Leadership Changes at Public Health Ontario

Effective September 10, 2021, Dr. Vanessa Allen will be leaving her role at PHO to take on a position in microbiology at Mt. Sinai.

We want to thank Dr. Allen for her extraordinary contributions to PHO. Dr. Allen has been a passionate champion for the laboratory program at PHO. With her combined expertise in microbiology, infectious disease and public health, she has cultivated a strong laboratory medical and scientific team. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Allen has provided exceptional expertise and leadership for the pandemic laboratory response in Ontario.

Dr. Samir Patel will be stepping into the role of Chief, Microbiology and Laboratory Science on an interim basis from his role as Deputy Chief, Microbiology and Laboratory Science. Dr. Patel has been with PHO since 2009 and has been the clinical lead of many important programs at the laboratory, including antimicrobial resistance, tick –borne pathogens including Lyme disease, and has been the lead of the PHO laboratory scientific program since 2017. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Patel has been instrumental in many aspects of COVID, most notably as Scientific and Clinical Lead for PHO’s COVID-19 genomics program. Dr. Patel is also an Associate Professor at the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology at the University of Toronto and has been recognized as a strong collaborator with hospital, provincial, federal and international partners.