Jeff Reading

Background

About Jeff Reading

Professor Jeff Reading is an Indigenous researcher of Mohawk ancestry with more than two decades experience enhancing knowledge in Indigenous health issues, both in Canada and globally. He obtained his MSc and PhD degrees in Community Health Sciences (now the Dalla Lana School of Public Health), University of Toronto and was the founding Director of the Centre for Aboriginal Health Research at the University of Victoria in British Columbia. As the inaugural Scientific Director of the Institute of Aboriginal Peoples’ Health at the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Jeff was part of a movement calling for a national advanced research agenda in the area of Aboriginal health. Jeff has played a pivotal role in the introduction of Canadian ethics guidelines for Aboriginal health research and he also made key contributions to the Canadian Academy of Health Science's report and solutions that aim to have a particular impact on Indigenous Peoples’ health globally. In 2015, Jeff took a one year leave of absence from the School of Public Health and Social Policy at the University of Victoria to join the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto, as the first Interim Director of the Waakebiness-Bryce Institute for Indigenous Health. In 2016, Jeff began an appointment as Professor and Inaugural British Columbia First Nations Health Authority Chair in Heart Health and Wellness at St. Paul’s Hospital, Vancouver, and Simon Fraser University. Among his numerous distinctions Dr. Reading was conferred a Doctor of Laws honorary degree from York University,(Oct 2024), the Order of Canada (June, 2023), C.P. Shah Alumni Award of Excellence in Public Health (2015) from the Public Health Alumni Association of the Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto; a National Aboriginal Achievement Award from the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation, Canada – now known as Indspire (2008) and elected an inaugural Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences (2005).