Tara Gomes

PhD, MHSc

Scientist

Biography

Tara Gomes is an epidemiologist and Principal Investigator of the Ontario Drug Policy Research Network (ODPRN), a provincial network of researchers with expertise in pharmaceutical utilization, outcomes and policy who rapidly conduct research for drug decision-makers in Ontario and across Canada.  She holds a Canada Research Chair in Drug Policy Research and Evaluation, is a Scientist in the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael’s Hospital and ICES, and is an assistant professor at the University of Toronto.  Her research is focused on pharmacoepidemiology, drug safety and drug policy research leveraging large, administrative databases, and she has published over 200 peer-reviewed articles and over 100 policy reports in this area.  Dr. Gomes also works closely with government regulators at the provincial and national level to develop evidence to inform policies related to opioid use disorder and opioid-related harm through the Ontario Opioid Drug Observatory.  In 2014, she was awarded the Institute for Public Administration of Canada’s Bronze Public Sector Leadership Award in Health and Education to recognize the impact of the ODPRN’s work.

Recent Publications

  1. Kitchen, SA, Gomes, T, Tadrous, M, Pajer, K, Gardner, W, Lunsky, Y et al.. Association between a publicly funded universal drug program and antipsychotic and antidepressant medication dispensing to children. BMC Pediatr. 2025;25 (1):105. doi: 10.1186/s12887-024-05345-2. PubMed PMID:39923012 PubMed Central PMC11806594.
  2. Antoniou, T, Ledlie, S, Wang, T, Tadrous, M, Gomes, T. Impact of Policy Changes Expanding Access to Direct-Acting Antivirals on Hepatitis C Virus-Related Hospitalizations in People With HIV: A Population-Based Study. Open Forum Infect Dis. 2025;12 (1):ofaf003. doi: 10.1093/ofid/ofaf003. PubMed PMID:39877398 PubMed Central PMC11773189.
  3. Brown, HK, Gomes, T, Wilton, AS, Camden, A, Guttmann, A, Dennis, CL et al.. Maternal Chronic Physical Conditions and Alcohol and Substance Use Disorders in the Preconception and Perinatal Periods. J Womens Health (Larchmt). 2025; :. doi: 10.1089/jwh.2024.0757. PubMed PMID:39791195 .
  4. Baxter, SM, Lund, LC, Andersen, JH, Brix, TH, Hegedüs, L, Hsieh, MH et al.. Glucagon-Like Peptide 1 Receptor Agonists and Risk of Thyroid Cancer: An International Multisite Cohort Study. Thyroid. 2025;35 (1):69-78. doi: 10.1089/thy.2024.0387. PubMed PMID:39772758 .
  5. Ledlie, S, Leece, P, Yang, J, Iacono, A, Kolla, G, Boyd, R et al.. Trends, characteristics, and circumstances surrounding stimulant toxicity deaths in Ontario, Canada from 2018 to 2021. J Subst Use Addict Treat. 2024; :209614. doi: 10.1016/j.josat.2024.209614. PubMed PMID:39716518 .
  6. Scheim, AI, Bouck, Z, Greenwald, ZR, Ling, V, Hopkins, S, Johnson, M et al.. Frequency of supervised consumption service use and acute care utilization in people who inject drugs. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2024;265 :112490. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2024.112490. PubMed PMID:39546979 .
  7. Kaster, TS, Babujee, A, Sharpe, I, Rhee, TG, Gomes, T, Kurdyak, P et al.. Clinical Characteristics of Inpatients with Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorder Treated with Electroconvulsive Therapy: A Population-Level Cross-Sectional Study: Titre: Caractéristiques cliniques des patients hospitalisés présentant un trouble du spectre de la schizophrénie et traités par électrochocs : Une étude de population transversale. Can J Psychiatry. 2024; :7067437241290181. doi: 10.1177/07067437241290181. PubMed PMID:39529283 PubMed Central PMC11562932.
  8. Boilard, P, Wang, T, Iacono, A, Ghosh, SM, Gomes, T. Trends in injectable buprenorphine prescribing in Canada: A descriptive analysis in five Canadian Provinces. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2024;264 :112451. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2024.112451. PubMed PMID:39341014 .
  9. Lee, EY, Gomes, T, Drucker, AM, Daneman, N, Asaf, A, Wu, F et al.. Oral Antibiotics and Risk of Serious Cutaneous Adverse Drug Reactions. JAMA. 2024;332 (9):730-737. doi: 10.1001/jama.2024.11437. PubMed PMID:39115856 PubMed Central PMC11310841.
  10. Antoniou, T, Pajer, K, Gardner, W, Penner, M, Lunsky, Y, McCormack, D et al.. Brief Report: A population-based study of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on benzodiazepine use among children and young adults. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2024; :. doi: 10.1007/s00787-024-02531-6. PubMed PMID:39110190 .
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Affiliations & Other Activities

  • Assistant Professor, Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto
  • Assistant Professor, Institute for Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto
  • Scientist, Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences
  • Principal Investigator, Ontario Drug Policy Research Network