Leadership
Dr. Shawn Young
Chief Operating Officer
Shawn joined HSC Winnipeg as Site Medical Lead in April 2020, and was selected as the Chief Operating Officer in April 2022. With over 15 years of leadership experience guiding programs and sites through periods of rapid and historic change, he is committed to supporting clinical strategies to enhance quality and access to services at HSC. He works closely with the executive team and physician leadership to promote strategic medical advances to care and pathways that are aligned with the vision and values of HSC and Shared Health.
Shawn began his medical career as a Family Physician after obtaining his CCFP in 1999. He then completed a residency in Anesthesia at University of Manitoba and subsequently a fellowship in Cardiac Anesthesia at the University of Alberta. Upon returning to Winnipeg, he began his clinical career at HSC Winnipeg and St. Boniface Hospital, and later joined Victoria General Hospital. He has served on the specialty committee of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. Most recently, he has been serving as the Chief Medical Officer of the Victoria General Hospital and South Winnipeg Integrated Health and Social Services.
Shawn’s medical training in acute care and community care, along with his leadership experience in both areas, offer a unique perspective to HSC.
“I am committed to supporting and developing the highly specialized services we need to fulfill our vision and mandate as Manitoba’s hospital. I will further ensure we create modern, streamlined, and inclusive pathways to these services to improve access, reduce wait times, and eliminate health inequities.”
Jennifer Cumpsty
Executive Director of Acute Health Services
Jennifer joined the HSC Winnipeg corporate office in November 2020 as Interim Executive Director of Acute Health Service and was appointed Executive Director of Acute Health Services in March 2022. As part of the executive team, Jennifer actively contributes to operational planning, implementation and evaluation, and provides guidance and support to health services leaders in Adult Emergency, Child Health, Critical Care, Medicine, Mental Health, NICU, Surgery, and Women’s Health. With a career in health care spanning 25+ years – including leadership roles in Women’s Health, Adult Emergency, and Renal Health – Jennifer’s passion remains to drive quality and patient safety improvements and adopt integrated service delivery models to create pathways to care that are centered on the patient.
During the COVID-19 pandemic Jennifer has ably represented HSC at the Incident Command Provincial Operations and Provincial Planning table and continues to provide invaluable leadership to a large, dynamic, multidisciplinary team.
Jennifer holds an RN and bachelor’s degrees in both Psychology and Nursing, and completed a Master of Health Studies in April 2022, with her Capstone project focused on “Trauma-Informed Leadership During the Pandemic and Beyond.”
“The future of health requires a system that is patient-centered, culturally sensitive, and meets the needs of vulnerable groups. HSC is at the forefront of innovations and changes to deliver safe, compassionate, and better health care for all Manitobans.”
Amanda Dowbenko
Business and Financial Lead
As part of the executive team, Amanda supports HSC Winnipeg in developing its strategic and operational plans, identifying and supporting business and process improvements, and leading performance management (including operating, clinical, and financial perspectives). As an operational leader in healthcare, Amanda’s journey started in 2019 and includes roles supporting St. Boniface Hospital, Shared Health – Digital Shared Services, and HSC. Amanda is committed to providing business and finance leadership with a compassionate and curious mindset to help staff provide effective, equitable, and safe care for patients.
Amanda holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) degree from the University of Manitoba and is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) having completed a legacy Certified Management Account (CMA) in 2015. Amanda has also completed practical training and certifications in Project Management, Change Management, Lean Six Sigma, and Ethical Decision Making in Organizations.
Dr. Manon Pelletier
Chief Medical Officer
Dr. Pelletier is a forward-thinking and passionate member of the HSC team. She has spent much of her career at HSC, paving the way for family physicians to work in critical care as house medical officers and playing a critical role in the development of the first Clinical Assessment Unit at HSC and subsequent CAU’s at St. Boniface and Grace hospitals.
For the past five years, Manon has been HSC’s Clinical Assessment Unit Site Medical Lead. She brings a solution-focused approach to the clinical challenges we face. She leads and continues to advance Hospitalist opportunities within our facility, championing shared care and collaborative care models and has been a key contributor to the HSC medical leadership team throughout the pandemic.
Manon obtained her MD at Université de Sherbrooke and completed her Family Medicine Residency at the University of Manitoba. She has 10 years of clinical experience as a family physician, including a diverse practice in clinics and emergency rooms in rural and fly-in Northern communities.
Jennifer Spencer
Executive Director of Ambulatory Care, Surgery, OR, and Clinical Supports
Jennifer Spencer joined Health Science Center Winnipeg in January 2023. Having worked in healthcare for over 20 years, she came to the position having worked as the Director of Home Care Centralized Services, the Regional Palliative Care Program, and previously as the Director for Mental Health Integrated Services at the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, she was the Community Planning Lead which brought together a team to assist and plan for the areas within the system that required additional support (Public Health, AIA, Long Term Care, COVID-19 Testing Sites, and Acute Care). Past experiences include work with a variety of different programs both in hospital and community sectors, including Emergency, Relief Teams, Acute Psychiatry and Relief/Central Float pools. She received her Bachelor of Arts in 1998, a Bachelor or Nursing in 2002, and a Master of Nursing in 2009. She has completed her Canadian Health Care Executive Leadership Certification, Green Belt designation, and the Academic Health Science Leadership program. She has received an Award of Excellence in Nursing Administration from the Association of Registered Nurses of Manitoba and in 2020 she received the Canadian College of Health Care Leaders Chapter Award for Distinguished Service. Jennifer is currently the past chair of the MB Chapter of the Canadian College of Health Leaders and continues working to promote innovative leadership practices using the LEADS framework and to support leadership development. She believes that supporting leadership development translates to a healthy work environment which results in excellent care for patients and their caregivers. She has recently taken on a new role as a surveyor with Accreditation Canada as is looking forward to this challenge. Her volunteer experience has ranged from managing her son’s hockey teams to sponsoring refugees and working with newcomers to help them to adjust to life in Canada.
