Dr. Shoo Lee Appointed Scientific Director of CIHR’s Institute of Human Development, Child and Youth Health (IHDCYH)
For immediate release -
2011-38
Ottawa (December 9, 2011) – Dr. Alain Beaudet, President of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), along with CIHR's Governing Council, announced today the appointment of Dr. Shoo Lee as incoming Scientific Director (SD) of CIHR's Institute of Human Development, Child and Youth Health (IHDCYH). This appointment will be effective January 2, 2012.
"I'm pleased to welcome Dr. Lee to the CIHR leadership team," said Dr. Beaudet. "His outstanding work in neonatology research, namely on improving quality of care, patient outcomes and health-care services delivery will be instrumental to take CIHR's Institute of Human Development, Child and Youth Health forward."
Dr. Lee, a world-renowned neonatologist and health economist, is Professor of Paediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, and Head of the Division of Neonatology at the University of Toronto. He is also Paediatrician-in-Chief and Director of the Maternal-Infant Care (MICare) Research Centre at Mount Sinai Hospital; Chief of the Department of Newborn and Developmental Paediatrics at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre; and The Women's Auxiliary Chair in Neonatology and Head of the Division of Neonatology at the Hospital for Sick Children.
He received his medical degree from the University of Singapore in 1980, completed paediatric training at the Janeway Children's Hospital in Newfoundland in 1990 and neonatal fellowship training at Boston's Children's Hospital in 1991, and obtained his PhD in Health Policy (Economics) from Harvard University in 1996.
"I am honored and delighted to have the privilege to take on the challenge of directing the CIHR Institute of Human Development, Child and Youth Health," said Dr. Lee. "I look forward to working with the other Scientific Directors, the CIHR team, and all the Institute stakeholders and partners to serve the reproductive and child health research community."
Dr. Lee established the Canadian Neonatal NetworkTM and the International Neonatal Collaboration to foster collaborative research and leads the CIHR Team in Maternal-Infant Care.
He has received many awards for his exceptional work, including the Aventis Pasteur Research Award (2001), the CIHR Knowledge Translation Award (2004), the Distinguished Neonatologist Award (2007) from the Canadian Paediatric Society, and the Premier Member of Honour Award from the Sociedad Iberoamericana de Neonatologia (2007).
According to Dr. Michael Kramer, IHDCYH's Scientific Director since May 2003, "Dr. Lee's appointment will bring additional expertise and experience to IHDCYH's attempts to strengthen Canada's research capacity in reproductive and child health services and policy. His former membership on our Institute's Advisory Board will help him hit the ground running, and his background in health economics will be a welcome addition to CIHR's Science Council."
CIHR is comprised of 13 Institutes, each led by a Scientific Director, responsible for championing health research at the highest levels of international excellence, establishing and nurturing partnerships, as well as fostering effective communication and knowledge dissemination. CIHR-IHDCYH's research mandate focuses on the processes of human development (biological, behavioural, and social), rather than the myriad diseases that can afflict mothers, children, and youth. These processes affect physical and mental health throughout the lifecourse. By facilitating partnerships and working to accelerate the transfer of new knowledge, IHDCYH's research aims to benefit mothers, infants, children, youth, and families in Canada and throughout the world.
The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) is the Government of Canada's health research investment agency. CIHR's mission is to create new scientific knowledge and to enable its translation into improved health, more effective health services and products, and a strengthened Canadian health care system. Composed of 13 Institutes, CIHR provides leadership and support to more than 14,100 health researchers and trainees across Canada.
-30-
For further information:
David Coulombe
CIHR Media Relations
Phone: 613-941-4563
Cell: 613-808-7526
E-mail: mediarelations@cihr-irsc.gc.ca