Advisory Board

Former Institute Advisory Board Members

(January 2001-August 2003)



Michael S. KramerMichael S. Kramer, MD [Chair]
I grew up and did my early schooling in Miami, Florida. After obtaining my undergraduate degree at the University of Chicago, I spent the next 9 years at Yale, where I completed my medical school, pediatrics internship and residency, and fellowship in clinical epidemiology. Since 1978, I have been a member of the Departments of Pediatrics and of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the McGill University Faculty of Medicine, and since 1987 have been Full Professor in both Departments. A former National Health Research Scholar and National Health Research Scientist of Health Canada's National Health Research and Development Program (NHRDP) and Chercheur-boursier sénior (senior research scientist) of the Fonds de la recherche en santé du Québec (FRSQ), I am currently a Distinguished Scientist of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). I have been principal investigator on several large, multicentre epidemiologic studies and randomized trials in the general area of maternal and child health. A member of four expert committees of the U.S. Institute of Medicine, in 1997-98 I served as President of the Society of Pediatric and Perinatal Epidemiologic Research. From 1995-2001, I chaired the Steering Committee of the Canadian Perinatal Surveillance System, and I current chair the Insitute Advisory Board of CIHR=s Institute of Human Development and Child and Youth Health. I have received operating grant support from Medical Research Council (now CIHR) of Canada, NHRDP, NIH, FRSQ, and the March of Dimes, have authored or co-authored 13 books and monographs, and have published over 200 original articles. My recent systematic review of the evidence on the optimal duration of exclusive breastfeeding led directly to new infant feeding recommendations by WHO and the World Health Assembly. My current principal areas of research are the causes and prevention of preterm birth and intrauterine growth restriction, the determinants of fetal and infant mortality, and the health effects of breastfeeding.

Jane DrummondJane Drummond, RN, PhD
Dr. Jane Drummond is a full professor in the University of Alberta's Faculty of Nursing and also an associate at both the Centre for Research in Applied Measurement and Evaluation and the Centre for Health Promotional Studies. Her educational, employment, and research backgrounds are quite diverse. Her undergraduate degree was in Nursing (Toronto, 1972). Thereafter she worked as a public health nurse in northern Ontario, as a paediatric cardiology nurse in Edmonton, and then as a lecturer on children's health at the University of Alberta. During the course of obtaining a Master of Science in Family Studies from the University of Alberta, she conducted research on family interactions and parenthood. She continued as a professor in the Faculty of Nursing at the University of Alberta for several years before moving to the University of British Columbia, where she studied cognitive development in children and obtained her PhD in Psychology (1992). Aside from her academic work, Dr. Drummond has been heavily involved in community based organizations and agencies. For example, she serves as director of the Family Support Services of Autism Linkages, an agency that provides critical support for families of preschool children with autistic characteristics. In that role she trains interventionists who work intensively with the children. She also serves on the Steering Committee for the Community University Partnership for the Study of Children, Youth, and Families. Her most recent research is in the area of building sustainable community practices for the promotion of family health in vulnerable populations.

Peter GluckmanPeter Gluckman, CNZM, MBChB, MMEDSc, DSc, FRACP, FRCPCH, FRSNZ, FRS
Professor Peter Gluckman is Foundation Director of the Liggins Institute for Medical Research of the University of Auckland, New Zealand. Previously, he held positions as chair of the Department of Pediatrics, Dean of the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, Director of the Research Center for Developmental Medicine and Biology (RCDMB) and Professor of Paediatric and Perinatal Biology. Prof. Gluckman is also the founding scientist and Scientific Director of NeuronZ Ltd, a start-up pharmaceutical/biotechnology development company being promoted by the University. It is devoted to the identification and development of therapies for ischemic and degenerative brain disease. Professor Gluckman was trained in pediatrics and endocrinology in Auckland and underwent postdoctoral training in perinatal physiology and endocrinology at the University of California San Francisco. In 1980, he returned to Auckland to establish the RCDMB, which has developed into one of New Zealand’s largest aggregations of biomedical scientists. In 2001, it was incorporated into the newly formed Liggins Institute. The RCDMB was recognized internationally for its studies in fetal and perinatal physiology, endocrinology of growth and in neuroprotection.

Jean LafranceJean Lafrance, PhD, RSW
Dr. Jean Lafrance has spent more than 35 years in the field of children's services as a social worker, supervisor, administrator, and assistant deputy in the field of social services program development and policy. Dr. Lafrance received his Bachelor of Arts from the University of Ottawa, and his Master of Social Work from Carleton University. After that, he worked in various capacities as a Staff Development Consultant, Assistant Director of Services for the Handicapped, Assistant Deputy Minister of Rehabilitation Services, Program Development and Service Delivery for the province of Alberta. He then went to the University of Southern California to obtain his PhD, specializing in social administration and community development. Following his post-doctoral studies, Dr. Lafrance became the Regional Coordinator of the Calgary Region, where he was responsible for the delivery of innovative child welfare services. He subsequently assumed the position of Children's Advocate for the province of Alberta, a position he held for three years before leaving to pursue an academic career. He is now an Associate Professor and Head of the Edmonton Division of the Faculty of Social Work at the University of Calgary.

