Lyn K. Sonnenberg
MD, MEd, MSc, EMBA, FRCPC
Investigator
Professor Emerita of Pediatrics
University of Alberta
Director of Strategy and Innovation
Equity in Health Systems (EqHS)
About:
Dr. Lyn K. Sonnenberg is a physician, researcher, educator, and health-system leader whose work focuses on equity, innovation, and the transformation of health care and health professions education. She is Director of Strategy and Innovation at the EqHS Lab housed at the Bruyère Health Research Institute, and Professor Emerita at the University of Alberta.
A developmental pediatrician by training, Dr. Sonnenberg brings a systems perspective to research spanning health equity, artificial intelligence, health professions education, disability and accessibility, and health-system transformation. Her scholarship emphasizes moving evidence and principles into practical approaches that can be implemented in complex health and community settings.
Dr. Sonnenberg is a co-developer of Health CARE-AI, a framework and implementation approach for Contextual, Accountable and Responsible, and Equitable artificial intelligence in health care and health professions education. Her current work examines how organizations, educators, clinicians, and learners can navigate AI implementation responsibly while attending to equity, transparency, trust, governance, and organizational readiness.
She has held senior leadership roles in medical education nationally, including Associate Dean at the University of Alberta, Vice-President at the Medical Council of Canada, and National Director of Learning Transformation at the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. She chaired the CanMEDS 2025 Steering Committee and contributes to national and international initiatives advancing health professions education and health-system improvement.
Across her work, Dr. Sonnenberg is particularly interested in translating research into practical change that improves access, inclusion, and outcomes for patients, communities, learners, and health systems.
Research Interests:
Artificial Intelligence, trust, leadership, digital transformation, inclusive language, wellbeing.
Select Publications:
Sonnenberg LK, Wiljer D, Mamdani M, et al. (2026). Principles for responsible AI in health professions education, research, and care: Health CARE-AI (Contextual, Accountable, Responsible, and Equitable Artificial Intelligence) framework Delphi consensus study. JMIR Medical Education.
Sonnenberg LK, Do V, LeBlanc C, Busari JO. (2021). Six ways to get a grip by calling-out racism and enacting allyship in medical education. Canadian Medical Education Journal.
Sonnenberg LK, Chan MK, Wiljer D, et al. (2026). Critical Dialogues for Action: A research methodology for transforming engagement into impact. Medical Science Educator.
Do V, Maniate JM, Sultan N, Sonnenberg LK. (2023). The 4C’s of influence framework: fostering leadership development through character, competence, connection and culture. Leadership in Health Services.
Do V, Lewis M, Flynn L, Sonnenberg LK. (2023). Fostering a health-promoting learning environment in medical education: adapting the Okanagan Charter for administrators and medical educators. Academic Medicine.
Contact:
lyn.sonnenberg@ualberta.ca
Learn more at www.eqhslab.com.