Our Board of Directors

Dr. Sarah Funnell is a First Nations family physician, public health specialist, and clinician scientist. Her background is mixed Algonquin and Tuscarora ancestry, and she grew up among the Mississaugas of Alderville First Nation and is a current band member of Kitigan Zibi First Nation.

Dr. Sarah Funnell is the Associate Dean and Chair of Indigenous Health at Queen’s Health Sciences (QHS) and Assistant Professor, Department of Family Medicine. In these roles she leads efforts to incorporate Indigenous health and cultural perspectives into health education, administration, research, and clinical practice.

Dr. Funnell was the chair and a founding member of the National Consortium for Indigenous Medical Education and a Senior Editor for the Canadian Journal of Public Health. Throughout her career, she has been an active voice and advocate to improve Indigenous health and curriculum through her volunteer work with College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC), Royal College, Medical Council of Canada, Medical Council of Canada (MCC), and the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada (AFMC).

Her research focus includes Indigenous population health, Indigenous data governance, and the impact of COVID-19 on the healthcare of Indigenous older adults. She is an award-winning educator and prolific speaker on topics related to Indigenous health, health equity, public health, and primary care.

Dr. Funnell joins the NCIME Board of Directors as Chair.

Valerie (Val) Arnault-Pelletier is a nehiyaw iskwew, her mother’s community is Waterhen Lake Cree Nation and her grandmother’s community is Beardy’s and Okemasis First Nation.

Val has worked at the University of Saskatchewan Nursing and Medicine for over 30 years and is currently the Senior Lead of Indigenous Programming and Initiatives. She has been an advocate for Indigenous students and played an integral role in establishing the Indigenous Pathways Program within the College of Medicine’s Undergraduate Medical Education program. Her work was influential in ensuring that twenty Indigenous-specific seats are held for students annually, and that Indigenous Admissions Circles are held, allowing an evaluation process that is holistic in a manner for Indigenous applicants. Assistance and support for Indigenous students is also provided, starting in pre-medical studies and continuing until the end of residency. Val’s students speak highly of her support throughout their medical education where Indigenous concepts and culture are embedded in college ceremonies and events thanks in part to her work.

Val has dedicated her career to breaking systemic barriers and ensuring that future generations of Indigenous physicians are mentored and supported by other Indigenous people. The Val Arnault-Pelletier Award has been erected in her honour to recognize the development of culturally competent clinicians and the relentless commitment and servant leadership of Indigenous medical students.

Val brings a breadth of knowledge from her long and impactful career Indigenizing curriculum and the University of Saskatchewan College of Medicine and joins the inaugural NCIME Board of Directors as Co-Chair.

Dr. Michael Green is President, Vice-Chancellor, Dean and CEO of the Northern Ontario School of Medicine University, where he is also Professor of Family Medicine in the Division of Clinical Sciences. He is Professor Emeritus in the Departments of Family Medicine and Public Health Sciences at Queen’s University where he also has an active adjunct research appointment, and a Senior Adjunct Scientist at  IC/ES. He served as the 70th President of the College of Family Physicians of Canada from Nov 2023 to Oct 2024.  He was the Brian Hennen Chair and Head of the Department of Family Medicine at Queen’s University from July 2017 until Oct 2023. He was the inaugural Clinical Teachers Association of Queen’s University Chair in Applied Health Economics/Health Policy from 2014-2017 and formerly served as Director of the Centre for Health Services and Policy Research and Interm Director of the Queen’s Health Services and Policy Research Institute.  In 2018 he was elected as a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences.   He has served on many professional and government expert committees including the AMS Healthcare Board of Directors, the Provincial Primary Care Advisory Committee on COVID-19, the Ontario Premier’s Council Working Group on Primary Care, the Ontario Expert Panel on Wait Times in Primary Care, the Advisory Committee on Ontario’s Immunization System Review, the College of Family Physicians of Canada Indigenous Health Working Group and Patient’s Medical Home Steering Committees, the Diabetes Canada Guidelines working group on Diabetes and Indigenous people and for Health Quality Ontario the Primary Care Advisory Committee and the Quality Standards Working Group for Type 2 Diabetes. He completed his medical training at the University of British Columbia and his residency in Family Medicine at Memorial University of Newfoundland. Following eight years of active practice in Moose Factory, Ontario, including 4 years as Chief of Staff, he completed his MPH with a focus on Health Policy and Management at the John’s Hopkins School of Public Health. He moved to Queen’s University in 2003, where he has an active family practice at the Queen’s Family Health Team.  He also practiced in public health as a Medical Officer with Health Canada’s First Nations and Inuit Health Branch from 2003-2014. His research covers a broad range of health services and policy research areas with an emphasis on primary care, quality of care, equity in health, and Indigenous health. He has been supported by major grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Ontario Strategy on Patient Oriented Research Support Unit and the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care with total research funding of over $40 million.  He has more than 100 publications and has made over 250 conference or academic presentations including many at major national and international primary care and health policy related conferences.

Dr. Green participated as a member of NCIME’s Improving cultural safety in curriculum working group in Phase I, one of his many contributions as a subject matter expert and joins the NCIME Board of Directors as Treasurer.

Dr. Catherine Cook (MD, MSc, CCFP, FCFP) is Métis from Matheson Island, Métis Nation of Manitoba. She had an illustrious career in medicine as one of the first Métis women in Canada to train as a physician and one of the first Indigenous physicians trained in Manitoba. Dr. Cook recently retired after a 35+ year career in medicine, fiercely advocating for Indigenous health throughout.

Dr. Cook’s most recent role was as inaugural Vice-president (Indigenous) at the University of Manitoba, where she oversaw the Indigenous Senior Leadership projects which brought systemic change to the university.  She began her career as a fly-in physician in northern communities which influenced her future work in anti-Indigenous racism in medical education. Dr. Cook co-founded Ongomiizwin – Indigenous Institute of Health and Healing. Ongomiizwin is comprised of three main departments: Education, a place for Indigenous students studying in health professional programs to meet, study and explore careers and culture; Health Services, an inter-professional health service agency led by a team of Indigenous and non-indigenous health professionals across Manitoba; and Research, a collaboration that began in 2001 between the University of Manitoba, the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs and the Foundations for Health when they established the Centre for Aboriginal Health Research which evolved into the Manitoba First Nations Centre for Aboriginal Health Research before becoming Ongomiizwin – Research in 2017.

Dr. Cook is the first-ever National Indigenous Advisor for the Arthritis Society Canada in addition to joining NCIME’s inaugural Board of Directors as Secretary.