Biography
Dr. Darine El-Chaâr is a Maternal Fetal Medicine (MFM) physician at TOH, Associate Scientist at OHRI, and Assistant Professor at the University of Ottawa. Dr. El-Chaâr is the lead of the COPE Network, which was recently setup in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. El-Chaâr completed her Obstetrical and Gynecology residency at The University of Ottawa in 2012. She was extensively involved in research projects during her residency at the Ottawa hospital which gathered several achievement awards, publications, national and international presentations. Research initiatives included the risks of obesity on maternal and neonatal obstetrical outcomes and interventions. Her research also explored funding for this project which would help look at the postpartum outcomes in this patient population.
In July of 2014, Dr. Darine El-Chaâr completed her Maternal Fetal Medicine fellowship training at the University of Toronto, Mount Sinai Hospital. Throughout her training, she maintained a keen interest in obstetrical research and its impact on women's health.
She joined the Maternal Fetal Medicine Department at The Ottawa Hospital as of July 2014. She completed a Masters in clinical Epidemiology from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in 2017. Current research initiatives include maternal health conditions and pregnancy outcomes, Caesarian Delivery by Maternal Request and Provincial outcomes, COVID-19 in pregnancy, Cannabis use in pregnancy, Breastfeeding and Diabetes: maternal and neonatal obstetrical outcomes and interventions. She has secured funding through CIHR and other grant funding agencies.
Dr. El-Chaâr is actively involved in resident and fellow teaching, in addition to continuing development of the residency/fellowship research educational curriculum. She has just completed a term of program director of Maternal Fetal Medicine. She continues to take part in national and international conferences where she is invited to speak out on maternal and fetal medicine initiatives. Through many platforms, Dr. Darine El-Chaâr is dedicated to providing excellent patient care, and that is what motivates her daily in her research and educational activities. Making a positive impact on a patient’s care experience is always the main priority in her approach to care.
Research interests
Dr. Darine El-Chaâr is actively involved in maternal fetal medicine research to improve outcomes for fetus and mother in pregnancy. Current research focus areas include: (1) breastfeeding and diabetes: initiation, success and maintenance; (2) Maternal morbidities and prenatal care; and (3) COVID-19 in pregnancy (4) Cannabis use in pregnancy.