Collaboration on phiz

Complex Systems in Practice: Modernizing Public Health Data Flows

Tue, 06 Jan 2026 00:00:00 -0500

Complexity starts when causality breaks down.

— Nigel Goldenfeld¹

The first step in any innovation project is understanding where the friction lies. Where does the work slow down? Where do risks emerge? And who bears the burden of inefficient systems?

In public health, many of these pain points are embedded in our data flows. Manual processes, fragmented systems, and unclear ownership are common features of legacy infrastructure. While often invisible to those outside the system, these challenges directly affect our ability to deliver timely, effective, and equitable public health services.

Innovation in the open

Wed, 17 Dec 2025 00:00:00 -0500

Open-source is a way to build public health tooling that is portable, auditable, and easier to collaborate on. A commitment to open-source forces us to take best practices in our programming seriously, such as strong documentation and clear separation between code, sensitive data inputs, and system configurations. In the public sector, it allows us to maximize the value of public dollars and offer greater transparency into our processes.

Phiz: Designing the Future of Public Health - Together

Fri, 12 Dec 2025 00:00:00 -0500

Public health is powerful, but it deserves systems that match its purpose.

What if public health wasn’t defined by its constraints, but by its potential?

Across Ontario and beyond, public health teams do extraordinary work under extraordinary pressure. They manage complexity, navigate uncertainty, and protect communities using systems that weren’t built for the pace or demands of today’s world.

But what if that could change?

What if we chose to reimagine everything?

Phiz was created as a bold answer to that question.

Phiz is a public health innovation zone dedicated to weaving emerging data practices, human-centred design, modern technology, and collective creativity into the daily work of public health. We exist to help every community, large or small, experience the benefits of a stronger, smarter, more modernized public health system.

Not someday.

Not hypothetically.

But now.