Dr. Scott Berry Joins Department of Oncology
From Dr. Michael Fitzpatrick, Chief of Staff & Vice President of Medical Affairs:
Please join me in welcoming Dr. Scott Berry, who commenced work April 1st, 2019, as the newly appointed Head of the Department of Oncology and Program Medical Director of Oncology. Dr. Berry joins us from the University of Toronto and Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, where he worked as a clinician, researcher, and educator. In addition to postgraduate training in internal medicine and oncology at the University of Toronto, Dr. Berry holds a Master of Health Sciences in Bioethics from the University of Toronto, where he has been an Associate Professor at the University of Toronto. In his role as Program Medical Director for the Oncology Program, Dr. Berry will work closely with Ms. Kardi Kennedy, Program Operational Director for Oncology, and Ms. Brenda Carter, Chief of Quality and Clinical Transformation, KHSC.
Dr. Berry has a special interest and expertise in gastrointestinal oncology. He co-chairs the Gastrointestinal Disease Site Group for the Cancer Care Ontario Program in Evidence Based Care and he has published numerous high-impact papers, and spoken internationally, in this field.
Dr. Berry’s major academic focus has been education. He is a former Chair of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada Specialty Committee for Medical Oncology (2010 – 2016) and was the Program Director for the Medical Oncology Training Program at the University of Toronto (2005 -2017). Dr. Berry helped lead the implementation of Competency By Design for Medical Oncology in Canada, and he is the co-leader of OncologyEducation.com, the leading website for oncology continuing medical education in Canada.
Dr. Berry also has an academic interest in bioethical issues related to cancer care and, specifically, ethical issues related to funding of new and expensive cancer medications. He was an inaugural member and ethics advisor for the pan-Canadian Oncology Drug Review Expert Review Committee and has served on the American Society of Clinical Oncology Ethics Committee.
As we welcome Dr. Berry to his new role, I would like to say a special thanks to Dr. Jim Biagi, who played an outstanding role as interim Head of the Department and Program Medical Director. His leadership was invaluable as we navigated several complicated situations affecting the Department of Oncology and the Oncology Program during the last two years, and he will remain as a valued resource within the department.