SUDBURY—The Board of Health has appointed Dr. Emily Groot as acting associate medical officer of health (AMOH) for Public Health Sudbury and Districts (PHSD), starting January 6. She will fill the role in an acting capacity until her appointment is approved by the Minister of Health.
“We are very pleased to welcome Dr. Groot to our team as associate medical officer of health on a part-time basis to contribute to strategic leadership and evidence-informed decision making. This recruitment will significantly strengthen public health’s local capacity and responsiveness,” said Rene Lapierre, chair of the Board of Health.
“Dr. Groot is an accomplished public health physician, and I am excited to work with her to maximize the public health services and promote health in our service area,” said Dr. Mustafa Hirji, acting medical officer of health and chief executive officer for PHSD. “The breadth of Dr. Groot’s professional experience and community service will benefit our agency and bolster our focus of creating healthier communities for all.”
Having successfully recruited a highly experienced part-time AMOH, recruitment efforts will continue for an additional part-time AMOH to achieve the equivalent of the recommended capacity of one full-time AMOH for local health agencies, which would ensure the agency has critical surge capacity.
Dr. Groot grew up in Northeastern Ontario and is passionate about improving the health of Northern Ontarians. She previously served as Associate Medical Officer of Health for the Thunder Bay District Health Unit as well as for Niagara Region Public Health. She has also worked as Regional Supervising Coroner for Northeastern Ontario and most recently as Medical Director of Sudbury’s supervised consumption site. Dr. Groot will maintain her part-time roles as Program Director with PHSD and Preventive Medicine Residency Program at the Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) University, as well as Medical Director of Reseau ACCESS Network’s Treatment and Prevention clinic.
Dr. Groot completed her medical education at McMaster University followed by specialty training in public health and preventive medicine at Queen’s University. She also holds a Master of Public Health from the University of Toronto.
