Our Team

We are a team of clinicians, researchers, data scientists and technical staff working to improve healthcare with hospital data.

GEMINI Executive Team

Co-Lead

Co-Lead

Team Members

Director, Data Science and Innovation

Nicole Yada

Director, Strategy Partnerships and Operations VITAL

Co-Lead

Manager, Research Data Operations

Manager, Research Data Operations

Scientific Lead

Co-Lead

Manager, Information Systems

Manager, Research Program

Amol Verma

Co-Lead

My role with the GEMINI team:

I am an internal medicine physician and scientist at Unity Health Toronto and the Temerty Professor of AI Research and Education in Medicine at the University of Toronto.

My educational background:

I completed a BSc in Microbiology and Immunology at Dalhousie, medical school and residency at the University of Toronto, a Masters in Economic and Social History at the University of Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, a 1-year interdisciplinary fellowship with the Canadian Frailty Network a 2-year research fellowship studying big data and advanced analytics in the Clinician Investigator Program of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, and a 1-year fellowship in Artificial Intelligence and Compassion with AMS Healthcare.​

My past experience and accomplishments:

I serve as a Provincial Clinical Lead for Quality Improvement in General Internal Medicine with Ontario Health, the Vice-Chair of the Researcher Council of the Digital Research Alliance of Canada, and was a member of the Council of Canadian Academies Expert Panel on Health Data Sharing. I received the 2023 Canadian Society of Internal Medicine New Investigator Award, the 2022 Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada Early Career Leadership Award and the 2022 Canadian Institutes of Health Research’s early career Trailblazer Award in Population and Public Health Research. 

I feel most inspired when:

I am near the ocean.​

Fahad Razak

Co-Lead

My role with the GEMINI team:

I am a hospital-based general internist at St Michaels Hospital and Scientist at the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute. I am co-lead of the GEMINI program. I am also the Provincial Co-Lead, Quality Improvement in General Internal Medicine at Ontario Health, and I find this a great fit for my clinical work and research focus. ​

At the University of Toronto, I am an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine and Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation.  I am a member of the Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table.

My educational background:

My training includes a degree in Engineering Science (Biomedical Engineering), Medical Doctorate, Residency and Fellowship in General Internal Medicine at the University of Toronto. I was the first physician appointed as a David E. Bell Fellow at Harvard University and my post-doctoral training focused on social determinants of health and population health through use of large datasets.

My past experience and accomplishments:

Notable research recognitions at the University of Toronto include the Dean’s Emerging Leader Award, the President’s Impact Award, and being named a Senior Fellow at Massey College. I received the Canadian Society of Internal Medicine’s New Investigator Award and the Graham Farquharson Knowledge Translation Fellowship from the PSI Foundation.  I have received >$65 million in grant funding as Principal Investigator from sources such as CIHR, NSERC, and the Canadian Cancer Society. I have published >100 peer-reviewed publications (h-index 35, >50 as first/senior author), including in high impact journals such as JAMA, the BMJ, PLOS Medicine and PNAS as first/senior author. 

I am  a Canada Research Chair in Data-Informed Health Care Improvement and Associate Professor at the University of Toronto. I serve as a Provincial Clinical Lead for Quality Improvement in General Internal Medicine with Ontario Health, and am Vice-President Research at the Canadian Society of Internal Medicine. I am on the advisory board of the BMJ.

I was the Scientific Director of the Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table and co-authored >50 science and policy briefs that shaped the policy, public health and clinical response to the COVID-19 crisis. I am a member of the Federal Expert Panel on Science Advisory and Research convened by the Minister of Health.

I feel most inspired when:

I can see something grow that I have nurtured and cared for. For GEMINI, I feel inspired as I see our team grow stronger and more skilled in striving to achieve the complex and broad goals we have set for ourselves.

Anis Sharafoddini

Director, Data Science and Innovation

Educational background

I have a background in both Biomedical and Electrical Engineering, holding bachelor’s degrees in each. My interest in health sciences led me to continue with a Master’s in Biomedical Engineering, and eventually a Ph.D. in Public Health and Health Science from the University of Waterloo. This path has helped me work across different areas where health, technology, and research come together.

My past accomplishments

I have experience in both the private and public sectors. I began my career at Deloitte, one of the Big Four management consulting firms, where I worked with clients across healthcare, including pharmaceuticals, government, and hospitals. I focused on a range of data-related initiatives, from cloud migration to data science and analytics. I then joined Sanofi, where I worked on several innovative data projects. My passion for building data platforms eventually led me to Supply Ontario, where I co-led the development of a cloud-based platform to collect and integrate data from various organizations. In addition to my professional roles, I also serve as an Adjunct Faculty member at Northeastern University.

