About the Innovator

Dr. Andrew Boozary is a pioneering public health leader, physician, and advocate whose work has redefined how healthcare systems serve marginalized populations. As Founding Executive Director of the Gattuso Centre for Social Medicine at the University Health Network, he led the creation of Dunn House—Canada’s first hospital-led supportive housing initiative for patients experiencing homelessness. This innovative approach to social medicine recognizes that health needs to be judged by more than standard healthcare metrics. Frequent visits to the Hospital ER are often a sign of social ills, not disease. Prescribing social housing to these 'Frequent flyers' provides a stable environment that enhances health and well being and keeps patients out of hospital. This is true social medicine, and UHN has led the way, under his guidance. He also launched the Stabilization and Connection Centre, a first-of-its-kind response to the toxic drug crisis. In his role as Ontario Health’s inaugural Clinical Lead for Population Health, Dr. Boozary advances equitable access to health care through evidence-based strategies. Nationally, he has shaped key health policy reforms, including as Director of Policy for the Advisory Council on National Pharmacare and Special Advisor to Ontario’s former Health Minister. Dr. Boozary continues frontline care through street medicine, ensuring innovations remain grounded in real-world needs. He teaches at the University of Toronto and Columbia University, founded the Harvard Public Health Review, and publishes widely in leading journals and media.