LMP appoints Vice Chairs of Wellness, Inclusion, Diversity and Equity
Inclusive community
Dr. Isabelle Aubert and Dr. Gino Somers have been appointed as co-Vice Chairs, Wellness, Inclusion, Diversity and Equity (WIDE) in the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine. A newly created role, this underpins LMP’s commitment to WIDE initiatives and the focus on wellness and inclusion in the new departmental strategic plan.
In their co-Vice Chairs roles, Dr. Aubert and Dr. Somers are joining their expertise and long-standing interests in EDI and Wellness.
Aubert has been Chair of LMP’s WIDE committee since its inception, where she focused on EDI projects and Somers has led Wellness initiatives. She is a Professor, Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Brain Repair and Regeneration, Senior Scientist at Sunnybrook Research Institute, and a Fellow of Canadian Academy of Health Sciences. She is an international leader in brain plasticity and treatments for Alzheimer’s disease using MRI-guided focused ultrasound, drug and gene therapies. At the University of Toronto, Aubert co-leads workshops on unconscious bias and allyship. Locally and internationally, she advocates for women in science and underrepresented groups, wellbeing at work, and she teaches self-defence for women.
Somers is a Professor, Division Head of Pathology and interim Chief of Laboratories at the Hospital for Sick Children. He is an internationally renowned leader in pediatric pathology and implementing cutting-edge molecular diagnostics for pediatric cancer. He is the Physician Lead for Wellness at SickKids and is a member of their peer support program. He is Chair of the LMP Alumni Committee and a member of the LMP WIDE Committee. His regular wellness emails through COVID-19 kept many spirits up in LMP.
As co-Vice Chairs, WIDE in LMP, Aubert and Somers will lead and create strategies and programs to foster and advance WIDE practices in all facets of learning and work for LMP faculty, staff and students. They will continue to work with wellness and EDI groups at the University of Toronto and synergize these efforts with those of WIDE.
