Deborah Levy

Team Investigator

Dr. Deborah Levy is a Staff Rheumatologist, Professor of Paediatrics at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto and Project Investigator at the SickKids Research Institute. She has received local and national honours, and most recently was awarded the Richard Rowe Award for Clinical Excellence and the 2018 Ontario Rheumatologist of the Year.

She is the Clinic Director of the Division of Rheumatology at SickKids, and her research focuses on long-term outcomes of childhood-onset lupus. Other interests include Advocacy and Models of Care in Paediatric Rheumatology, ensuring access to care for patients in underserved areas of Ontario. She is the President & Chair of the Board of the Ontario Rheumatology Association and a past chair of the Paediatric Committee of the Canadian Rheumatology Association.

Research

Dr. Levy’s research areas include collaborative studies in systemic lupus erythematosus, including long-term outcomes of SLE and neuropsychiatric SLE (NPSLE), and national collaborative research initiatives in juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA).

Education

• 2003–2005: Masters of Science, Biostatistics, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
• 2001–2003: Fellow, Paediatric Rheumatology, Columbia University, NY, NY USA
• 2000–2001: Fellow, Paediatric Rheumatology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON
• 1999–2000: Clinical Fellow, Thrombosis and Hemostasis, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
• 1995–1999: Paediatrics Residency and Chief Residency, Mount Sinai Medical Center, NY, NY
• 1991–1995: Medical Degree, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

Experience

• 2009–Present: Staff, Division of Rheumatology, Department of Paediatrics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
• 2009–2015: Physician, Paediatric Rheumatology, Department of Family/Child, Paediatrics, Rheumatology Health Clinic, Health Sciences North, Sudbury, ON, Canada
• 2009–2010: Physician, Paediatric Rheumatology, Credit Valley Hospital, Mississauga, ON, Canada
• 2009–2010: Physician, Paediatric Rheumatology, Children’s Hospital, London Health Sciences Center, London, ON, Canada
• 2003–2009: Attending Physician, Division of Rheumatology, Department of Paediatrics, Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital of New York-Presbyterian, Columbia University, NY, NY, USA

Achievements

• 2023: Dr. Richard Rowe Award for Clinical Excellence, University of Toronto, Department of Paediatrics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
• 2018: Ontario Rheumatologist of the Year Award, Ontario Rheumatology Association, Ontario, Canada
• 2018–Present: Past Chair, Paediatric Committee, Canadian Rheumatology Association
• 2018–Present: Vice-President (Paediatric), Board of Directors, Ontario Rheumatology Association.
• 2016: Chair, Provincial Paediatric Rheumatology Models of Care ACPAC Educational Meeting
• 2017: Invited Member, Rheumatology Working Group of Models of Care for Inflammatory Arthritis in Ontario
• 2016: Clinical Excellence Award, University of Toronto, Department of Paediatrics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
• 2015–2018: Chair, Paediatric Committee, Canadian Rheumatology Association
• 2013–Present: Secretary, Executive Member, Canadian Network for Improved Outcomes in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (CaNIOS)

1. Zaffino I, Boulard L, Law J, Jeyanathan A, Ng L, Williams-Reid S, Reid K, Cortes A, Cortes E, Danguecan A, Levy DM, Hiraki LT, Knight AM. Understanding Contributors of Resilience in Youth with Childhood-Onset Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Through a Socio-ecological Lens: A Mixed Methods Study. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2025 Apr 14. doi: 10.1002/acr.25550. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 40223659.
2. Diaz T, Danguecan A, Dominguez D, Knight A, Laskin CA, Levy DM, Jaeggi E, Misztal M, Mandhane P, Moraes T, Ng L, Silverio F, Silverman ED, Simons E, Turvey SE, Subbarao P, Hiraki LT. Long-Term Outcomes of Children Born to Anti-Ro Antibody-Positive Mothers With and Without Rheumatic Disease. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2025 Feb 21. doi: 10.1002/acr.25510. Online ahead of print. PMID: 39981584.
3. Dushnicky MJ, Har-Gil ES, Lee JJY, Levy DM. Pediatrics Human Resources Subcommittee, under the Pediatric Committee of the Canadian Rheumatology Association. Pediatric Rheumatology Care in the Canadian Context: A Qualitative Analysis of Care Providers. J Rheumatol. 2025 Feb 1: jrheum.2024-0965. doi: 10.3899/jrheum.2024-0965. Online ahead of print. PMID: 39892882. 
4. Steiman A, Lundon K, Passalent L, Soever L, Levy DM, Nielsen C, Shupak R. What’s in a Name: The Value of Defining Core Competencies for Extended Role Practitioners in Arthritis Care. J Rheumatol. 2025 Feb 1;52(2):194. doi: 10.3899/jrheum.2024-0995. PMID: 39681383.
5. Sadun RE, Cooper JC, Belot A, Avcin T, Aggarwal A, Ainsworth J, Akinsete A, Ardoin SP, Beresford MW, Bortey L, Brunner HI, Chang JC, Ciurtin C, Daftary A, Eberhard B, Feldman CH, Hedrich CM, Hersh AO, Hiraki LT, Isenberg DA, Kamphuis S, Knight AM, Lambert L, Levy DM, Marks SD, Maxwell N, Migowa A, Moore K, Ozen S, Ramsey-Goldman R, Ravelli A, Reeve BB, Rubinstein TB, Saad-Magalhaes C, Sawhney S, Schanberg LE, von Scheven E, Scott C, Son MB, Tony G, Weitzman ER, Wenderfer SE, Woodside A, Lewandowski LB, Smith EM; CARRA SLE Committee and PReS Lupus Working Party. Development of CARRA/PReS-Endorsed Consensus Core and Expanded Datasets in Childhood-Onset Systemic Lupus Erythematosus for International Registry-Based Research. Ann Rheum Dis. 2025 Feb;84(2):158-168. doi: 10.1136/ard-2024-226528. Epub 2025 Jan 2. PMID: 39919891.