When I feel most inspired

I’m most inspired when collaborating with a strong team to build solutions that make a real impact. I’m motivated by the opportunity to simplify complex challenges and deliver outcomes that are both practical and meaningful.

A few of my favourite things

Spending time with my family

Reading, particularly books that offer new perspectives or inspire fresh thinking

Trong Shen

Manager, Research Data Operations

Educational background

Nanotechnology Engineering for my Bachelors and Biomedical Engineering for my Masters. Simply put, I learned lots about materials science, fabrication, and bioengineering.

My past accomplishments

Used to work at a bank; know a thing or two about banking, finance, and investment

Used to do wet lab during my masters, research topic involves image analysis, cardiomyocytes, and drug testing

Has some experience in semiconductors and hybrid car design

When I feel most inspired

I work with great people

I feel like I am contributing to the greater good of an organization

A few of my favourite things

Singing (I did lots of a cappella singing in university)

Playing basketball

Delicious pastries (texture is very important, it needs to have a lot of layers)

Kieran Shah

Manager, Research Data Operations

Educational background

I completed a Master’s of Public Health at Boston University in Biostatistics. For my thesis, I was able to work with the National Emergency Data Set and used both supervised and unsupervised machine learning techniques to better understand factors that affect emergency department length of stays.

My past accomplishments

Prior to joining GEMINI, I worked as a Statistician at the University of Guelph. I helped develop a forecast model to help future budgeting and enrolment planning at the University. I also worked with student services to develop models to help better understand student success.

Before I worked at the University of Guelph, I worked with Abt Associated in Boston. There, I helped construct research-ready datasets for the Department of Justice, and conducted analysis on Medicaid data to better understand access to mental health services.

When I feel most inspired

I’m working with great and friendly colleagues.

A few of my favourite things

Playing soccer (before the pandemic)

Running after my kids

Surain Roberts

Scientific Lead

Educational background

I completed my PhD at the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto, and my bachelors in Biological Sciences at The University of Chicago.

My past accomplishments

I am a health outcomes researcher and applied biostatistician. My research leverages data from large health networks to learn about differences in quality of inpatient care and inform health system decisions, with a focus on observational studies, prediction tools, and hospital profiling. I am the Scientific Lead of GEMINI and oversee GEMINI’s research activities, providing methodological direction across a wide range of clinical domains. Additionally, I act as the methods lead for the General Medicine Quality Improvement Network (GeMQIN), a quality improvement partnership between GEMINI and Ontario Health that develops audit & feedback reports delivered to physicians and hospitals annually.

I am an Assistant Professor at the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto. Prior to joining GEMINI in 2021, I co-led the creation of the Canadian Network for Autoimmune Liver disease (CaNAL). CaNAL is a pan-Canadian registry collecting both retrospective and prospective long-term follow-up of individual patient data. After my bachelors, I spent a year teaching, mentoring, and evaluating twelve students in a for-credit 9th grade algebra class in south Chicago.

When I feel most inspired

When I’m surrounded by people who are passionate about what they do.

A few of my favourite things

Playing 30-second online bullet chess (I can click faster than I can think)

Discovering new and interesting hot sauces

Ijere Ijere

Manager, Information Systems

Educational background

A graduate of Economics, I have actively pursued a career in Linux Infrastructure management, Automation, Containerization and Orchestration, over an 8-year period, attaining the RHCE (Red Hat Certified Engineer) and RHCDS (Red Hat Certified Datacenter Specialist) credentials.

My past accomplishments

I have worked as a DevOps Engineer where I created and maintained various continuous integration and deployment strategies for clients in Banking, Telecoms, Education, and Hospitality —using CI/CD tools like Ansible and Jenkins to cut deployment time by 40%.

When I feel most inspired

I share something that helps others overcome a challenge.

I make genuine connections I didn’t think possible, and with someone /people I could never have imagined.

I experience people who transcend their limitations to achieve a feat, small or big.

In knowing that I am a better person today, because of my actions yesterday.

A few of my favourite things

Cooking

Photography

Discovering new places

Chloe Chow

Manager, Research Program

Educational background

I received my Bachelor’s of Science, majoring in Life Science, and then my Masters of Science in Epidemiology from Queen’s University.

My past accomplishments

My past experiences include my Masters thesis project, which investigated the prevalence and determinants of physical activity among ovarian cancer survivors. After completing my masters thesis, I worked at SickKids Hospital for The Children’s Stroke Program, coordinating an international multi-centre study that investigated the Vascular Effects of Infection in Paediatric Stroke.

A few of my favourite things

Movie theatre popcorn (with lots of butter)

Dogs

Swimming in lakes/oceans/pools