After a 15 year career in clinical medicine, surgery, health policy and administration in the developing world Dr Millar returned to Canada where he specialized in population and public health (community medicine). After serving as a Medical Health Officer in several BC jurisdictions, Dr Millar became the Provincial Health Officer from 1992- 1998 during which time, among other achievements, he developed health goals for BC.
After serving for 5 years (1998-2003) as the Vice President for the Canadian Institute for Health Information in Ottawa, from 2003 to 2011, Dr Millar was the Executive Director, Population and Public Health for the BC Provincial Health Services Authority. In this role Dr Millar has recently been the Chair of the BC Obesity Reduction Task Force, Chair of the National Advisory Committee for the National Collaborating Centre for the Determinants of Health and Chair of the BC Healthy Built Environment Alliance. Dr Millar is a Lifetime Honourary member of both the Canadian Public Health Association and the Public Health Association of BC. He is a member of the Health Officers Council of BC and a past member of the BC Population Health Network and the BC Healthy Living Alliance as well as many other organisations and networks dedicated to improving population health, reducing health and socio-economic inequities and the better prevention and management of chronic disease.
Dr Millar continues his interest in international and global health issues and has consulted on health projects in numerous developing countries (Cuba, Uganda, Kosovo, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Laos, Zambia, Papua New Guinea).
Dr Millar has received several awards recognizing his contributions to public health nationally and provincially and has many publications to his credit.
Dr Millar is a Clinical Professor at the School for Population and Public Health at UBC where he is involved in teaching and research in public health leadership, health policy and international health.
Download a new hi-res photo of John Millar
Commentaries by Dr. John Millar:
Most Canadians don’t understand food nutrition labels // La majorité des Canadiens ne comprennent pas le contenu des étiquettes nutritionnelles
Why our governments need to address poverty now //Pourquoi nos gouvernements doivent s’attaquer dès maintenant à la pauvreté
Poverty costs Canada billions of dollars every year
It’s time for government action on obesity // Le gouvernement doit passer à l’action sur la question de l’obésité
Accountability measures are the key to sustaining healthcare in Canada // Des mesures de reddition de comptes s’avèrent essentielles au maintien des soins de santé au Canada
Podcasts
Why Canadian doctors should be on the front lines of the anti-poverty struggle: interview with Dr. Paul Goering, Dr. Ryan Meili, Dr. John Millar and Dr. Gary Bloch.
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