====== Vinita Dubey ======

{{ :v_dubey_bio_photo.jpeg?200|}}

Dr. **Vinita Dubey** is an Adjunct Professor at the [[Dalla Lana School of Public Health]] at the [[University of Toronto]] with focus on [[vaccines]], Associate Medical Officer of Health for [[Toronto Public Health]], Member of the [[National Advisory Committee on Immunization]] (NACI), and Member of the [[Ontario Immunization Advisory Committee]] (OIAC).

===== Affiliations =====

==== National Advisory Committee on Immunization ====

As a member of the [[National Advisory Committee on Immunization]] (NACI), Dubey is involved in the Federal [[Government of Canada]]’s decision making process regarding COVID-19 vaccine policies.((National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI). (2021, October). //Advisory Committee Statement (ACS): Recommendations on the use of COVID-19 vaccines.// Public Health Agency of Canada. https://www.canada.ca/content/dam/phac-aspc/documents/services/immunization/national-advisory-committee-on-immunization-naci/recommendations-use-covid-19-vaccines/recommendations-use-covid-19-vaccines-en.pdf)) She receives compensation from NACI in the form of travel expenses.((Dubey, V. (2021, October 14). //Declaration of Interest.// Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table. Retrieved November 3, 2021, from https://covid19-sciencetable.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Declaration-of-Interest_Behavioural-Science-Working-Group_Vanita-Dubey_20211014.pdf)) ((Dubey, V. (2021, August 23). //Declaration of Interest.// Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table. Retrieved November 3, 2021, from https://covid19-sciencetable.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Declaration-of-Interest_Behavioural-Science-Working-Group_Vinita-Dubey_20210823.pdf))

==== Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table ====

Dubey sits on the Behavioural Science Working Group on the [[Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table]]. She and other behavioural scientists were selected "based on their specific expertise in behaviour change, spanning behavioural [[medicine]], health, clinical and social psychology, behavioural economics, and implementation science. Public Health leaders joining the group were invited based on their expertise in promoting health-protective behaviours and vaccination.”((Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table. (2021, April 13). //About Us.// Retrieved November 3, 2021, from https://covid19-sciencetable.ca/about/))

Indeed, Dubey co-authored the October 26, 2021 Science Brief titled "Behavioural Science-Informed Strategies for Increasing COVID-19 [[Vaccine]] Uptake in Children and Youth", advocating for several psychological influence strategies to encourage the largest possible number of children 5-11 to "accept" a [[COVID-19]] injection.((Shapiro, G. K., Presseau, J., Weerasinghe, A., Allen, U., Arnason, T., Bodmer, N. S., Born, K. B., Buchan, J. L., Burns, R., Corace, K. M., Dubey, V., Evans, G. A., Fabrigar, L. R., Grimshaw, J. M., Maguire, J. L., Manuel, D. G., Morris, S. K., Mosher, R., Orkin, J., . . . Desveaux, L. (2021). //Behavioural Science-Informed Strategies for Increasing COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake in Children and Youth.// Science Briefs. Published. https://doi.org/10.47326/ocsat.2021.02.50.1.0))

==== Ontario Immunization Advisory Committee ====

Dubey is a member of the [[Ontario Immunization Advisory Committee]] (OIAC), formed in August 2021 at the request of Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. [[Kieran Moore]]. "The focus of the Committee’s work is on publicly-funded vaccines and immunization programs in Ontario, including COVID-19, and those under consideration for new programming."((Public Health Ontario. //Ontario Immunization Advisory Committee (OIAC).// Retrieved November 10, 2021, from https://archive.ph/v0lpJ)) The committee operates under [[Public Health Ontario]].

