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Deborah Schonfield headshot

Deborah Schonfeld

Title:
Staff Physician, Division of Emergency Medicine
Designations:
MD, FRCPC
Pronouns:
She/Her
Alternate Contact Name:
Laurie McQuarrie
Alternate Phone:
416-813-7654, ext. 401751
Alternate Email:
laurie.mcquarrie@sickkids.ca
U of T Positions:
Assistant Professor, Department of Paediatrics
Chair Positions:
Chair, PEM MM&I Rounds Committee and Co-Chair, PEM Medical Resuscitation Video Review (MRVR) Committee
Other Positions:
Physician Medical Lead, Hospital for Sick Children Sepsis Program

Hospital Positions

Director of Patient Safety, Paediatric Emergency Medicine

Research Positions

Project Investigator, SickKids Research Institute

Learning Positions

Core Faculty Lead, Paediatric Co-Learning Curriculum in Quality Improvement (CCQI)

Biography

Dr. Deborah Schonfeld is a staff physician in the division of paediatric emergency medicine (PEM) at the Hospital for Sick Children, where she has worked since 2013. She holds a certificate in Quality Improvement and Patient Safety from the University of Toronto/CQuIPS and is the Director of Patient Safety for the division. She has a special interest in paediatric sepsis and resuscitative medicine, and co-leads the division's Medical Resuscitation Video Review program. She is an educator at heart and is actively involved in clinical teaching across all levels of medical education, including undergraduate medical students, postgraduate residents and fellows, and practicing emergency physicians.

Research

Dr. Schonfeld's research interests focus on quality improvement and patient safety as well as pediatric sepsis recognition and management.

Education and experience

  • 2015—2016: Quality Improvement and Patient Safety Certificate Program, CQuIPS, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • 2010—2013: Fellow, Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
  • 2007—2010: Resident, Pediatrics, NYU School of Medicine, New York City, New York, USA
  • 2003—2007: Doctorate of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
  • 2000—2003: B.Sc. (Physiology), McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Achievements 

  • 2025: Teaching Excellence Award, University of Toronto MD Program 2024—2025, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • 2023: Junior Faculty Award for Clinical Excellence 2023, Department of Paediatrics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • 2023: James C. Fallis Teaching Award, Division of Paediatric Emergency Medicine, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • 2021: eRecognition for Demonstrating the Strategic Value of Excellence, Caring Safely Education Team, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • 2021: Paediatric Educational Resident Lecture Series (PeRLS) Education Award, Department of Paediatrics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • 2021: James C. Fallis Teaching Award, Division of Paediatric Emergency Medicine, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • 2020: James C. Fallis Teaching Award, Division of Paediatric Emergency Medicine, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • 2018: James C. Fallis Teaching Award, Division of Paediatric Emergency Medicine, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • 2016: Harry Bain Award for Excellence in Clinical Teaching Department of Paediatrics, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • 2014—2015: Peters-Boyd Academy Clerkship-Clinical Teaching Award, Peters-Boyd Academy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • 2013—2014: Recognition for Clinical Excellence in Teaching, Division of Paediatric Emergency Medicine, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Publications

  1. Takadera T, Thau E, McLean L, Simone L, Schonfeld D, Fayyaz J, Kvatinsky N, Litwin S, Harel-Sterling M, POCUS in pediatric arrest (Res-US pulse check): development and evaluation of a simulation-based curriculum, Resuscitation Plus, Volume 30, 2026, 101380, ISSN 2666-5204, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resplu.2026.101380. Coauthor or Collaborator
  2. Sabhaney V, Gilley M, Freire G, Berthelot S, Shayan Y, Principi T, Gripp K, Gardner K, Schonfeld D, Neto G, Shah A, Thompson GC, Long E, Meckler G, & Pediatric Emergency Research Canada. Evaluating the quality of Canadian pediatric sepsis clinical practice guidelines. Can J Emerg Med 28, 186–197 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43678-025-01084-0  Coauthor or Collaborator
  3. Schwartz SB, Schonfeld D, Pederson P, Yeung F. Identification and management of child abuse and neglect. BMJ 2024; 387 :e079054 doi:10.1136/bmj-2023-079054, https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj-2023-079054. Coauthor or Collaborator
  4. Schonfeld D, Gardner K, Willemsen MA, Ostrow O. (2024). Reducing unnecessary investigations in paediatric seizures in the emergency department. BMJ (Online), 385, e076814-. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj-2023-076814. https://www.bmj.com/content/385/bmj-2023-076814. Principal Author
  5. Schonfeld D, Silver S (Staff Eds) and Diskin C, Neville S (Resident Eds). (2022) The Hospital for Sick Children Handbook of Pediatrics, 12th Edition. Elsevier. Co-Editor

Relevant pages or articles on sickkids.ca

Featured image alt text: A collage shows photos of five physicians each standing in the emergency department or simulation centre. On the top row from left to right are Dr. Jonathan Pirie in a black jacket, Dr. Suzan Schneeweiss in navy blue scrubs, and Dr. Jabeen Fayyaz in a black plaid blazer and orange and pink scarf. On the bottom row from left to right are Dr. Deborah Schonfeld in navy blue scrubs and Dr. Savithiri Ratnapalan in a grey blazer and black collared shirt.

Meet five physicians shaping medical education in the ED

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