Waypoint Announces New Medical Director in Concurrent Disorders
Posted on 06/14/2022
Waypoint Recruits recognized addiction specialist as new Medical Director, Concurrent Disorders
Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care is pleased to announce the recruitment of Dr. Ginette
Poulin, taking on the newly established Medical Director, Concurrent Disorders role. Dr. Poulin
comes from Manitoba where she is recognized as a provincial leader in addictions care and she will
be a valued addition to the hospital’s provincial and regional collaborations.
“Dr. Poulin joining Waypoint is excellent news for our hospital, our patients, the region and province,”
says Dr. Nadiya Sunderji, President and CEO. “She is deeply committed to collaboration and has
achieved significant improvements to accessible and evidence-informed treatment and care delivery
in her career as a family physician and certified addictions specialist. We are excited to have her join
the physician leadership team at Waypoint and help us enhance our contributions to concurrent
disorders care across the hospital, and through partnerships in the community and region.”
The new medical director position includes responsibility for collaboratively improving access to
specialized concurrent disorders care by fostering partnerships and building capacity within
Waypoint and with our partner organizations. This role also includes advancing the implementation
of Ontario Health Quality standards and other best practices across Waypoint and regionally.
Through these initiatives, Dr, Poulin will have the opportunity to partner throughout the Ontario
Health Central Region and with the Innovative Model Central Ontario Health Team for Specialized
Populations. The role also includes direct patient care, including in Waypoint’s specialized inpatient
concurrent disorders beds.
Dr. Poulin is an excellent fit for the new Medical Director, Concurrent Disorders focusing on these
areas. She is a Canadian Certified Physician Executive and a family physician with specialty training
in addictions medicine. She is currently serving as the Medical Director and is a spokesperson for
the Addictions Foundation of Manitoba, is the Clinical Co-lead for the Rapid Access to Addictions
Medicine for Manitoba. At a national level, she serves on the board of directors of the Canadian
Mental Health Association.
Dr. Poulin is also an Assistant Professor, Department of Family Medicine and Director of Clinical
Enhancement and Mentorship Program for the University of Manitoba. She serves as the Clinical
Lead, Prairie Node, Canadian Research Initiative in Substance Misuse. She is supporting the
development of courses and curriculum for the Addiction Medicine Extension for Community
Healthcare Outcomes (ECHO) Manitoba and the Enhanced Skills Addictions Medicine Program at
the University of Manitoba. She has been a principal and co-investigator and collaborator on multiple
research studies and is also a published author and national presenter.
”Dr. Poulin is an exceptional, visionary, and innovative leader who will be instrumental in Waypoint’s
commitment to clinical excellence and maximizing quality, as well as patient-centered, traumainformed
care,” notes Dr. Young. “Her addictions medicine experience is extensive and Waypoint will
benefit from her work as a physician consultant, educator and expert reviewer for Health Canada,
Canadian Centre for Substance Abuse, the Canadian Medical Association Journal and College of
Physicians and Surgeons of Manitoba.”
She received her Doctor of Medicine from the University of Ottawa in 2008 and completed her family
medicine residency at the University of Manitoba in 2010, with a Continued Added Competency in
Addictions Medicine from the College of Family Physicians of Canada in 2019. Along with her
various leadership roles in the province of Manitoba, she also has both an in-clinic and in-home
family medicine practice. She began her health care career as a registered dietitian.
She joins Waypoint in September, 2022.
For more information please contact:
Laurene Hilderley, Director of Communications and Fund Development
705-549-3181 ext. 2214 [email protected]