Chris Simpson (cardiologist)


Dr. Chris Simpson, MD FRCPC FACC FHRS FCCS FCAHS is a Canadian cardiologist who served as the 147th President of the Canadian Medical Association. During his tenure, he championed seniors' care, arguing that a more comprehensive and integrated approach to the care of seniors would serve as a foundation for improving the Canadian healthcare system as a whole. Other issues during his term included a national discussion on end of life care , as well as issues around the public health implications and possible medicinal utility of marijuana.
Dr. Simpson serves as the Chair of the Wait Time Alliance - a federation of 18 national medical and surgical specialty societies and the Canadian Medical Association that monitors and publishes report cards on the state of medical wait times in Canada. He also chaired the Task Force on CMAJ that was tasked with revamping the governance structure of the Canadian Medical Association Journal.
He is currently Vice-Dean in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Queen's University in Kingston as well as the medical director of the Southeastern Ontario Academic Medical Organization. He also serves as the Canadian Medical Association's representative to the World Medical Association and as Chair of Health Quality Ontario's Quality Standards Committee. In 2019, he was elected President-elect of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences.

Education and training

A native of Nackawic, New Brunswick, he received his MD from Dalhousie University in 1992 after having completed an undergraduate degree at the University of New Brunswick. He then completed Internal Medicine and Cardiology training at Queen's University, followed by a Heart and Stroke Foundation Fellowship in cardiac electrophysiology at the University of Western Ontario in 1999. He is a Professor in the Department of Medicine and in the School of Policy Studies at Queen's University and completed a 10-year term as Chief of Cardiology and Medical Director of the Cardiac Programs at Kingston General Hospital and Hotel Dieu Hospital in 2016.

Clinical and research work

Dr. Simpson practices clinically as a specialist in heart rhythm disorders. His clinical and research interests include health policy, medical fitness to drive, catheter ablation, atrial fibrillation, sudden death in the young, and cardiac resynchronization therapy.

Honours and awards

2004: Canadian Medical Association Award for Young Leaders
2015: Fellowship in the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences
2017: University of New Brunswick Alumni Award of Distinction