Shannon Collinson
About Shannon Collinson
Shannon Collinson is a Senior Health Workforce Analyst at the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, where she leads initiatives in homelessness prevention funding. She holds a PhD in Applied Mathematics from York University and has extensive experience in health policy analysis and data science.
Current Role at Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care
Shannon Collinson serves as a Senior Health Workforce Analyst at the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. In this role, she focuses on analyzing health workforce data and developing strategies to enhance workforce planning. Her responsibilities include engaging in data wrangling to obtain and transform data from various sources, which supports the identification of key indicators related to homelessness and health services.
Previous Experience in Health Policy and Research
Prior to her current position, Shannon worked as a Methodologist at the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care from 2014 to 2017. She also served as a Research Coordinator at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) from 2012 to 2014. These roles provided her with extensive experience in health policy analysis and research methodologies, contributing to her expertise in health workforce analytics.
Educational Background in Mathematics and Data Science
Shannon Collinson holds multiple degrees in mathematics and data science. She earned her PhD in Applied Mathematics from York University from 2009 to 2013. Additionally, she completed her MSc in Mathematics at the University of Guelph from 2007 to 2009. More recently, she studied Data Science at the University of Waterloo from 2021 to 2022, further enhancing her analytical skills.
Contributions to Homelessness Prevention Initiatives
Shannon led the redevelopment of Ontario's funding allocation model specifically aimed at homelessness prevention. She utilizes supervised machine learning techniques, including feature selection, to develop predictive models that support programs designed to prevent homelessness. Her work involves collaborating with various stakeholders, including the Ministry of Health and Statistics Canada, to gather and analyze relevant data.
Mentorship and Leadership in Analytical Methods
In her current role, Shannon provides mentorship to junior staff members, focusing on analytical methods and best practices. She emphasizes the importance of rigorous data analysis and the application of statistical techniques in health policy development. Her leadership in this area contributes to the professional growth of her colleagues and the overall effectiveness of her team.