Dr. Theresa Tam was awarded the degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, at the 3 p.m. ceremony on Monday, June 17, in recognition of a distinguished career in public health, particularly in leading Canada’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. Tam was named Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer (CPHO) in June 2017. As the federal government’s lead public health professional, she provides guidance to help protect Canadians against health threats, advance health equity and promote healthier communities, using the best available data and evidence.
Dr. Tam is a pediatric infectious disease specialist with expertise in immunization, emergency preparedness and global health security. As Canada’s national public health leader, she has played an instrumental role in helping to guide Canada’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including the rollout of the largest vaccination campaign in Canadian history. She has also played a leadership role in Canada’s response to other public health emergencies, including severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), pandemic influenza H1N1, Ebola disease and mpox.
Dr. Tam has held senior leadership positions at the Public Health Agency of Canada, including as Deputy CPHO and as Assistant Deputy Minister of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control.
During her over 25 years in public health, Dr. Tam has provided technical expertise and leadership to improve surveillance of communicable diseases and opioid harms, enhance immunization programs, strengthen health emergency management and augment laboratory biosafety and biosecurity.
Dr. Tam has a medical degree from the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom. She completed a pediatric residency at the University of Alberta and a fellowship in pediatric infectious diseases at the University of British Columbia. She is a graduate of the Canadian Field Epidemiology Program.