Our team
Our team
Veronika Litinski, MSc, MBA
Veronika is a company builder, digital health technology innovator and financier. Her expertise in launching innovative medical sector products, building teams and developing winning commercial alliances underpin the growth trajectory at Pillcheck. Veronika piloted the launch and development of Cogniciti (cogniciti.com). Cogniciti’s digital health product suite helps millions of adults with memory concerns get earlier assessment, diagnosis and treatment. She was Practice Lead for Health during the initial growth years at MaRS Discovery District (marsdd.com). Veronika managed international Venture Finance Partnerships at GATX Capital in San Francisco (NYSE: GMT) and worked in cancer research at Lawrence Livermore Laboratory in Berkeley.
Ruslan Dorfman, PhD, MBA
Ruslan is a trailblazer in personalized medicine, a molecular geneticist and a technology builder. Inspired by direct interactions with Cystic Fibrosis families from all over the world, Ruslan co-founded Pillcheck (formerly GeneYouIn Inc) to facilitate access to advanced genetics for the general public. He managed large-scale R&D programs at Sick Kids Hospital, Toronto and advised Bridgepoint and Mt. Sinai hospitals on implementing personalized medicine programs. Ruslan has published sixty peer-reviewed papers on the genetics of Cystic Fibrosis and Pain.
Boyko Kabakchiev, PhD
Boyko has evolved his career in software platform development from a background in mathematics and biology. He holds a doctoral degree in human genetics and bioinformatics. At Pillcheck, Boyko ensures regulatory framework compliance and hazard mitigation by design and develops smart business analytics using machine learning. He is dedicated to implementing a continuous rapid product improvement program to enable accurate personalized medicine. His goal is to deliver best science for best health outcomes. For years his work has focused on applying cutting-edge algorithms to better understand the genetic causes of complex disorders of the immune system. Boyko has published over 20 peer-reviewed papers on how analytical methods improve diagnosis and prognosis for patients.
Michael Tamir, CISSP, CCSP
Michael has been GeneYouIn’s IT and Information Security strategic advisor from the start. He established a secure privacy-by-design system architecture for the Pillcheck service and has kept us up to date with the leading edge in the ever-evolving world of IT security and compliance. Michael manages compliance, enterprise procurement and cybersecurity. He oversees building a critical technology solutions infrastructure to drive operational advancement as the company transitions from a clinical research and development company to a large-scale commercial organization in a capital-efficient manner.
Liz Garman, MBA
Liz brings a focus on customer success as well as organizational and project management skills to the Pillcheck team. She is responsible for delivering quality solutions in various domains, including customer user experience, communications, and account management. Before joining Pillcheck, Liz spent more than nine years in planning & logistics projects and operations at Intel. She is excited to be part of a team developing and delivering leading-edge personalized medicine for individuals and the healthcare space.
Gil Mcgowan
Gil is an experienced Sales and Marketing executive with a successful history working in Group Benefits, Group Retirement, Mutual Funds and the Insurance industry. He consults on Business Development Solutions and Strategic Planning.
Lou Carsley
Lou’s background spans consumer marketing, business development, and channel management in the corporate wellness and consumer product areas. As Chief Customer Officer of Pillcheck, he focuses on the development and growth of the Pillcheck platform, including marketing strategy, customer experience, and communications. Lou was Chief Marketing and Operating Officer of Newtopia, a company that delivers personalized wellness programs to at-risk employees and prior, he was GM of Nutrisystem Canada.
PHARMACY PARTNERS
Pillcheck software-enabled service is supported by North West Telepharmacy and a network of independent clinical pharmacists licensed to practice in Canada.
ADVISORY BOARD
Micheline Piquette-Miller, PhD — Professor, Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto
Micheline Piquette-Miller is a Professor in Pharmacokinetics at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy at the University of Toronto and an Associate Editor of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics. She received a Ph.D. in Pharmacokinetics (U of Alberta) and completed a fellowship in Molecular Pharmacology (UCSF). Her research focuses on understanding the molecular mechanisms responsible for patient variability in drug response and has received numerous prestigious national and international research awards. Micheline has taught fundamental concepts and clinical translation of pharmacokinetics, pharmacogenetics and personalized medicine at the University of Toronto for over 15 years. She served as Chair of the Pharmacogenetics and Molecular Pharmacology Section for the American Society of Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics from 1999-2005 and is past president of the Canadian Society of Clinical Pharmacology.
John Papastergiou – Community Pharmacy Owner, Adjunct Assistant Professor at The School Of Pharmacy, University of Waterloo, and The Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy at University of Toronto
John Papastergiou is the owner and operator of three Shoppers Drug Mart locations in downtown Toronto and is an adjunct assistant professor at the School of Pharmacy, University of Waterloo, as well as at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto. In 2014 he was appointed to the Ontario Pharmacist Research Collaboration (OPEN), and in 2017 collaborated with Pillcheck on a published study involving pharmacogenetics in community pharmacy using Pillcheck. In addition, he has implemented one of the first frontline community pharmacist-directed pharmacogenomics clinics in Canada. His work in this area won first prize at the 76th FIP World Congress of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
In 2014, he received the OPA Mentorship Award and was named CPhA Canadian Pharmacist of the Year. In 2016, he received the OPA Voice of the Profession Award and the Pharmacy Practice Commitment to Care Award for Overall Patient Care. In 2019, John was named by the International Forum on Advancement in Healthcare as one of the top 100 healthcare leaders globally. He was also presented with the OPA Award for Excellence in Research and Academia.
Scott Kahn, PhD — Recently retired CIO of Illumina
Scott Kahn is the Chief Information and Privacy Officer at LunaPBC, a private investor-owned company founded in November 2017. The public benefit corporation is chartered to drive societal value through the aggregation and organization of genomic and health data at a scale and diversity rich enough to solve today’s greatest health challenges. LunaPBC founded LunaDNA, the world’s first community-owned health database that offers shares of ownership to health data contributors. As an expert in global data privacy regulation compliance, Scott leads the integration of data privacy and security provisions that comply with GDPR and HIPAA at LunaDNA. Scott is also on the Board of Directors at Blue Circle Health and Rady Children’s Institute for Genomic Medicine and was the former Chief Information Officer and Vice President Commercial, Enterprise Informatics at Illumina.
Mark Foerster — Recently retired Vice President, Group Operations & Claims at Munich Re Canada (Life)
Mark Foerster has an MBA/HBA from the University of Western Ontario, Richard Ivey School of Business. He currently holds an executive position at Munich Re, one of the world’s leading reinsurance companies with approximately 45,000 employees in over 50 locations around the globe. Mark has served on numerous not-for-profit boards and is currently a director on the Children’s Aid Society of Toronto.