David Urbach

Senior Core Scientist (Full Status) ICES Central Primary Care & Health Systems Research Program

Biography

David Urbach is a professor in the Department of Surgery and the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto. His clinical practice is devoted to gastrointestinal and endocrine surgical oncology and minimally invasive surgery. Dr. Urbach is a scientist at ICES and the Toronto General Hospital Research Institute. His research program focuses on surgery-related health services research.

FACS
FRCPS
MSc, Clinical Epidemiology, University of Toronto
MD, University of Toronto

Surgery
Health technology assessment
Health services research
Gastrointestinal disorders

Surgeon-in-Chief and Medical Director, Perioperative Services, Women’s College Hospital
Professor, Department of Surgery, University of Toronto
Senior Scientist, Toronto General Research Institute
Staff Surgeon, University Health Network
Senior Innovation Fellow, Women’s College Hospital Institute for Health System Solutions and Virtual Care

ICES Grants

Grant

2021 - 2022

The Surgical EQUITY initiative: establishing equitable access to surgery following the pandemic

Granting Agency: Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Principal Investigators: Chan T, Gomez Jaramillo D, Sankar A
Co-Investigators: Baxter NN, de Mestral C, Hwang SW, Irish JC, Sarhangian V, Simpson AN, Stukel TA, Urbach DR, Wijeysundera DN
Grant Type: Operating Grant
Grant Amount: $220,596

Grant

2019 - 2023

Using real-world data to simulate the effects of efficient referral strategies on wait times for elective surgery in Canada

Granting Agency: Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Principal Investigators: Urbach D
Co-Investigators: Aleman DM, Baxter NN, Bell CM, Bodur M, Gagliardi AR, Irish JC, Sutradhar R, White JS
Grant Type: Project Grant
Grant Amount: $673,200

Grant

2015 - 2016

Risk of Parkinson’s disease after appendectomy

Granting Agency: Physicians' Service Incorporated Foundation
Principal Investigators: Lang A, Marras C
Co-Investigators: Urbach D
Grant Type: Operating Grant
Grant Amount: $31,500

Grant

2013 - 2016

Population-based assessment of sleep deprivation in staff physicians and its impact on patient care and outcomes

Granting Agency: Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Principal Investigators: Govindarajan A, Baxter N
Co-Investigators: Gagliardi A, Juurlink D, Kennedy E, Murray B, Sutradhar R, Urbach D
Grant Type: Operating Grant
Grant Amount: $223,882

Grant

2012 - 2015

Evaluating quality improvement interventions in colorectal cancer surgery in Ontario

Granting Agency: Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Principal Investigators: Simunovic M
Co-Investigators: Baxter N, Brouwers M, Earle C, Forbes S, O'Brien M, Smith A, Stukel T, Urbach D
Grant Type: Operating Grant
Grant Amount: $619,013

Grant

2011 - 2016

A population-based study of cancer incidence and mortality in patients with solid organ transplants

Granting Agency: Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Principal Investigators: Baxter N
Co-Investigators: Brezden-Masley C, Hicks L, Kim S, Paterson M, Sutradhar R, Urbach D
Grant Type: Operating Grant
Grant Amount: $682,732

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Awards & Recognition

06/05/2015

2014-2015 CIHR-IHSPR Article of the Year Award

2014-2015: Awarded to David Urbach and Nancy Baxter for their article “Introduction of Surgical Safety Checklists in Ontario, Canada" for its relevance to health services and policy research, as well as for the extent to which they contribute to the advancement of this field of research in Canada and have an impact on policy.

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Journal Articles

Journal Article

26/08/2024

Disparities in surgery rates during the COVID-19 pandemic: retrospective study

Sankar A, Stukel TA, Baxter NN, Wijeysundera DN, Hwang SW, Wilton AS, Chan TCY, Sarhangian V, Simpson AN, de Mestral C, Pincus D, Campbell RJ, Urbach DR, Irish J, Gomez D. BJS Open. 2024; 8(4):zrae088.

