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Zoha Khawaja

(she/her/hers)
Master of Science Student, Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University

I am a second-year Master of Science candidate in the Health Sciences program at Simon Fraser University. My thesis focuses on proactively creating a consensus-driven normative governance framework for the ethical design and implementation of voice-based artificial intelligence (AI)-powered virtual conversational agents utilized for monitoring, diagnostic, and therapeutic purposes. My anticipated research outcome is to pave the way for VCAs that are both ethically sound and optimally beneficial for users in clinical and therapeutic contexts, setting the gold standard for voice-AI's ethical application. I have acquired over 8+ years of research experience in various multicultural healthcare contexts and have conducted both clinical and non-clinical research work. Alongside this, I have developed interpersonal skills through collaborations with interdisciplinary teams ranging from public policymakers to clinicians and patient research partners in Canada. I hope to further my knowledge in bioethics, voice AI, and AI healthcare technologies.

Experience

  • 2022–present
    Teaching assistant, Simon Fraser University, Faculty of Health Sciences
  • 2023–2023
    Research assistant, Bridge2AI, Simon Fraser University
  • 2019–2022
    Research assistant, W21C, University of Calgary
  • 2022–2022
    Research associate, W21C, University of Calgary

Publications

  • 2023
    Patient and ward related risk factors in a multi-ward nosocomial outbreak of COVDI-19: Outbreak investigation and matched case-control study, Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology
  • 2023
    Operationalizing the principles of patient engagement through a patient advisory council: Lessons and recommendations., Journal of Health Expectation
  • 2023
    Patient Perceptions of In-Hospital Laboratory Blood Testing: A Patient-Oriented and Patient Co-Designed Qualitative Study, Health Expectations
  • 2023
    Chatbots and Us: Between Connection and Misconception. Impact Ethics, Impact Ethics
  • 2023
    Your robot therapist is not your therapist: Understanding the role of AI-powered mental health chatbots, Digital Health
  • 2022
    Asymptomatic severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in adults is very uncommon using rigorous symptom characterization and follow-up in an acute care adult hospital outbreak, Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology

Professional Memberships

  • Voice Consortium, Bridge to Artificial Intelligence (B2AI)