Meet the Team
Leadership
Director
Dr. Abdullah Saleh
Abdullah Saleh is a Pediatric General Surgeon at the University of Alberta. He completed his medical school and General Surgery residency at the University of Alberta and his Pediatric Surgery fellowship at the McMaster University. He helped found the Office of Global Surgery during his residency years in collaboration with various committed faculty.
He is the co-founder and Chief Executive Director of Innovative Canadians for Change (ICChange), a not-for-profit organization and social enterprise that develops innovative models and solutions to complex problems. ICChange has a long track record of successful initiatives including the Kenya Ceramic Project, the Kibera Medical Records Initiative and the Kenya Trauma and Injury Program and has received grants and partnerships from various organizations including Grand Challenges Canada, Clinton Global Initiative, UNICEF, American College of Surgeons, AMPATH, IDRC as well as government agencies, academic institutions, and private sector support.
Abdullah was born in Iraq and lived in France and Malaysia before moving to Canada. His portfolio includes work in various countries in South America, East Africa, and South-East Asia. His interests include systems thinking, architecture and implementation, technology development and entrepreneurship, human rights development, as well as improving access to medical services and surgery to underserved and vulnerable communities.
Associate Director
Dr. Regan Guilfoyle
Dr. Guilfoyle is a pediatric plastic surgeon and Associate Director of the Office of Global Surgery. She grew up in Manitoba but lived in both the Caribbean and South America prior to her undergraduate studies. She completed a degree in environmental sciences at McGill University and MD Degree at the University of Manitoba. She trained as a resident in plastic surgery at the University of Alberta and later trained as a fellow in pediatric plastic surgery at the University of British Columbia
Dr. Guilfoyle is interested in community and service development in under-served populations. She previously worked on literacy improvement projects in Georgetown, Guyana and volunteered at drop-in center for children in downtown Winnipeg during her medical school training. She is very excited to be involved in leading and developing Global Surgery programs at the University of Alberta.
Member
Dr. Andre Isaac, Division of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery
Dr. Isaac is a Pediatric Otolaryngologist and Assistant Professor with the Division of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery at the University of Alberta. Dr. Isaac has been leading sustainable partnerships train personnels and build capacity and infrastructure to improve surgical care delivery at the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Kenya. Dr. Isaac is interested in innovative and scalable models of delivering high-quality surgical care in resource-limited settings.