I was born in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, and although I have lived in Halifax much longer than I lived on the Island, I still see myself as an Islander at heart. After 2 years of undergraduate studies at Dalhousie, I started my medical education (also at Dal). Postgraduate training saw a series of cross-continent moves with internship in Edmonton, internal medicine residency back in Halifax, infectious diseases fellowship in Los Angeles, and hospital epidemiology fellowship in Charlottesville, Virginia.
In 1987 I accepted a position in Dalhousie’s Faculty of Medicine and an appointment at the Halifax Infirmary, followed by a transfer to the Victoria General Hospital before their mergers to form the Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre. I retired in 2020 as a Professor of Medicine and then took a post-retirement appointment, extending my working life another 2 years (due COVID-19). My clinical activities over the years focused on inpatient and outpatient consultations for infectious diseases and hospital infection prevention and control (IPAC). My early years saw the beginning of the HIV epidemic; my middle years the appearance of SARS CoV-1, the 2009 H1N1 influenza pandemic, and the increasing threat of antimicrobial resistant microorganisms; and my last years the largest Ebola outbreak to date and, finally, the once in a century pandemic. In 2015 I spent 3 months in Sierra Leone as an IPAC consultant with the WHO’s Ebola response. Life was never boring. I was the Division Chief for Infectious Diseases for 12 years and HIV Clinic Director for 30 years.
Over the years I have had the privilege of volunteering with a number of organizations, which introduced me to colleagues throughout the country and provided me a greater education than I could ever have imagined. These have included the Public Health Agency of Canada Steering Committee for Infection Prevention and Control Guidelines, the Canadian Nosocomial Infection Surveillance Program, the Association of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Disease Canada, and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.
I am now well settled into retirement; enjoying a long(ish) walk most days, reading, exploring my family’s geneology (I learned that I am Irish, not Scottish), nurturing old friendships and making new ones, spending more time with family, and staying involved in volunteer activities. Having served 1 year as a Director-at-Large, I am excited to be taking on more responsibilities as a Vice-President.
Lynn Johnston
May 2025