Team Members

Krystyna Adams

I am a doctoral student in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University. I have worked with the SFU Medical Tourism Research Group for over 3 years, and both Dr. Jeremy Snyder and Dr. Valorie Crooks are on my supervisory committee. My research interests have been shaped by my exposure to an interdisciplinary faculty at SFU as well as a collaborative environment within the research group . In my MPH, I completed a thesis project on the communication of ethical concerns regarding medical tourism to Canadian medical tourists. In my PhD, I will be using exploratory qualitative methods to examine influences of the global trade in health services on health policy and planning at the national, regional, and global level. Using ethnographic methods, my research aims to better understand how medical tourism discourse is shaping health policy in the Caribbean.

Valorie Crooks

I am an Associate Professor in the Department of Geography at Simon Fraser University and a Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research Scholar. I am a health geographer and specialize in health services research. I am particularly interested in the spatial and place-based dimensions of health care delivery and receipt. I primarily engage in non-hypothesis-testing qualitative research.

I have been studying medical tourism since 2009 and have led and continue to lead several studies funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research on this topic. I have a particular interest in understanding how patients experience obtaining privately-funded medical care abroad through this global health services industry. I enjoy collaborating with researchers who have different disciplinary and training backgrounds from my own. As such, since founding this research group I have worked to create international collaborative networks with other medical tourism researchers.

Leon Hoffman

I am a PhD student in the Geography Department at Simon Fraser University, supervised by Valorie Crooks. I am interested in the cultural landscapes and individual experiences of health(y) places, coastal and island geographies, and tourism places and practices. I hope to apply these interests to medical tourism research over the course of my doctoral studies. Originally from New Zealand, I received my Bachelor of Arts in Geography and Sociology, Post-Graduate Diploma (Distinction) in Geography, and Master of Arts (First Class Honours) in Geography from The University of Auckland. For my M.A. I investigated the socio-cultural experience of living within a remote coastal landscape in New Zealand.

Carly Hohm

I am a MSc candidate in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University, under the supervision of Dr. Jeremy Snyder. Some of my research interests include obesity related health impacts, the effect of medical tourism on continuity of care and informed consent, and the relationship between medical tourism and obesity related procedures. In my MSc I intend to investigate the decision making process and any complications faced by medical tourists seeking weight management procedures abroad. I have a BSc in Health Sciences from Simon Fraser University.

Rory Johnston

I am currently a PhD student in the Department of Geography at Simon Fraser University and am supervised by Valorie Crooks. My research interests pertain to understanding the impacts of the international trade in health services on health systems and policy, especially with regard to the influence these impacts may and do have on health equity. My PhD research is focused on examining the growing medical tourism industry in the Caribbean region. In my M.A. degree I examined the role that family doctors play in Canadian medical tourists’ decision-making regarding seeking care abroad.

Monika Ladosz

I am a PhD student in the Department of Geography at Simon Fraser University, supervised by Valorie Crooks. My research interests focus on International Retirement Migration (IRM) and impacts of IRM on Canadian and host country health systems. I completed my MA in Human Geography at the University of Calgary where I examined Canadian volunteers' understanding of harm while participating in international volunteering projects.

Jeffrey Morgan

I am an M.A. student in the Department of Geography at Simon Fraser University, supervised by Dr. Valorie Crooks. I am interested in global health mobilities such as medical tourism and offshore medical schools, as well as feminist geographies and methodologies, and public health. I completed my undergrad at SFU in 2015, with a B.A. in Geography and a minor in Gender, Sexuality, and Women¹s Studies.

Jeremy Snyder

I am an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University, having received my PhD in Philosophy from Georgetown University. My research interests focus on ethical issues arising from international trade, especially trade in health services. I am currently engaged in research projects on medical tourism, health worker migration, pharmaceutical testing on adolescents, and exploitation in pharmaceutical development and low wage labour. I have been a member of the SFU Medical Tourism Research Group since its inception and am particularly interested in studying the impacts of medical tourism, better informing potential medical tourists about ethical issues connected to medical tourism, and assessing responsibility for planning around medical tourism.

Ms. Rebecca Whitmore worked with our team as an MA student from 2013 to 2015.

Ms. Victoria Casey worked with our team as an MA student from 2011 to 2013.

Ms. Mary Choi worked with our team as a Research Assistant from 2011 to 2013.

Ms. Melanie Ewan worked with our team as a Research Assistant in 2013.

Ms. Jennifer Vallee worked with our team as a Research Assistant in 2013.

Ms. Laura Kadowaki worked with our team as a Research Assistant in 2011.

Dr. Paul Kingsbury is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geography at Simon Fraser University. He was a co-investigator on one of our initial studies.

Ms. Kali Penney completed a directed course with Jeremy Snyder on medical tourism in 2010 that resulted in a group publication in BMC Medical Ethics.

Ms. Alexandra Wright worked with our team as a Research Assistant in 2011.