About · Team
Leadership Team
The people behind Initio.
Our clinical and operational leadership includes many of the same physicians who lead nuclear medicine, radiology, and oncology programs at Canada’s most respected public institutions.
Mina Bechai
Founder & Chief Executive Officer
About Mina Bechai
Mina founded Initio Medical on a conviction he refuses to let go of: that access to advanced diagnostic and therapeutic medicine shouldn’t depend on where you live or how long you can wait. For more than two decades he has worked at the intersection of medicine, infrastructure, and public–private collaboration — building a facility where clinicians can practice without compromise. Under his leadership, Initio has grown from Canada’s first PET clinic into its first fully integrated private theranostics facility.
Dr. Philip Cohen, MD, FRCPC
Clinical Director of Nuclear Medicine
About Dr. Philip Cohen
A pioneer of nuclear medicine in Canada, Dr. Cohen has served as Division Head of Nuclear Medicine at Lions Gate Hospital since 1983, and is Section Head of Nuclear Medicine with Doctors of BC. A Clinical Professor of Radiology at UBC, he is a principal investigator on multi-center trials evaluating novel radiopharmaceuticals, bringing more than forty years of leadership to the Initio team.
Dr. Robert Tarzwell, MD, FRCPC
Medical Director, Initio Nuclear Medicine
About Dr. Robert Tarzwell
One of a small number of Canadian physicians dual-certified in Psychiatry and Nuclear Medicine, Dr. Tarzwell brings the clinical insight of a psychiatrist to the molecular imaging of the brain. A Clinical Assistant Professor at UBC, he co-authored the Canadian Association of Nuclear Medicine Guidelines on brain perfusion SPECT, and leads our clinical program with expertise in complex psychiatric conditions, traumatic brain injuries, and neurodegenerative disease.
Dr. William Siu, MD, FRCPC
Diagnostic & Interventional Radiology Lead
About Dr. William Siu
An interventional neuroradiologist whose career has been shaped by the discipline of getting anatomical imaging exactly right, Dr. Siu is a Clinical Associate Professor at UBC, a former President of the B.C. Radiological Society, and active in teaching and research with UBC, SFU, and the University of Victoria. At Initio, he ensures our functional imaging is always grounded in precise anatomical reality.
Dr. Kenneth Wong, MD, FRCPC
Diagnostic Radiologist & Medical Imaging Lead
About Dr. Kenneth Wong
Local Department Head of Medical Imaging at Royal Columbian Hospital, one of BC’s busiest tertiary centers, Dr. Wong has built his career on the optimization of imaging workflows — the cross-departmental coordination that lets a major hospital deliver consistent diagnostic accuracy at scale. At Initio, he brings that operational blueprint to a setting designed from the ground up for integration.
Dr. Amit Singnurkar, MDCM, FRCPC
Nuclear Medicine Specialist
About Dr. Amit Singnurkar
An Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto and staff physician at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Dr. Singnurkar leads grant-funded research mapping amino acid metabolism using advanced PET tracers — work at the research frontier of molecular imaging. At Initio, he brings the academic-research perspective to clinical practice.
Dr. Pavan Kaliray, MD
Medical Director, Executive & Preventive Healthcare
About Dr. Pavan Kaliray
Dr. Kaliray leads Initio’s executive and preventive health division, built around a paradigm most systems can’t deliver: catching things early, treating the whole person, and building health rather than just treating disease. An experienced General Practitioner, he designs personalized health assessments that combine advanced multi-modality imaging with thoughtful primary care.
Carlos Yam, CPA, CA, CPA (Illinois)
Chief Financial Officer
About Carlos Yam
Carlos brings more than twenty-five years of experience as a professional accountant, specializing in strategic leadership, enterprise risk management, and financial planning. At Initio, he oversees the financial architecture that makes ambitious medicine possible.