Building a Great Healthcare Brand Via Consistent Experience, with Gail Findlay-Shirras
Release Date: 04/01/2026
A Brave New Podcast
Josh Dougherty is a brand strategist, speaker, and the founder and CEO of A Brave New, a Seattle-based branding agency that crafts bold and memorable healthcare brands. They have specific expertise in healthcare technology, hospitals and specialty care providers, and healthcare nonprofits. Josh has 15 years experience building new brands from scratch, refreshing existing brands and building strategies to bring those brands to life in the market. What you’ll learn about in this episode: Josh’s key takeaways from the 2026 NACCDO-CMCA Annual Conference in Toronto, Canada. Why cancer centers...
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Jacqueline Parisi is the Head of Marketing at Elektra Health and brings over a decade of experience in brand strategy and growth marketing. She kicked off her career as the first U.S. copywriter at HelloFresh before transitioning into the digital health space. She has consulted for Seed to Series C digital health startups like Ophelia, Tend, Local Infusion, and Proper (incubated by Redesign Health). Jacqueline is an alumna of Boston College and NYU. She lives in Brooklyn, New York. What you’ll learn about in this episode: How Elektra Health is redefining women’s healthcare through a...
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Chad Kearns is a Senior Vice President at Fired Up! Culture, bringing nearly 15 years of experience in building teams and leading organizations to his work in helping leaders build culture and engagement in the organizations they lead. Before joining Fired Up! Culture in 2022, Chad headed a 50+ person marketing agency, guiding the organization through multiple growth periods and acquisitions. During that time, he built seven-figure service lines from the ground up, developed leaders and executives who elevated their teams, and drove the kind of employee engagement that produces...
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Lon Hecht is a seasoned healthcare executive with over 25 years of experience leading transformative growth. He joined Care2U as Chief Growth Officer in 2023 and became CEO in 2024, reflecting his strategic vision and results-driven leadership. Previously, Lon was SVP of Growth at Optum Home and Community Care, where he helped integrate and scale innovative healthcare models, including naviHealth, Landmark, Prospero, and Optum at Home. His leadership portfolio includes roles as Chief Commercial Officer at Utilize Health, VP of Payor and Provider Markets at Teladoc, Founder and CEO of...
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Danielle Ruckert has built RH Strategic’s healthcare practice into a hub for some of the industry’s most urgent conversations. She consistently and deftly guides clients through thorny issues—from Medicaid cuts for rural providers to new technologies reshaping organ transplantation—shaping messages that resonate with policymakers, patients and investors alike. Her leadership has expanded the firm’s portfolio into women’s health, hospital systems and reputation management, adding to longstanding strengths in health IT and medical devices. She is especially passionate about bringing...
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Gail is passionate about fostering awareness and helping Canadians feel educated and empowered to take control of their health. She is driven to connect more people with high-quality healthcare because she wholeheartedly believes that proactive and preventive actions lead to better health outcomes. To this end, she is always seeking new opportunities and innovative methods to share Harrison’s clinical knowledge and expertise, ensuring as many people as possible feel informed and supported. Her professional background is enriched by a variety of experiences, including roles in marketing...
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Josh Dougherty is a brand strategist, speaker, and the founder and CEO of A Brave New, a Seattle-based B2B digital marketing agency specializing in tech and healthcare. Over the last decade plus, he’s worked with clients to develop unique brands and accelerate business growth using web design, inbound marketing, and account-based marketing strategies. What you’ll learn about in this episode: The importance of team-wide brand ownership, and why brand only becomes real when it’s embraced across the entire organization, not just marketing, to drive authenticity, credibility, and emotional...
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Annie Furlong is VP of Consumer and Growth (B2C) Marketing at Carrum Health. Annie brings 15+ years of experience as a B2C, B2B2C, and B2B marketer and people manager to healthtech and employer benefits markets. She has worked at and consulted for startups, associations, and large publicly traded organizations. As a strategic, creative, & energetic marketer, Annie’s professional passions include business and account strategy, process creation & improvement, shaping customer experiences, professional development and women’s leadership, driving adoption and engagement of products,...
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Adam Taylor is a multidisciplinary designer, illustrator, and educator with more than 15 years of professional experience in Utah, Michigan, and Seattle. Throughout his career, he has worn many hats within the ever-evolving world of design, but his strongest affinities lie in strategic brand development, UI/UX, and illustration. Adam also serves as a remote Assistant Professor of Graphic Design at Michigan State University, where he teaches courses on design tools, theory, and brand identity development. Outside of work, he’s an occasional exhibiting fine artist, a novice dungeon master for...
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Jen Bruursema is Senior Director of Marketing and PR at DELFI Diagnostics, where she leads marketing strategy for FirstLook Lung, a blood-based test for early lung cancer detection. With more than 20 years in healthcare diagnostics, Jen has built her career at the intersection of complex science and human behavior. She got her start at Digene, where she commercialized the first FDA-approved HPV DNA test for cervical cancer screening, and has since held marketing leadership roles at QIAGEN, Ariosa Diagnostics (acquired by Roche), Karius, IDbyDNA (acquired by Illumina), Metabiota (acquired...
info_outlineGail is passionate about fostering awareness and helping Canadians feel educated and empowered to take control of their health. She is driven to connect more people with high-quality healthcare because she wholeheartedly believes that proactive and preventive actions lead to better health outcomes. To this end, she is always seeking new opportunities and innovative methods to share Harrison’s clinical knowledge and expertise, ensuring as many people as possible feel informed and supported.
Her professional background is enriched by a variety of experiences, including roles in marketing agencies, consulting, and in-house positions with several notable brands. Over her career, she has contributed to projects for the Province of British Columbia, Vancity Credit Union, Hootsuite, Haribo, and Best Buy, among others. Her portfolio also includes managing the Robson Square Celebration Site during the 2010 Olympics, along with extensive expertise in experiential marketing and brand management. This diverse experience enables Gail to excel at creating polished, memorable experiences throughout the client journey.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- Why brand is more about the experience and what you feel rather than visuals or what you say—and how to stay consistent across locations.
- How Harrison healthcare is redefining primary care with longer appointments and full care teams with its team-based, preventative care designed to remove the mental load for patients.
- What makes Harrison Healthcare’s model stand out in Canada’s healthcare landscape.
- The challenge of marketing something people don't think they need–until they do.
- Why selling private healthcare in Canada requires education, trust, and a clear value proposition.
- What client feedback reveals about the gaps in perceived proactivity, and how marketing is addressing it.
- The driver behind high retention: outcomes, relationships, and consistent experience.
- Where AI is improving speed in healthcare marketing, and why human oversight is essential to maintain brand voice and trust.
- How Harrison translates “peace of mind” into a tangible, proactive care experience through ongoing communication.
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