Support Staff

Billie Jane is a Registered Dietitian with an interest in obesity and bariatric surgery. Billie Jane’s experience includes many areas of dietetic practice, with a focus on nutrition counselling and health promotion. The Surgical Weight Loss Centre has enabled Billie Jane to use her skills to help individuals successfully manage their food intake and support gradual and sustained weight loss. She has worked with hundreds of clients and presented at many seminars. Billie Jane is also an instructor at George Brown College and manages her own private consulting business. She regularly attends courses and conferences to keep current with her nutrition & health knowledge.

Professional History

2001	Graduated from the University of British Columbia
2006	Graduated from Ryerson University in the Nutrition & Food program
2007	Completed dietetic internship and master’s degree from the University of Guelph
2007	Joined the Surgical Weight Loss Centre

Memberships

Dietitian of Canada

The College of Dietitians of Ontario

American Dietetic Association (c)

Can-Fit-Pro Fitness Professional

“It has always been my commitment to ‘coach’ each patient in developing lifelong, individualized strategies to improve nutrition on a daily basis to lead a healthier, more energetic life”.

Kelly graduated from the University of Toronto with an Honours B.Sc. specializing in Psychology. She also earned a diploma in Human Resource Management through Sheridan College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning. With extensive volunteer experience, Kelly’s passion for helping others was further fuelled by her employment with a large local counselling firm dealing with clients fraught with a variety of life stressors.

Additionally, Kelly has completed the professional Wellness Coaching and Master Coaching program through Wellcoaches Corporation of Boston. Wellcoaches Corporation is setting the standard for professional coaches in healthcare and has built the largest community of coaches in healthcare worldwide.

Having been raised in the beautiful neighbourhood surrounding the Surgical Weight Loss Centre Kelly feels right “at home” at the clinic and has been working with the SWLC since 2007. Kelly is an avid writer and power walker. She has followed a vegetarian diet since 1982 and has participated annually in the Terry Fox Run for Cancer Research since its inaugural run. Married since 1990, Kelly stayed home for 12 years to raise her three children. Her favourite experiences are those shared with her husband, children and Miniature Schnauzer Cooper.

Coaching gives Kelly the opportunity to share her passion for fitness, health and wellness with SWLC patients. As a wellness coach she helps our patients put their vision of their ideal self into words, making their weight management target clear and attainable. Wellness coaching can help people to develop an ever evolving set of goals and the skills to bring about lasting change. The purpose of SWLC wellness coaching is to assist patients in identifying priorities, motivators and obstacles in an effort to find their own solutions on the journey to realizing their ultimate weight loss vision.

Karen graduated from the University of Western Ontario and has over 25 years of business and marketing experience in the investment and real estate industries. Prior to joining SWLC, Karen was an Investment and Financial Management Advisor at RBC Dominion Securities. Karen has a passion for the pursuit of health and wellness and now enjoys helping our team deliver the best possible care and experience for our patients.

Karen lives in Mississauga with her husband and three children. She enjoys volunteering and has worked with many community organizations over the years, including the Canadian Cancer Society, Trillium Health Center, St. Peter’s Erindale Anglican Church and Appleby College. In her free time, Karen enjoys running, theatre and travelling with her family.

Jessica graduated from McGill University in 2007 with a Bachelor of Commerce in Marketing and Entrepreneurship. With both of her parents in the healthcare industry, medicine and wellness has been part of her life since before she can remember. Naturally, applying her educational background in a healthcare setting greatly appealed to her.

In her free time, Jessica holds the title of Marketing Strategist at S-Drive: a networking group for young professionals in the GTA. She lives in Toronto and enjoys snowboarding, playing rugby and spending time with her family and friends.