==== Toronto Public Health ====

Dubey has been employed by [[Toronto Public Health]] as Associate Medical Officer of Health since 2006, in Communicable Diseases.((Dalla Lana School of Public Health. (2016, September 26). //Dubey, Vinita.// Retrieved November 3, 2021, from https://www.dlsph.utoronto.ca/faculty-profile/dubey-vinita/)) She works under [[Eileen De Villa]], who has familial financial ties to pharmaceutical companies including [[pharmaceutical_companies:pfizer|Pfizer]], [[AstraZeneca]], [[Bayer]], [[Eli Lilly]], [[HLS Therapeutics]], [[Novartis]], [[Sanofi]] and [[Servier]].((Verma, S., MD, PhD, FRCSC, FAHA, Choi, R., MD, FRCPC, Bucci, C., PharmD, & Gupta, A., MD, FRCPC. (2020, June 12). //Navigating Vascular Protective Strategies in HighRisk Patients During the Current Era: Practical Applications [Slides].// CardioVascUpdate. https://cardiovascupdate.ca/files/2020/CV%20Update%20Symposium-Presentation.pdf)) ((Staley, G. (2021, March 4). //Toronto’s Medical Officer, Dr. Eileen De Villa’s husband has financial relationships with major vaccine manufacturers – is this a conflict of interest?// Diverge Media. Retrieved November 2, 2021, from https://divergemedia.ca/2021/03/04/torontos-medical-officer-dr-eileen-de-villas-husband-has-financial-relationships-with-major-vaccine-manufacturers-is-this-a-conflict-of-interest/)) ((McGovern, C. (2021, March 8). //Toronto lockdown czar’s husband has ‘financial ties’ to Pfizer, AstraZeneca.// LifeSiteNews. Retrieved November 2, 2021, from https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/toronto-lockdown-czars-husband-has-financial-ties-to-pfizer-astrazeneca/))

Dubey has appeared on public platforms multiple times to advocate for restrictive public health measures and COVID-19 vaccine products, as well as vaccine passports. She also warned against treating COVID-19.

  * In June 2021, she delivered a presentation on behalf of [[Toronto Public Health]] titled "COVID-19 Vaccines: Building Trust and Confidence". The presentation specifically claimed the shots are safe and important "for those with autism, ADHD, heart or kidney conditions, diabetes, high blood pressure, auto-immune disorders, asthma, allergies and pregnant or breastfeeding," as well as people who have already recovered from COVID-19, children aged 12 and older, and "Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPOC) communities". She also advocates for people to use "[[Fact Checkers]]" to confirm information around COVID-19 vaccines.((Dubey, V. (2021, June). //COVID-19 Vaccines: Building Trust and Confidence [Slides].// Public Health Toronto. https://www.toronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/9073-Comm-AbassadorsJune-2021.pdf))
  * In August 2021, Dubey appeared in her role as Associate Medical Officer of Health for a "Coronavirus Q&A" on [[CityNews]]' [[YouTube]] channel. A commenter noted that her focus on "behaviour change" and "vaccine hesitancy" was concerning.((City News [CityNews]. (2021, August 11). //12:30 p.m. CORONAVIRUS Q&A with Dr. Vinita Dubey [Video].// YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RY3R-fwKRt4))
  * She appeared again on a CityNews video published October 20, 2021 called "Ask Me Anything with Toronto’s Assoc. Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Vinita Dubey". When asked about [[therapeutics]] to treat COVID-19 as opposed to relying solely on vaccination, Dubey stated that she "definitely [does] not recommend [[Ivermectin]]" as there is "no evidence that some of those drugs like Ivermectin help to treat Covid", and that "it can be a very dangerous [[drug]] when not used properly."((City News [CityNews]. (2021, October 20). //Ask Me Anything with Toronto’s Assoc. Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Vinita Dubey (Oct. 13, 2021) [Video].// YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjMGT8Og6w4))
  * One week later, she reappeared for a similarly titled video published October 27, 2021 on CityNews' YouTube channel. In this video, she asserted that Ontario would not be recognizing any religious exemptions to the vaccine passport program, which the interviewer [[Dilshad Burman]] described as "wonderful".((City News [CityNews]. (2021, October 27). //Ask Me Anything with Toronto’s Assoc. Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Vinita Dubey (Oct. 27. 2021) [Video].// YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBb539PHIFU))

