Health Care Forum 2025 Presented by Pacific Blue Cross

Thursday, October 09, 20258:30 AM
Location:Fairmont Hotel Vancouver
BC Ballroom
900 W Georgia St
Vancouver
Schedule:Registration & Breakfast: 8:30 - 9:00 a.m.
Program: 9:00 - 11:30 a.m.
Full Agenda(PDF)

Health Care Forum 2025 Presented by Pacific Blue Cross

Midlife women represent a growing and essential segment of British Columbia’s workforce. Yet despite the high prevalence of menopause-related symptoms during this stage of life, many continue to navigate their health transitions without adequate support – often misunderstood, misdiagnosed, or overlooked by the health care system or employers.

Building on the foundational findings of the HER-BC Study, this forum will take the conversation further – shifting from awareness to action. We’ll explore how workplaces can create inclusive, evidence-informed environments that help women in midlife not just stay but thrive. We’ll also examine how research can be translated into meaningful changes in care, workplace policy, and organizational practices to build healthier, more supportive workplaces where all employees feel valued and engaged.

Whether you're a business leader, advisor, HR professional, or health equity advocate, join us for a timely and practical discussion on how we can better support, value, and retain women during this pivotal stage of life.

Keynote:

Jann Arden
Jann Arden
Renowned Musician | Bestselling Author

Jann Arden is a multi-platinum, award-winning singer, songwriter, actor, and author. She has released 16 albums with 19 top 10 singles.

Arden’s accolades include eight JUNO Awards, including Female Artist of the Year and Songwriter of the Year, 10 SOCAN Awards, and four Western Canadian Music Awards, to name a few. In 2020, she was announced as an inductee into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame joining the ranks of Canadian music icons including Alanis Morisette, Bryan Adams, Barenaked Ladies, Bachman Turner Overdrive, Joni Mitchell, Shania Twain, and many more. Arden has also been inducted into the Canadian Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame, has a Star on Canada’s Walk of Fame, and has been awarded the Order of Canada.

Arden has written six books, the most recent bestseller being her debut novel, The Bittlemores, released November 2023. This comes after her most recent memoir If I Knew Then: Finding Wisdom in Failure and Power in Aging, which was released October 2020. It followed Arden’s 2017 Canadian bestseller, Feeding My Mother: Comfort and Laughter in the Kitchen as My Mom Lives with Memory Loss, which spent a combined 44 weeks on the Globe and Mail bestseller lists.

Arden’s original CTV hit series, Jann, was the most-watched new Canadian comedy series of the 2018-2019 broadcast season. Arden, who was also a co-creator, played a fictionalized version of herself. The show’s third season aired in 2021 on both Hulu and CTV Television Network. Other screen credits include guest appearances in Wynonna Earp (Syfy), Private Eyes (Fox), The Detour (TBS), and Workin’ Moms (Netflix).

MIXTAPE, the follow-up to her 2021 album, Descendant, was released January 2025. The album features a collection of Arden’s favourite pop recordings from the nineties by Sia, Seal, Robyn, Chris Issac, including the positive and optimistic song by Des’ree “You Gotta Be” and more.

Whether she is captivating audiences with her heartfelt music, entertaining them with her quick wit, or sharing her written word in a boldly honest voice, Arden is a Canadian original — a brilliant multi-dimensional talent.


Workshop:

Shirley Weir is the founder of Menopause Chicks®, an education-first community that now supports more than 300,000 individuals and 30+ workplaces across Canada and beyond. An author, speaker, certified peer counsellor, and women’s-health educator, she is a co-collaborator on the HER-BC Study and thrives on translating evidence-based research into action for workplaces and the wider community.

This workshop will invite you to look beyond common menopause headlines and ask: “What questions should our organization be asking about midlife health and what are the best next steps?”

During the session you will:

  1. Build a shared vocabulary for midlife health so conversations are clear, stigma-free, and rooted in evidence.
  2. Identify real-world barriers to care and explore ways your workplace can remove them: menopause as a social construct, unspoken obstacles in health care, communication tips for health benefits, and ideas for supporting employees in all their health conversations—at home, at work, and in medical appointments.
  3. Learn and discern: gain insight into what team members may be absorbing from social media health advice, what they may hear (or not hear) in medical appointments, and how that confusion can spill into productivity and wellbeing.
  4. Feel seen and understood as leaders, then leave equipped to help your workforce confidently navigate their next three to five decades of health decisions.
Cally Wesson

Remarks

Cally Wesson

President & CEO, BC Women’s Health Foundation

Shirley Weir

Facilitator

Shirley Weir

HER-BC Study collaborator and founder of Menopause Chicks

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This event is presented by the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade's Diversity and Inclusion Leadership Council (DLC) Program. The DLC, an evolution of the Women's Leadership Council program, is an inclusive program that champions and advocates for leadership that best reflects the diversity of the Greater Vancouver region. The DLC focuses on addressing issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion to encourage allyship and enhance business innovation. The DLC is committed to investing in the participation and promotion of underrepresented groups, while supporting the business community to achieve their diversity and inclusion goals. Learn more.