Dr. Sarita Verma

Dr. Sarita Verma is the President, Vice Chancellor, Dean and CEO of NOSM University. She currently sits on the boards of the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre, the Health Sciences North Research Institute in Sudbury, and the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada. She is a former Vice President, Education at the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada. Prior to this role, she was the Associate Vice-Provost, Relations with Health Care Institutions and Special Advisor to the Dean of Medicine at the University of Toronto. Dr. Verma was also bestowed the title of Professor Emerita in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at University of Toronto. As a family physician (McMaster University, 1991), lawyer (University of Ottawa, 1981) and Canadian diplomat, Dr. Verma practised international mediation with the foreign service of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Sudan and Ethiopia. Among her accomplishments, she is the recipient of the Donald Richards Wilson Award in medical education from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada; co-recipient of the May Cohen Gender Equity Award from the Association of Faculties of Medicine in Canada, and recipient of the Charles Mickle Fellowship from the University of Toronto for excellence in medical education. She has played a fundamental role in the national planning and innovation of medical education in her role as one of the lead consultants for the Future of Medical Education in Canada Postgraduate project (2009-2011) and as co-lead for the Canadian Interprofessional Health Leadership Collaborative (CIHLC) at the Institute of Medicine’s Global Forum on Innovation in Health Professions Education. She was also a key member of the Association of Academic Health Centers International Steering Committee. For six years, she held the position of Governor at the University of Toronto and served on many U of T Governing Board Committees. She also held governance roles as a board member of several teaching hospitals, namely, Women’s College Hospital, North York General Hospital, Trillium Health Partners, Michener Institute, Associated Medical Services, and as Chair of the Board of the National Canadian Residency Matching Service. Dr. Verma is known for her commitment to equity, diversity and advocacy for marginalized, underserved populations. In her current role, she has spearheaded and nurtured tangible values, action-based campaigns, educational awareness and regional initiatives supporting truth and reconciliation, wellness, Indigenous health and access to health care in rural and remote areas of Northern Ontario.