideas dominating conversations around the hospital’s new strategic plan are about the power of data and becoming a learning health system to transform care. Shauna believes that providing forums where teams can share experiences, wisdom and insights will be key to supporting all on this seven-year journey to fulfill our 2030 goals and commitments.

All of this work is done through the Institute’s current initiatives while simultaneously exploring future opportunities to create new programs or enhance existing ones. The Teaching and Learning Institute is also eager to broaden partnerships with clients, families and community voices in its commitment to innovation and excellence in interprofessional education for health professional learners.

“We believe that future generations of health professionals need to be adaptive experts and agents of transformation as curious, compassionate, courageous and collaborative leaders,” says Shauna. “This is achieved through genuine collaborative learning partnerships that drive transformative care in the field of childhood disability.”

Please visit here to learn more about the Teaching and Learning Institute.