David (Dan) R. OffordDavid (Dan) R. Offord, CM, MD
Dr. Offord is a child psychiatrist with major interests in epidemiology and prevention.  Dr. Offord is the Director of the Canadian Centre for Studies of Children at Risk, which focuses on policy issues, scientific research and training.  He is also Research Director of the Chedoke Child and Family Centre.  He was a national Health Scientist for ten years, and a member of the Premier’s Council on Health, Well-Being, and Social Justice until June 1995.  He has played a leading role in the Ontario Child Health Study (OCHS) and the OCHS Follow-up. The major area of the initial cross-sectional study carried out in 1983 was to obtain unbiased precise estimates of the prevalence of emotional and behavioural problems, physical health problems and substance use among Ontario children, 4 to 16 years of age.  The follow-up study carried out in 1987, focused on issues of outcome, prognosis and risk.  Dr. Offord was co-principal investigator on a community intervention project in a public housing complex in Ottawa that focused on providing a first-rate non-school skill development program for all children, 5 to 15 years of age, in the complex.  The model employed in this successful demonstration project is now being replicated in several locations in Ontario.  He is currently involved in the OCHS Follow-up 2000, and studies aimed at determining what data should be collected on a regular basis on children and youth at the community level in Ontario to inform and evaluate policy.  The measurement of school readiness is a particular area of emphasis.  Further, he has completed pilot work on two Native reserves in the area of children’s health, particularly mental health, and was the co-principal investigator of the Tri-Ministry Project.  This was a six-year study aimed at determining whether or not adjustment problems can be prevented in children from kindergarten to grade three by a combination of parent training, class-wide social skills training, and academic support.  In addition, he has published widely in the scientific literature.  In November 2000 Dr. Offord became a member of the Order of Canada for his work with disadvantaged children and enriching the quality of life of underprivileged and troubled youth.

Aubrey James TingleAubrey James Tingle, MD, PhD, FRCP(C)
Dr Aubrey Tingle obtained his MD from the University of Alberta in 1967, with a Gold Medal in Paediatrics. He went on to do his graduate and paediatric fellowship training at McGill University and the Montreal Children's Hospital. Following that, he obtained a PhD in Immunology from McGill University in 1974. Early in his research career, Dr Tingle established a research program in viral causation of arthritis and diabetes using rubella virus as a model system. He helped head an international group in rubella virus biology, diagnosis, adverse reactions and public health policy. As the Founding Director of the BC Research Institute for Children's & Women's Health, he oversaw the development of research support services, strategic scientific goals, financial support and research policy development. Over the last four years, his efforts have shifted to the development of strategic network development within the University of British Columbia (UBC) and its affiliated teaching hospitals across British Columbia, between Children's Hospitals/Health Centres in Canada and internationally, particularly in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore. In March 2001, Dr Tingle was appointed President & Chief Executive Officer of the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research (MSFHR). Dr Tingle was founding chair of the Coalition for Health Research in BC, an ad hoc group of research stakeholders that was responsible for planning and obtaining the provincial funding to establish MSFHR.

Richard TremblayRichard Tremblay, PhD
Professor of psychiatry and psychology at the University of Montréal, Richard Tremblay is the Canada Research Chair in Child Development. He is the director of the Research Unit on Children's Psychosocial Maladjustment, a muti-university research centre supported by Laval University, McGill University, and the University of Montréal. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, and the Molson Fellow of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, Professor Tremblay is also Director of the Centre of Excellence for Early Childhood Development created by Health Canada, and a member of the Sainte-Justine Hospital Research Center. Over the past 20 years, he has directed a program of longitudinal and experimental studies addressing the physical, cognitive, emotional and social development of children from the gestational stage onward. The main goals of this research program are to describe the social development of humans, to understand its links with physical and mental health, to identify determinants of physical, mental and social well-being, and to test prevention programs. Richard Tremblay is a member of the Institute of Human Development and Child and Adolescent Health's advisory board, a member of the scientific committee of the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth conducted by Human Resources Development Canada, and a former member of the National Crime Prevention Council of Canada. On the international level, he is a member of the USA National Consortium on Violence Research. He was a member of the USA National Research Council Panel on Juvenile Crime. He will chair the 2002 World Meetings of the International Society for Research on Aggression, and he is a member of the International Society of Criminology scientific board. He has published more than 200 scientific articles, chapters and books.