==== University of Toronto ====

=== Dalla Lana School of Public Health ===

Dubey is an Adjunct Professor at the [[Dalla Lana School of Public Health]] at the [[University of Toronto]]. Her research interests are “Immunization and Vaccine Preventable Diseases,” and her current research Projects as of November 2021 are "HPV school-based vaccination implementation", "Vaccine Storage and Handling", "Local vaccination Coverage rates", and "Vaccine hesitancy".((//Dubey, Vinita.// Dalla Lana School of Public Health; University of Toronto. Retrieved January 5, 2022, from https://archive.ph/gvvkW))

=== HELPinKids&Adults ===

She is also a member of the [[helpinkids|HELPinKids&Adults]] team, a group that advises medical practitioners and institutions on reducing pain during vaccination. Their partners include the [[Canadian Nursing Coalition for Immunization]] (CNCI), [[Canadian Pharmacists Association]] (CPA), [[Canadian Public Health Association]] (CPHA), [[College of Family Physicians of Canada]] (CFPC), [[Immunize Canada]], [[Canadian Center for Vaccinology]], and the [[BC Centre for Disease Control]] (BCCDC).((HELPinKids&Adults. (2019). //About Us.// University of Toronto. https://archive.ph/9NCqH)) The group is also associated with the [[World Health Organization]] (WHO), the [[Brighton Collaboration]], the [[Public Health Agency of Canada]] (PHAC), [[CANVax]], [[Kids Boost Immunity]] (funded by [[pharmaceutical_companies:pfizer|Pfizer]], [[Merck]], [[Sanofi]], [[gsk|GlaxoSmithKline]], [[CANImmunize]] and others).

===== Publications =====

Dubey’s relevant research publications discussing [[vaccine hesitancy]], uptake strategies and conflicts of interest include:

  * [[https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/21645515.2021.1879580|March 2, 2021]]: //Is ‘conflict of interest’ a Misnomer? Managing interests in immunization research and evaluation.//((McClymont, E., Brophy, J., Dubey, V., Kwong, J., Meyer, S., Crowcroft, N., Halperin, S., MacDonald, S., Simmons, K., Top, K., Ward, B., & Sadarangani, M. (2021). //Is “conflict of interest” a Misnomer? Managing interests in immunization research and evaluation.// Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics, 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1080/21645515.2021.1879580))

  * [[https://www.campfire.wiki/lib/exe/fetch.php?media=it_takes_time_to_build_trust_a_survey_ontario_s_school_based_hpv_immunization_program_ten_years_post_implementation.pdf|July 9, 2020]]: “It takes time to build trust”: a survey Ontario’s school-based HPV immunization program ten years post-implementation.((Dubé, E., Wilson, S., Gagnon, D., Deeks, S. L., & Dubey, V. (2020). //“It takes time to build trust”: a survey Ontario’s school-based HPV immunization program ten years post-implementation.// Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics, 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1080/21645515.2020.1775456))
    * Funded by a grant from the Canadian Immunization Research Network, which is itself funded by [[pharmaceutical_companies:pfizer|Pfizer]], [[Sanofi]] and [[gsk|GlaxoSmithKline]].((Canadian Immunization Research Network (CIRN). (2018, February 26). //Partners | CIRN.// Retrieved November 25, 2021, from https://cirnetwork.ca/about-us/partners/))

  * [[https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264410X19304840?via%3Dihub|May 21, 2019]]: //Characteristics of immunized and un-immunized students, including non-medical exemptions, in Ontario, Canada: 2016–2017 school year.//((Wilson, S. E., Murray, J., Bunko, A., Johnson, S., Buchan, S. A., Crowcroft, N. S., Dubey, V., Loh, L. C., MacLeod, M., Taylor, C., & Deeks, S. L. (2019). //Characteristics of immunized and un-immunized students, including non-medical exemptions, in Ontario, Canada: 2016–2017 school year.// Vaccine, 37(23), 3123–3132. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2019.04.033))
    * Funded by [[Public Health Ontario]].

