Theresa Tam became familiar to Canadians as COVID-19 took hold.Ashley Fraser/The Globe and Mail
Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, ends her term on June 20. She was first named to her role in June, 2017, and became a well-known face during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a wide-ranging interview with The Globe and Mail this week, Dr. Tam spoke about the rewards and challenges of the job, being recently turned into a deepfake and advice for her yet-to-be-named successor.
What is it like to be coming to the end of your time as Canada’s chief public health officer?
I’ve been in this role for over eight years now, so I think it has been an absolute privilege and honour. Never thought at the start of my career that I would end up here. Looking back, I put every ounce of my energy into this job. But I think it’s a purposeful job. It’s serving the public.
What was the hardest part of the job?
With the COVID-19 pandemic, obviously that was a once-in-a-century kind of event that was extremely impactful to not just Canada, but everyone in the world. I think that was challenging for a number of reasons, but one of the key aspects of it was it lasted a long time. So it was a tiring pursuit.
What was it like having your voice and your face, if you will, at the centre of that?
People that I don’t know at all will actually come up and say, “Oh, I saw you on TV,” and people do associate me with that response even though you spent a career doing quite a lot of different things. To be in the spotlight is not unexpected. We do these things when there’s an outbreak, for example, of say, measles. But to be in the spotlight in that degree of intensity for that period of time was hard, but it was part of my job. It’s a very important part of communicating with everyone.
What did you think of the fact that you were recently turned into a deep fake?
First of all, it can be a bit upsetting. In some ways, you think, “Well, that’s obviously a fake,” but maybe other people don’t actually think through it or can’t spot fakes. I think they are going to just be more and more sophisticated, and technology is there. So it’s just something that, again, one has to expect this is going to happen and prepare for it.
What do you think of U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.?
We’re watching everything quite closely. News goes everywhere, and social media goes everywhere. So people in Canada will be watching the same bit of information that people in the United States would. What I think we must do is just to focus on the fact that we are science-based, science-informed, and again, explain to the public exactly how our processes work.
Was there an erosion of trust during COVID-19? How might that trust be built back?
Data, public-opinion research, for example, shows the ups and downs of public health, trust in institutions, in science. Those who get health information from social media are at higher risk of being exposed to mis- and disinformation and have a negative health impact. I always want to look at our strengths, that is: The majority of people in Canada still trust public health professionals and we need to build on it.
What is your advice for your successor?
It’s great to have a new person, with new fresh eyes. It can be a very challenging job, but is an amazing job.
Focus on your values and singular purpose when the going gets tough. That’s what keeps you going, like protecting public health, improving health of the population and serving those who are experiencing inequities.
I would say: Get your systems and supports in place, build those on an ongoing basis, certainly before any crisis occurs. I actually do think we’ve learned quite a bit from COVID-19 pandemic. So continuing on building preparedness and response is very important and there will be many opportunities to do that.
Dr. Tam, what’s next for you?
I’m in an envious position. I think there’s a lot of choices, and so I’ve decided that I would take a moment to press the pause button so I can reflect on what I would like to do next.
This interview has been edited and condensed.