Pinay is Toronto’s new Medical Officer of Health

Toronto, Ontario

Top medical post for Dr. Eileen de Villa

By Ted Alcuitas

Filipina doctor Eileen de Villa has been appointed as Toronto’s new Medical Officer of Health. Her appointment was announced by the City on January 30, 2016.

Dr. de Villa will begin her position on March 27.

“I’m very pleased with the appointment of Dr. de Villa,” Mayor John Tory said in a press release. “Public health matters are critical to the people of Toronto and I am extremely confident that Dr. de Villa is well-prepared to take on the top leadership role for Toronto Public Health in its service to our residents.”

Dr. de Villa’s career in the public health field spans over a dozen years, during which she served as Medical Officer of Health and Associate Medical Officer of Health for the Region of Peel and professor at the University of Toronto’s Dalla Lana School of Public Health.

She is an adjunct professor at the University of Toronto where her primary responsibility is the supervision of Public Health and Preventive Medicine residents.

She received her medical and public health training at the University of Toronto. She is certified by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada in public health and preventative medicine. She also holds a Master’s degree in Health Science, a Master’s in Business Administration with a specialization in not-for-profit management/leadership and a certificate in Health Law from Osgoode Hall Law School.

Dr. de Villa has international experience and has worked with many organizations on prominent public health issues. She has published numerous research papers and made presentations on issues including public health considerations for city planning and emergency preparedness, communicable and infectious disease control, and public health policy development, says the release.