Biography
Dr. Caroline Gérin-Lajoie is a bilingual psychiatrist and assistant professor at the University of Ottawa, Faculty of Medicine. She is also cross-appointed to the Palliative Care Division of the Department of Medicine.
She has worked at The Ottawa Hospital (TOH) since 2000 and at the Cancer Centre since 2007, in leadership, teaching and clinical roles. She completed a five-year term as director of the Faculty Wellness Program, Faculty of Medicine, in December 2018 and has worked as the first TOH Medical Director of Physician Health and Wellness from 2014 to 2020. This role also included physician engagement from December 2016 to 2018. She joined the Canadian Medical Association in January 2019 as it’s first Vice-President of Physician Health and Wellness. In 2020, her title and the scope of the team was expanded to Physician Wellness and Medical Culture.
Dr. Gérin-Lajoie graduated from the OMA-CMA Master’s Certificate Physician Leadership Course in June 2014. She has presented provincially, nationally, and internationally on topics related to psychosocial oncology, physician health and disruptive behaviour.
In collaboration with her colleagues at TOH, she has been working on implementing resiliency initiatives for physicians, trainees, and staff. This work has resulted in two separate grants from the Mach-Gaensslen Foundation to evaluate a resiliency pilot, create peer support training, and develop a healthcare wellness App. She has also contributed or collaborated on research projects in the area of physician wellness.
In her personal life, Dr. Gérin-Lajoie enjoys spending time at the family cottage with her husband, three children and two stepchildren.