  * [[https://www.campfire.wiki/lib/exe/fetch.php?media=175.full_1_.pdf|March 2019]]: //Addressing vaccine hesitancy: Clinical guidance for primary care physicians working with parents.//((Shen, S. C., & Dubey, V. (2019). //Addressing vaccine hesitancy: Clinical guidance for primary care physicians working with parents.// Canadian Family Physician Medecin de Famille Canadien, 65(3), 175–181. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30867173/))

  * [[https://www.campfire.wiki/lib/exe/fetch.php?media=piis0149291809002628.pdf|2009]]: //Psychological interventions for reducing pain and distress during routine childhood immunizations: a systematic review.//((Chambers, C. T., Taddio, A., Uman, L. S., & McMurtry, C. Meghan. (2009). //Psychological interventions for reducing pain and distress during routine childhood immunizations: A systematic review.// Clinical Therapeutics, 31(Supplement B), S77–S103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clinthera.2009.07.023))
    * Funded by the [[Canadian Institutes of Health Research]] (CIHR).

  * [[https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/16506073.2016.1157204|March 23, 2016]]: //Exposure-based Interventions for the management of individuals with high levels of needle fear across the lifespan: a clinical practice guideline and call for further research.//((McMurtry, C. M., Taddio, A., Noel, M., Antony, M. M., Chambers, C. T., Asmundson, G. J. G., Pillai Riddell, R., Shah, V., MacDonald, N. E., Rogers, J., Bucci, L. M., Mousmanis, P., Lang, E., Halperin, S., Bowles, S., Halpert, C., Ipp, M., Rieder, M. J., Robson, K., & Uleryk, E. (2016). //Exposure-based Interventions for the management of individuals with high levels of needle fear across the lifespan: a clinical practice guideline and call for further research.// Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, 45(3), 217–235. https://doi.org/10.1080/16506073.2016.1157204))
    * Endorsed/supported by:
      * [[Canadian Public Health Association]] (CPHA), which is itself funded by [[pharmaceutical_companies:pfizer|Pfizer]], [[Moderna]], [[AstraZeneca]], [[Merck]], [[Johnson & Johnson]], [[Sanofi]], [[Seqirus]], [[VBI Vaccines]], [[gsk|GlaxoSmithKline]] and various others.
      * [[Immunize Canada]], which is itself sponsored by [[pharmaceutical_companies:pfizer|Pfizer]], [[Moderna]], [[Merck]], [[gsk|GlaxoSmithKline]], [[Sanofi]] and [[Seqirus]].(( Member Organizations (2021, October 18). Immunize Canada. https://immunize.ca/member-organizations))
      * [[Canadian Center for Vaccinology]], which is running clinical trials for [[COVID-19]] vaccine products by [[Moderna]], [[VBI Vaccines]], [[pharmaceutical_companies:pfizer|Pfizer]] and [[AstraZeneca]], as well as other COVID-related studies with [[Sinai Health System]], [[Dalhousie University]] and other pro-vaccination entities.

  * [[https://www.hindawi.com/journals/cjidmm/2011/381864/|2011]]: //Practices and Perceptions Regarding Pain and Pain Management during Routine Childhood Immunizations: Findings from a Focus-Group Study with Nurses Working at Toronto Public Health, Ontario.//((Kikuta, A., Gardezi, F., Dubey, V., & Taddio, A. (2011). //Practices and Perceptions Regarding Pain and Pain Management during Routine Childhood Immunizations: Findings from a Focus-Group Study with Nurses Working at Toronto Public Health, Ontario.// Canadian Journal of Infectious Diseases and Medical Microbiology, 22(2), 43–48. https://doi.org/10.1155/2011/381864))