Dr. Suzanne Tough
Positions
Professor
Cumming School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Professor
Cumming School of Medicine, Department of Community Health Sciences
Child Health & Wellness Researcher
Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute
Contact information
Background
Educational Background
B.S. Psychology, University of Calgary, 1983
Doctor of Philosophy Epidemiology & PubHealth, University of Alberta, 1996
M.S. Physiology, University of Calgary, 1987
Postdoctoral Fellowship Epidemiology, Alberta Cancer Board, 2000
Biography
Suzanne Tough is a Professor with the Departments of Paediatrics and Community Health Sciences in the Cumming School of Medicine at the University of Calgary. With expertise in maternal and child health, she is a Policy Fellow with the Burns Memorial Fund/Max Bell Foundation.
Through her academic career Dr. Tough has published over 250+ peer reviewed publications, 9 book chapters and numerous reports. She has mentored over 30+ honors, Masters, PhD and Post Doctoral trainees, the majority of whom have received external funding and secured careers in their chosen area of interest. She has secured over $30 million in research funding. Dr. Tough actively mentors 7 junior faculty across the disciplines of medicine, psychology, education and social work to support career and personal development.
Dr. Tough leads the Alberta Births Common Data project to harmonize data collection across birth cohorts, and she is the Principal Investigator of the All Our Families (AOF) Study. The vision of the AOF research team is to investigate the relative impacts of the social and genetic environments on child health, and translate this knowledge for use in programs and policy. The AOF team brings together researchers from multiple disciplines, trainees and the not for profit sector in collaboration to address complex questions, including those related to COVID-19. Under Dr. Tough’s leadership, the AOF cohort is a member of national and international cohort consortium which enables data sharing and analysis to address complex questions.
Dr. Tough has been recognized for her skills in research team development and scientific innovation through a Health Region Peoples’ Choice Award and a University of Alberta Alumni Award of Excellence. In 2017, she was recognized for her contribution to population health and child well-being through the Geoffrey Robinson Award of the Canadian Pediatric Society. In 2019, she was recognized as one of the Top 100 in the SHEInnovates Women and Global Innovation Campaign by the United Nations Global Innovation Coalition for Change. In 2020, she received the Department of Pediatrics CARE Award-Researcher. She has lead research teams within health care organizations and in academia and she is passionate about collaboration and team science.
She has been recognized for her skills as a Population Health Investigator, epidemiologist and as a Health Scholar supported by Alberta Innovates - Health Solutions. She was the inaugural Scientific Director of the Maternal, Newborn, Child and Youth Strategic Clinical Network and for the Alberta Centre for Child, Family and Community Research (now PolicyWise). Dr. Tough was a lead scientist on the development of SAGE, a Child Data Repository which will enable the re-use of research data to enhance the development of new knowledge and increase research productivity. Dr. Tough is a member of national and international advisory boards including the World Health Organization Preterm Birth International Consortium and the Canadian Maternal Infant Child Youth Research Network (MICYRN). In these roles Dr. Tough is a member of a number of committees interested in maternal and child health issues, has contributed to the development of research strategies and processes that inform policy and practice, and addresses contemporary issues in knowledge translation and applied research.
Research
Areas of Research
The All Our Families Cohort (formerly All our Babies) is a longitudinal pregnancy cohort that enables the investigation of the relationships between parental well-being and outcomes for children and families. This cohort also provides us with contemporary information about children growing up in an urban setting. All Our Families participants have provided information about mental health, lifestyle, neighborhood, pregnancy, parenting, child development, family life, recreation, screen time, sleep and use of services. This information will help us identify how what happens early can influence later health and development outcomes for children and families
The All Our Families cohort began in 2008 with the recruitment of 3,200 Alberta mother-baby pairs. Mothers were recruited before they were 25-weeks of gestation and were eligible if they were undergoing prenatal care for a singleton pregnancy in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Since recruitment, our dedicated participants have completed two questionnaires during pregnancy and when their children were 4 months, 1, 2, 3 and 5 years of age. We are particularly excited to have recently released our 8-year survey which has had input from teachers, parents, researchers and community organizations. In addition to the questionnaire data, 1,800 of our mothers also provided biologic samples and cord blood.
Research areas that we have explored to date include topics related to preterm birth, social support, exposure to abuse, maternal anxiety and depression, breastfeeding, use of community resources (eg. Library), sleep, child care, and child social and emotional development. We are excited to continue to collect information to better understand how children are managing elementary school. Some topics of interest in these growing years are screen time, recreation, bullying, injury and family life.
Participation in university strategic initiatives
Awards
- Killam Research Excellence Award, Killam Foundation. 2022
- Fellowship, Canadian Academy of Health Sciences. 2021
- 2020 Department of Pediatrics CARE Award - Researcher, University of Calgary. 2020
- #SHEInnovates Women Global Innovation 100 Campaign, United Nations Women Global Innovation Coalition for Change (GICC). 2019
- Senior Policy Fellowship, Max Bell Foundation/Burns Memorial Fund. 2020
- Scientific Advisor, PolicyWise: Secondary Analysis to Generate Evidence (SAGE). 2019
- Senior Policy Fellowship, Max Bell Foundation/Burns Memorial Fund. 2019
- Scientific Advisor, PolicyWise: Secondary Analysis to Generate Evidence (SAGE). 2018
- Senior Policy Fellowship, Max Bell Foundation/Burns Memorial Fund. 2018
- Scientific Advisor, PolicyWise: Secondary Analysis to Generate Evidence (SAGE). 2017
- Senior Policy Fellowship, Max Bell Foundation/Burns Memorial Fund. 2017
- Geoffrey C. Robinson Award , Canadian Paediatric Society. 2021
- Scientific Advisor, PolicyWise: Secondary Analysis to Generate Evidence (SAGE). 2016
- Health Scholar, Alberta Innovates – Health Solutions (2009-2016). 2016
- Brain Travel Award, World Congress on Brain, Behavior, and Emotions. 2015
- AHFMR Health Scholar Award, Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research. 2009
- Outstanding Achievement in Graduate Supervision Award, 2009
- Outstanding Achievement in Supervision Award, 2009
- Salary Support Award, 2009
- Award of Excellence, Alumni Recognition Award, 2008
- AHFMR Population Health Investigator, Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research. 2007
- AHFMR Population Health Investigator, Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research. 2005
- Nominee - People First Award, Calgary Health Region. 2005
- AHFMR Population Health Investigator, Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research. 2004
- Nominee - 2004 Health Services Research Advancement Award, Canadian Health Services Research Foundation. 2004
Publications
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