Announcement: Dr. Cindy Hutnik appointed as Chair/Chief, Department of Ophthalmology
Dr. Hutnik is a full professor in the Departments of Ophthalmology and Pathology at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry. She earned her doctoral degree at the National Research Council followed by undergraduate medical training, in Ottawa, Canada.
She obtained her ophthalmology training at Western University, in London, Canada, followed by subspecialty glaucoma training under the mentorship of Dr. Paul Kaufman at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA. She initiated, developed and has sustained an internationally recognized and diverse research program. Her academic and research initiatives have led to multiple leadership roles.
Dr. Hutnik has served on the medical advisory committee of the Canadian National Institute for the Blind Mobile Eye Care Program as well as the Executive and Chair of the Patient Care and Innovation Committee of the Canadian Glaucoma Society. She has worked with Health Quality Ontario in the creation of Quality Standard documents and is the provincial Glaucoma Tariff Chair of the Eye Physician and Surgeons of Ontario (EPSO).
She has worked with diverse teams that have allowed the creation of evidence-based directives on clinical practice guidelines, disease screening, disease management, shared responsibilities and health care trends. She was instrumental in establishing the Experimental Eye Research Facility at Western University.
Dr. Hutnik spent five years developing a nationally recognized London and District Interprofessional Model of access to quality care with community-based care teams. She has served as the Interprofessional Education Undergraduate Curriculum Lead in the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry at Western University.
In this role, she has worked numerous allied health professionals in different faculties at Western University, Fanshawe College, as well as the University of Windsor, whose collective goal was to create collaborative, integrated and innovative programs focused on quality patient-centered care in the clinical academic and community settings.
Dr. Hutnik is currently Chair of the Governing Committee of the Academic Medical Organization of Southwestern Ontario, President of the Canadian Glaucoma Society and a member of the Board of Directors of the Glaucoma Research Society of Canada.
She has supervised and mentored in focused research activities more than 175 students at all levels of training ranging from high school to graduate science, engineering and medicine. Her work has been presented and published both nationally and internationally and has been recognized with over 90 awards. She continues to have keen interest in the development of novel and/or optimization of existing treatments for patients with glaucoma.
Please join us in congratulating Dr. Hutnik on her appointment.
John Yoo, MD, FRCS(C), FACS
Dean, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry
Western University
William J. Sischek, MD, FRCPC, CCPE
Integrated President Medical & Academic Affairs
London Health Sciences Centre
St. Joseph’s Health Care London
