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Headshot of Robin Hayeems

Robin Hayeems

Title: Senior Scientist, Child Health Evaluative Sciences
Designations: ScM, PhD
Phone: 416-813-7654 ext. 309259
Email: robin.hayeems@sickkids.ca
Alternate Contact Name: Dhayo Khangsar
Alternate Phone: 416-813-7654 ext. 309975
Alternate Email: dhayo.khangsar@sickkids.ca
U of T Positions: Associate Professor (status), Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto
Chair Positions: Canada Research Chair in Genomics and Health Policy (Tier 2)

Biography

Dr. Robin Hayeems is a Senior Scientist in Child Health Evaluative Sciences (CHES) at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) Research Institute and an Associate Professor in the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation (IHPME) at the University of Toronto. Dr. Hayeems is trained in genetic counselling (ScM, Johns Hopkins University), public health and bioethics (PhD, University of Toronto), health policy research (University of Toronto, IHPME Postdoctoral Fellowship) and health services research (University of Toronto, Institute for Clinical and Evaluative Sciences Postdoctoral Fellowship).

Research

Since joining the Child Health Evaluative Sciences Program at SickKids Research Institute in January 2014, Dr. Hayeems has established an interdisciplinary, theoretically-grounded, policy-relevant research program focused on (i) outcomes of genomic screening and diagnostic technologies that are important to patients, families and health-care systems, and (ii) novel models of care to support the appropriate, equitable and sustainable delivery of these technologies in child health.

Going forward, Dr. Hayeems will broaden the measurement toolkit that she has developed and deepen its integration into novel strategies for delivering care. As precision medicine gains traction, health system funding decisions and policies related to its appropriate use will increasingly depend on Dr. Hayeems’ methodologies and research findings.

Education and experience

Degrees

  • 2002–2007: PhD, Dept. Public Health Sciences & Collaborative Program in Bioethics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • 1998–2001: ScM, Genetic Counselling, John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD and The National Human Genome Research Institute, Bethesda, MD, U.S.A.
  • 1996–1998: M.Sc., Medical Science, Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • 1992–1996: B.Sc. (Hons.), Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada

Postgraduate research and specialty training

  • 2011–2013: Postdoctoral Fellowship, Institute for Clinical and Evaluative Sciences, Health System and Policy Evaluation Program, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • 2008–2010: Postdoctoral Fellowship, Health System Strategy Division, Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • 2007–2010: Postdoctoral Fellowship, Institute of Health Policy Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • 2006–2007: Research Fellow, Centre for Health Economics & Policy Analysis, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada

Experience

  • 2023–Present: Senior Scientist, Child Health Evaluative Sciences, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • 2019–Present: Associate Professor (status), Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • 2017–2023: Scientist, Child Health Evaluative Sciences, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • 2014–Present: Associate Member, School of Graduate Studies, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • 2014–2019: Assistant Professor, Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • 2014–2017: Scientist-Track Investigator, Child Health Evaluative Sciences, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada

Achievements

  • 2022–2027: Canada Research Chair in Genomics and Health Policy, Tier 2, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • 2021–Present: Member, Ontario Provincial Genetics Advisory Committee, Ontario Health (Quality), Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • 2019–Present: Member, Ontario Genetics Advisory Committee, Advisory to Ontario Health (Quality Division), Toronto, ON, Canada
  • 2018–2023: Co-Chair, Prenatal Screening Ontario - Advisory Committee, Advisory to Prenatal Screening Ontario, Better Outcomes Registry and Network and Ontario Ministry of Health, ON, Canada
  • 2018: Value Assessment Initiative: Challenge Award (2nd Place) - PhRMA Foundation/ Personalized Medicine Coalition, Washington, DC, U.S.A.