Journal Article

26/08/2024

Public funding for private for-profit centres and access to cataract surgery by patient socioeconomic status: an Ontario population-based study

Campbell RJ, El-Defrawy SR, Bell CM, Urbach DR, Paterson JM, Stukel TA, Gill SS, Irish J, Baxter NN, Gomez D. CMAJ. 2024; 196:E965-72.

Journal Article

08/08/2024

Surgeon- and hospital-level variation in wait times for scheduled non-urgent surgery in Ontario, Canada: a cross-sectional population-based study

de Jager P, Aleman D, Baxter N, Bell C, Bodur M, Calzavara A, Campbell R, Carter M, Emerson S, Gagliardi A, Irish J, Martin D, Lee S, SaxeBraithwaite M, Seyedi P, Takata J, Yang S, Zanchetta C, Urbach DR. PLoS One. 2024; 19(8):e0307845.

Journal Article

19/12/2023

Social determinants of access to timely elective surgery in Ontario, Canada: a cross-sectional population level study

de Jager P, Aleman D, Baxter N, Bell C, Bodur M, Calzavara A, Campbell R, Carter M, Emerson S, Gagliardi A, Irish J, Martin D, Lee S, Saxe-Braithwaite M, Seyedi P, Takata J, Yang S, Zanchetta C, Urbach D. CMAJ Open. 2023; 11(6):1164-80. Epub 2023 Dec 19.

Journal Article

19/09/2023

Evolution of the surgical procedure gap during and after the COVID-19 pandemic in Ontario, Canada: cross-sectional and modelling study

Stephenson R, Sarhangian V, Park J, Sankar A, Baxter NN, Stukel TA, Simpson AN, Wijeysundera DN, Wilton AS, de Mestral C, Hwang SW, Pincus D, Campbell RJ, Urbach DR, Irish J, Gomez D, Chan TCY. Br J Surg. 2023; Sep 19 [Epub ahead of print].

Journal Article

09/05/2023

Association between the COVID-19 pandemic and first cancer treatment modality: a population-based cohort study

Fu R, Sutradhar R, Li Q, Hanna TP, Chan KKW, Irish JC, Coburn N, Hallet J, Dare A, Singh S, Parmar A, Earle CC, Lapointe-Shaw L, Krzyzanowska MK, Finelli A, Louie AV, Look Hong NJ, Witterick IJ, Mahar A, Urbach DR, McIsaac DI, Enepekides D, Eskander A. CMAJ Open. 2023; 11(3):E426-33. Epub 2023 May 9.

Journal Article

31/03/2023

Early survival for patients newly diagnosed with cancer during COVID-19 in Ontario, Canada: a population-based cohort study

Fu R, Sutradhar R, Li Q, Kalraj P, Dare A, Hanna TP, Chan KKW, Irish JC, Coburn N, Hallet J, Singh S, Parmar A, Earle CC, Lapointe-Shaw L, Krzyzanowska MK, Louie AV, Mahar A, Urbach DR, McIsaac DI, Enepekides D, Gomez D, Look Hong NJ, Tinmouth J, Eskander A. Cancer Med. 2023; 12(10):11849-59. Epub 2023 Mar 31.

Journal Article

10/01/2023

Timeliness and modality of treatment for new cancer diagnoses during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada

Fu R, Sutradhar R, Li Q, Hanna TP, Chan KKW, Irish JC, Coburn N, Hallet J, Dare A, Singh S, Parmar A, Earle CC, Lapointe-Shaw L, Krzyzanowska MK, Finelli A, Louie AV, Look Hong NJ, Witterick IJ, Mahar A, Urbach DR, McIsaac DI, Enepekides D, Tinmouth J, Eskander A. JAMA Netw Open. 2023; 6(1):e2250394. Epub 2023 Jan 10.

Journal Article

20/12/2022

Characterizing the impact of procedure funding on the Covid-19 generated procedure gap in Ontario: a population-based analysis

Gomez D, de Mestral C, Stukel TA, Irish J, Simpson AN, Wilton AS, Rotstein OD, Campbell RJ, Eskander A, Urbach DR, Baxter NN. Ann Surg. 2023; 278(4):e719-25. Epub 2022 Dec 20.

