Researcher Spotlight

For Dr. Lorraine Lipscombe, the Novo Nordisk Network for Healthy Populations brings to the forefront work that researchers have been doing for decades about how structural change and population impact can create meaningful change in the area of type 2 diabetes risk and prevention.

Looking at the unique way that people from diverse communities experience diabetes has become increasingly important in recent years. Researchers like Dr. Baiju Shah, a clinician-scientist from Toronto’s Sunnybrook Research Institute and ICES, have spent years studying what the data shows about how your ethnicity, socioeconomic status or gender can impact your diabetes risk and outcomes. After seeing the impact that COVID-19 has had on those from marginalized communities, that work seems increasingly necessary and relevant when dealing with all chronic illness. 

Dr. Hailey Banack was appointed the inaugural Novo Nordisk Research Professor in Health Equity of Chronic Illness Prevention, as part of Nordisk Network for Healthy Populations at the University of Toronto. In this role, she will develop a community-focused research program aiming to improve the burden of obesity and diabetes in Peel region and improve health equity.

When developing the team to support our Network, it was clear that our Scientific Steering Committee would need a Family and Community Health & Engagement Lead who understood the diverse needs of Peel Region. Dr. Ian Zenlea, a pediatric endocrinologist and clinician scientist at Trillium Health Partners and the Institute for Better Health, was the perfect fit.