Adina Weinerman ’01

Tell me a little bit about yourself, what you do, etc.
I graduated in 2001 from TanenbaumCHAT, having gone to Associated Hebrew Schools before that. I completed my undergraduate degree at Western University and then attended medical school at the University of Toronto, where I specialized in General Internal Medicine. My medical training was at Sunnybrook, where I have remained since. As a general internist, I am like a quarterback of care for inpatients at the hospital. Beyond the treatment aspect of medicine, I have also always been interested in the business of healthcare, completing a Master’s in Health Administration at the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation (IHPME) in 2015.

This interest led me to my dual roles at Sunnybrook: Medical Director, Quality and Patient Safety, which I have held for 7 years, and Chief Patient Experience Officer, which I have held for the past 2.5 years. As a result, I spend 10 weeks on clinical service as a doctor, and the remainder of my time in more administrative roles.

I am married with two children in grades five and two at Bialik, and they also attend Camp Shalom in the summer. 

What is the most important thing you took away from your time at TanenbaumCHAT?
I’ll identify two things: 

First - the course load provided me with a strong sense of organization and the knowledge of how to be efficient. This is further reinforced if you are engaged in extracurricular activities. 

The other big thing, and I’ve carried this with me until today, is leadership development. I was fortunate enough to be on a lot of the athletic teams (as team captain) at TanenbaumCHAT, and serve on athletic council, as well. I found that these opportunities taught me about leadership at a young age and helped me hone those skills as I progressed in my academic and professional careers. 

Who are the teachers who had an impact on you during your schooling? Is there anyone you want to shout out? 
Sure, there are two teachers that I’d love to mention. 

Rav Gurvitz, my Talmud teacher, is one of them. He taught my class for all four years, and we ended up being an incredibly close-knit group. We learned about respectful debate, how to articulate your point of view, as well as approaching ideas from different perspectives. Rabbi Gurvitz took a real interest in everyone that he taught, and knew them beyond the classroom. I even saved the cover sheet of my last Talmud exam, where he wrote an incredibly kind message about graduating and continuing my learning journey. 

Second, Ms. Harding. A group of us were competitive gymnasts who wanted to form a team, but we needed a staff volunteer. Mrs. Harding stepped up and spent her Sunday nights with the team, got us uniforms, and went with us to OFSAA. She devoted a significant amount of her time to this volunteer position, and it showed how amazing TanenbaumCHAT staff are and how willing they are to give to their students. 

Can you share some fond memories from school in general?
Sure - this is actually something that I shared in all of my medical school interviews! 

Part of my role on Athletic Council was to help schedule the Israel Becker Tournament, and the year I was helping to plan, we had (similar to this year [2026]) a massive snowstorm on the first day. We were coordinating with 3 gym sites, and the bus drivers refused to drive. To add to that, the school lost power. Everyone thought that the tournament needed to be postponed. 

As an athletic council leader, I rallied everyone to believe we could get it done, and we organized the entire tournament to minimize the need for frequent site-to-site travel. We kept score manually due to the electricity issues; in the end, the volunteers, coaches, and teachers who didn’t think it was possible were amazed - we pulled it off. And to top it all off, the Israelis who came in for the tournament managed to attend the Raptors game that night, as well. 

To me, this story shows that, though I was “just” a student, I had gained invaluable leadership qualities through the roles I took on at TanenbaumCHAT. I thought of ways to solve problems and to execute plans that led to success. I went on to win the leadership and spirit awards at the Athletic Banquet, and to this day, these remain two of the most meaningful awards I have received. These awards spoke to the character I wanted to reflect as a graduate; I wanted to help lead younger students, support them and elevate others - the skills these awards exemplify are still significant parts of my professional life. 

Was there anything at TanenbaumCHAT that pushed you into your current field?
I enjoyed math and science, and back then it seemed like if that was the case, you were led to pursue medicine. My teachers encouraged me and supported me, so the rest followed naturally. My leadership experience now, however, was an interesting spin that at that point I didn’t even realize was a possibility. Once I realized that one can be a doctor and then go beyond clinical practice, I knew I wanted to find a way to combine my two interests.  

What skills did you develop at TanenbaumCHAT that have been instrumental to your success? 
Time management and working around a busy schedule, definitely. I had 6 AM practices, after-school practices, and sometimes needed to miss a class and subsequently make it up. Sometimes, it was all of the above! Layering my work and commitment to athletics was quite a lot. Honestly, even though my days are so busy now with work and kids, they were probably busier when I was at TanenbaumCHAT! 

As a result, I learned how to work smarter (not longer) and to prioritize - these skills set me up for success in undergrad, in med school, and beyond. 

Walk through a typical workday.  
No two days are the same! 

When I’m on clinical service, it’s a 24/7 job - I’m on call for residents in the hospital, I’m seeing patients, doing rounds, and I’m available overnight. This is for 10 weeks of the year. 

The rest of the time, I am working on quality improvement and patient safety. I think about improving the quality of care patients receive, as well as reviewing any patient safety events to understand why they occurred and what we can do to prevent future incidents. 

For patient experience, it’s a field that is receiving significantly more focus in Canadian healthcare now. We do a lot of work to understand patient opinion, and figure out what we’re doing right and where we can improve.  

What do you love about your job?
I love everything about my job. Sunnybrook is an incredible place to work with truly amazing colleagues. I also feel very fortunate that Sunnybrook celebrate everyone’s cultural heritage, and in a time where we need to be able to show that we are proudly Jewish, it has been amazing to do challah bakes, light the chanukiah and hear the megillah reading with Jewish colleagues, allies, learners and patients while at work. The variety in my job and the challenges that occur on a daily basis means it is never boring, always challenging, and allows me to continually solve problems and lead change. The nature of the job, with the focus on Quality, Patient Safety, Risk, Patient Experience and Patient Engagement in a healthcare setting, allows me along with my teams, to make meaningful change for the positive. Although I find the clinical service most daunting, it is a great opportunity to keep my work grounded in the front line of care, and continue to work 1-on-1 with patients and families and the next generation of physicians.

Why is Jewish day school education important?
From an early age, it grounds us as Jews to understand what our core values and principles are. Everything else revolves around this worldview. Through one’s Jewish education, you can understand how you want to centre Judaism in your life, and how you want to live. Attending a Jewish high school, you get to reflect, think deeply, and begin to understand that the same way you are understanding your career and future aspirations (in order to have more agency over your choices), so too you can decide how you want to carry these values forward. Home life is, of course, important, but at TanenbaumCHAT, I learned what my non-negotiables were and how I planned to engage with Judaism for the rest of my life. 

Are you still involved in the Jewish community in any way? If so, how? 
Yes - I am still very involved in the Jewish community, starting with my children attending both Jewish day school and Jewish camp. I also belong to a synagogue, which is important to me, as well. Every year, I attend the UJA Walk for Israel, and I take every opportunity that I can to visit my family in Israel, as well. Next year, I am looking forward to hopefully hosting my eldest daughter’s Bat Mitzvah in Israel. 

Do you have any advice to offer current students at TanenbaumCHAT?
It’s a much bigger school now, but take every opportunity you're given. I never thought I would be as involved as I was, and I’m so happy I decided to immerse myself in school extracurriculars. Don’t pigeonhole yourself early - take every opportunity available to you. Take in the moment and realize what an amazing opportunity it is to be surrounded by like-minded people in a communal school setting with the Ruach that CHAT is known for. Sure, school has its challenges, but you should make your four years as close to a camp environment as you can - you won’t experience anything like this again.