Publications

  1. Hayeems RZ, Luca S, Chad L, Quercia N, Hossain A, Xiao B, Meyn MS, Pullenayegum E, Ungar WJ. Assessing the performance of the Clinician-reported Genetic testing Utility InDEx (C-GUIDE): Further evidence of inter-rater reliability. Clinical Therapeutics. 2023;45(8):729-735.
  2. Hayeems RZ, Bernier FP, Boycott KM, et al. Positioning whole exome sequencing in the diagnostic pathway for rare disease to optimise utility: a protocol for an observational cohort study and an economic evaluation. BMJ Open. 2022; 12(10): E061468.
  3. Hayeems RZ, Luca S, Venkataramanan V, et al. The Clinician-reported Genetic testing Utility InDEx (C-GUIDE): Preliminary evidence of validity and reliability. Genetics in Medicine. 2022;24(2):430-438.
  4. Hayeems RZ, Luca S, Bhatt A, Abd Assamad D, Ungar W. Utility of Genetic Testing from the Perspective of Parents/Caregivers: A Scoping Review. Children. 2021;8(4):259.
  5. Hayeems RZ, Dimmock D, Bick D, et al. Clinical utility of genomic testing: A measurement toolkit. NPJ Genomic Medicine. 2020;5(1):56

See a full list of Robin Hayeems' publications.

  • 2024–2026: Principal Investigator. The Clinician-reported Genetic testing Utility InDEx (C-Guide): Development and validation for neonatal intensive care. Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). CIHR Spring 2024 Project Grant. PI: Hayeems RZ. Co-Is: Chad L, Chitayat D, Costain G, Dolman L, Dyack S, Dyment D, Elliott A, Howlett A, Laberge AM, Lauzon J, Lavoie P, Lemyre B, Ly L, Nikkel S, Offringa M, Styranko D, Thomas MA, Tremblay S, Ungar WJ. Total Amount: $325,000 CAD.
  • 2023–2025: Principal Investigator. CHILD-BRIGHT GRIP (Genome-wide sequencing Readiness and Implementation in Practice) Study: a hybrid implementation-effectiveness observational study of clinical genome-wide sequencing in Ontario. Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Strategy for Patient Oriented Research (SPOR). PI: Hayeems RZ. Co-PI: Mackley M. Co-Is: Boycott K, Gillespie M, Sawyer S, Somerville M, Marshall C, Ungar WJ, Mendoza R, Costain G, Szuto A, Lee W. Total Amount: $240,000 CAD.
  • 2023–2025: Principal Investigator. Genome-wide Sequencing: Secondary Findings Impact Study (SF Impact Study). Canadian Institites of Health Research (CIHR), Priority Announcement in Health Economics and Cancer Control. PIs: Hayeems RZ, Ungar WJ. Co-Is: Beausejour-Ladouceur V, Boycott K, Chad L, Huang L, Jarinova O, Lee W, Mackley M, Marshall C, Mendoza-Londono R, Richer J, Sawyer S, Somerville M, Stavropoulos D, Szuto A, Villani A, Zahavich L. Total Amount: $100,000 CAD.
  • 2021–2026: Principal Investigator. Defining and measuring the value of genetic testing from patients' perspectives: Developing the Patient-reported Genetic testing Utility InDEx (P-GUIDE). Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Project Grant: Fall 2020. PI: Hayeems RZ. Co-Is: Armstrong L, Birch P, Boycott K, Carroll J, Chad L, Denburg A, Elliott A, Laberge AM, Peltekova I, Smith M, Ungar WJ, Villani A. Collaborators: Cohn RD, Greenberg A, Quinlan B. Total Amount: $508,000 CAD.
  • 2021–2025: Principal Investigator. The Genetics Navigator: A novel digital platform for delivering personalized genetics. Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Team Grant in Personalized Medicine. PIs: Bombard Y, Hayeems RZ. Co-Is: Aronson M, Bernier F, Brudno M, Carroll J, Chad L, Clausen M, Cohn R, Costain G, Dhalla I; Friedman J, Jobling R, Laberge AM, Lerner-Ellis J, Liston E, Mamdani M, Marshall C, Osmond M, Seto E, Shastri-Estrada S, Shuman C, Silver J, Smith M, Thorpe K, Ungar W. Total Amount: $2,000,000 CAD.
  • 2021–2025: Co-Investigator and Evaluation Lead. Optimization and implementation of a clinical genome-wide sequencing service for rare disease diagnosis in Ontario. Genome Canada Genome Applications Partnership Program (GAPP). PIs: Reib B, Boycott K. Co- PI: Somerville M. Co-Is: Ho C, Munter A, Cohn R, Bulman D, Hayeems RZ, Huang L, Jarinova O, Marshall C, McGowan-Jordan J, Mendoza R, Sawyer S, Stavropoulos J, Ungar WJ. $2,000,000 CAD ($4,000,000 CAD co-funding provided by the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care). Total Amount: $6,000,000 CAD.
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