Lara Pietrolungo

As the Managing Director of Boomerang Health, a community-based clinic wholly-owned by SickKids, and the Director of International Education at SickKids, Lara Pietrolungo continues to have the great honour to directly contribute to the many strategic initiatives that The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) embarks on. Being part of the SickKids family for the last 18 years has given her the experience to develop and enact a wide range of knowledge and skills, including intrapreneurship within the healthcare sector, positive disruption, change management, leadership, and innovation.

Throughout her 22+ years of experience, she has developed a unique outlook and skill-set that she brings to the table. Specifically, she has an international perspective, in which she has learned to be effective in implementing significant change across cultures, organizations and teams. Her ultimate priority is access and integration of high-quality paediatric care on a global scale.

Before joining SickKids, Lara held numerous healthcare positions in the community. She was instrumental in directing the nursing strategy for the Homeless Outreach Pilot Project in the Region of Peel and enhancing neonatal nursing care through Toronto Public Health. Lara has a Bachelor of Science in Nursing, a Master’s Degree in Nursing Administration, and a Leadership Certificate from the University of Toronto. She is also a cross-appointed faculty at the Lawrence S. Bloomberg, Faculty of Nursing at UofT, as well as preceptor to graduate students from various healthcare and business programs across Ontario. She has been involved in fundraising for many years, and is the Founder of the Emma-Rose Fund, which provides financial assistance to families of children with MPS Diseases. Fundraising has given her the opportunity to learn and understand, first-hand, the complexities of the fundraising industry along with the powerful impact that it has on people's lives. Lara continues to be involved in multiple local and international groups and associations, including Board Director of Entité 4 French Language Health Planning, Vice-President of the Board of Directors of Sigma Theta Tau Lambda Pi Chapter, Co-Chair of the Professional Canadian Arab Network, Chair of the Armenian Nurses’ Association’s Public Health Committee, Member of Southlake Regional Health Centre’s Community Advisory Committee, and many others. Lara continues to be invited to speak at different local and international forums. She has travelled personally and professionally to numerous countries and can speak English, French, Arabic, Armenian, and Italian.

Her philosophy is to go "where the puck is going to be, as opposed to where the puck is." - Wayne Gretzky