Deborah Cook joins Canadian Medical Hall of Fame

Deborah Cook wearing a black sleeveless top and smiling, against a light backdrop

Deborah Cook, a McMaster professor and a globally renowned expert and pioneer of patient-centred critical care research, is being inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame.


McMaster professor Deborah Cook is being inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame in recognition of her pioneering research in critical care medicine.

“This honour is really for the entire critical care community dedicated to improving the outcomes of critical illness,” says Cook, a Distinguished University Professor at McMaster and a three-term Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Knowledge Translation in Critical Care.

“It is a privilege to work with curious interprofessional colleagues in Hamilton and across the country who share my passion to make a difference for our patients and their families.”

In September, Cook was awarded the McLaughlin Medal by the Royal Society of Canada. Click here to learn more about her tremendous accomplishments and ongoing contributions to the medical and health sciences.

“Dr. Deborah Cook is the quintessential clinician-scientist in critical care medicine and a global authority on patient-centered research, whose pioneering investigations have transformed clinical research in the ICU into a Canadian-led academic force,” says Paul O’Byrne, dean and vice-president of the Faculty of Health Sciences.

“She is respected throughout the world as a physician who has raised the standard of her field of practice with her unwavering focus on rigorous, clinically relevant, high-impact studies, research ethics, humanism in practice, and mentoring the next generation of scholars.

“Many congratulations to Deborah on this prestigious recognition.”

The Canadian Medical Hall of Fame selects its Laureates for their outstanding leadership and for contributions to medicine and the health sciences that have led to extraordinary improvements in human health.

The new Hall of Fame laureates will be honoured at an induction ceremony in June, hosted in Hamilton by McMaster’s Faculty of Health Sciences.

“McMaster University’s Faculty of Health Sciences is delighted to host the 2025 Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony,” O’Byrne says.

“The ceremony presents an exciting opportunity to celebrate highly-respected medical leaders whose significant achievements and contributions have had profound impact on patients, practice, policy and health research.”

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