UN Women is the United Nations entity dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women. UN Women has announced the theme for International Women’s Day 2021 as,”Women in leadership: Achieving an equal future in a COVID-19 world.”
This theme is also aligned with the priority theme of the 65th session of the Commission on the Status of Women: “Women’s full and effective participation and decision-making in public life, as well as the elimination of violence, for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls“. Women around the world are being disproportionately impacted by COVID-19, and more than ever we celebrate their accomplishments in the face of this pandemic.
The BC-CfE is indebted to every woman engaged in the many facets of our work, helping deliver on our mandate to improve the health of British Columbians and lead change in healthcare delivery around the world. The BC-CfE additionally believes strongly in the power of having women in positions of leadership to add their experiences, perspectives and skills to decision-making and policy crafting. Here’s a look at some of the women leading the way at the BC-CfE:
Dr. Zabrina Brumme
Laboratory Director
Dr. Brumme received her PhD from the University of British Columbia in 2006 and subsequently completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard’s Ragon Institute. She is currently a Professor in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University and the Director of Laboratories at the BC-CfE. Her research integrates molecular biology, epidemiology and computational approaches to examine questions at the interface of HIV-1 virology, immunology and pathogenesis with the ultimate goal of providing new avenues for vaccine design and strategies to eradicate viral reservoirs.
Dr. Viviane Dias Lima
Senior Statistician / Research Scientist
Associate Professor, Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia
Dr. Lima is an Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia and joined the BC-CfE in 2006 as a Scientist and Senior Methodologist. Her team is focused on improving the lives and well-being of people living with HIV in British Columbia through the application of advanced statistical, mathematical, and epidemiological methods.
Dr. Silvia Guillemi
Director of Clinical Education
Dr. Silvia Guillemi is a Clinical Professor, Department of Family Practice at UBC and the Director of the Clinical Education and Training program at the BC-CfE.
She is also an HIV clinician and a consultant physician at the Dr. Peter Center. Her clinical research focus centres on aging with HIV and its co-morbidities.
Dr. Marianne Harris
Clinic Research Advisor
Dr. Marianne Harris is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Family Practice at UBC. She is a Clinical Trials Physician and Chair of the Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) Guidelines Committee at the BC-CfE. Her primary research interests include HIV clinical trials and complications of antiretroviral therapy.
Dr. Val Montessori
Co-chair of the CDET of the BC-CfE, Head of the Division of Infectious Diseases at St. Paul’s Hospital
Dr. Val Montessori, MD, FRCPC, is a Clinical Associate professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the UBC and the co-chair of the Therapeutic Guidelines Committee at the BC-CfE. She also works at the AIDS Research Program, a collaboration between St. Paul’s Hospital and UBC.
Dr. Junine Toy
Senior Manager for the Drug Treatment Program (DTP)
Dr. Junine Toy is the Senior Manager of the Drug Treatment Program at the BC-CfE, a Clinical Pharmacy Specialist with St. Paul’s Hospital Ambulatory Pharmacy, and a clinical instructor for UBC Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences. She has specialized in HIV care and antiretroviral therapy since 2002. She is a member of the BC-CfE’s Committee for Drug Evaluation and Therapy and is co-chair of the Data Quality Committee
Dr. Kate Salters
Research Scientist
Dr. Salters is a Research Scientist with the Epidemiology and Population Health program. Her program of research focuses on health care engagement and health outcomes among people living with HIV and hepatitis C. She completed her PhD in health sciences from Simon Fraser University in 2017 and her scope of expertise includes reproductive health, HIV/AIDS, viral hepatitis, and health systems research. Kate is passionate about conducting clinical and epidemiologic studies that engages with community and helps to inform clinical practice and improve health service delivery.
Dr. Surita Parashar
Research Scientist
Dr. Surita Parashar is a Research Scientist with the Division of Epidemiology and Population Health and an adjunct professor in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University. Surita’s program of research is grounded in strong community-academic collaborations, a commitment to capacity bridging, and strengths-based approaches to understanding and addressing social-structural factors that shape health inequities amongst people living with HIV. Surita is privileged to work with, and learn from, Peer Research Associates in all of the community-driven research projects in which she is involved at the BC-CfE.