Journal Article

16/12/2022

Complications following elective major noncardiac surgery among patients with prior SARS-CoV-2 infection

Quinn KL, Huang A, Bell CM, Detsky AS, Lapointe-Shaw L, Rosella LC, Urbach DR, Razak F, Verma AA. JAMA Netw Open. 2022; 5(12):e2247341. Epub 2022 Dec 16.

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News Coverage

News Release

26/08/2024

Study shows introduction of surgical safety checklists in Ontario have not reduced post-operative mortality or complications

News Release

06/08/2013

Get in touch with
David Urbach

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David Urbach

Biography

Education

Research Focus

Other Affiliations

ICES Grants

The Surgical EQUITY initiative: establishing equitable access to surgery following the pandemic

Using real-world data to simulate the effects of efficient referral strategies on wait times for elective surgery in Canada

Risk of Parkinson’s disease after appendectomy

Population-based assessment of sleep deprivation in staff physicians and its impact on patient care and outcomes

Evaluating quality improvement interventions in colorectal cancer surgery in Ontario

A population-based study of cancer incidence and mortality in patients with solid organ transplants

Awards & Recognition

2014-2015 CIHR-IHSPR Article of the Year Award

Journal Articles

Disparities in surgery rates during the COVID-19 pandemic: retrospective study

Public funding for private for-profit centres and access to cataract surgery by patient socioeconomic status: an Ontario population-based study

Surgeon- and hospital-level variation in wait times for scheduled non-urgent surgery in Ontario, Canada: a cross-sectional population-based study

Social determinants of access to timely elective surgery in Ontario, Canada: a cross-sectional population level study

Evolution of the surgical procedure gap during and after the COVID-19 pandemic in Ontario, Canada: cross-sectional and modelling study

Association between the COVID-19 pandemic and first cancer treatment modality: a population-based cohort study

Early survival for patients newly diagnosed with cancer during COVID-19 in Ontario, Canada: a population-based cohort study

Timeliness and modality of treatment for new cancer diagnoses during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada

Characterizing the impact of procedure funding on the Covid-19 generated procedure gap in Ontario: a population-based analysis

Complications following elective major noncardiac surgery among patients with prior SARS-CoV-2 infection

News Coverage

People of lower socioeconomic status less likely to receive cataract surgery in private clinics, study finds

Psychiatric care prior to cancer diagnosis linked to higher rates of death for Ontario patients

Ontario-wide research atlas shows stable rates of head and neck cancers, except for rise in HPV-related throat cancer

Colonoscopy top surgical procedure in Ontario, with regional variations in less common procedures

Study shows introduction of surgical safety checklists in Ontario have not reduced post-operative mortality or complications

Metformin use associated with significant improvement in mortality among diabetic men with prostate cancer: study

Métis more prone to diabetes, respiratory disease and cardiovascular disease

ICES Atlas on Cancer Surgery in Ontario released online today

Get in touch with
David Urbach

David Urbach

Biography

Education

Research Focus

Other Affiliations

ICES Grants

The Surgical EQUITY initiative: establishing equitable access to surgery following the pandemic

Using real-world data to simulate the effects of efficient referral strategies on wait times for elective surgery in Canada

Risk of Parkinson’s disease after appendectomy

Population-based assessment of sleep deprivation in staff physicians and its impact on patient care and outcomes

Evaluating quality improvement interventions in colorectal cancer surgery in Ontario

A population-based study of cancer incidence and mortality in patients with solid organ transplants

Awards & Recognition

2014-2015 CIHR-IHSPR Article of the Year Award

Journal Articles

Disparities in surgery rates during the COVID-19 pandemic: retrospective study

Public funding for private for-profit centres and access to cataract surgery by patient socioeconomic status: an Ontario population-based study

Surgeon- and hospital-level variation in wait times for scheduled non-urgent surgery in Ontario, Canada: a cross-sectional population-based study

Social determinants of access to timely elective surgery in Ontario, Canada: a cross-sectional population level study

Evolution of the surgical procedure gap during and after the COVID-19 pandemic in Ontario, Canada: cross-sectional and modelling study

Association between the COVID-19 pandemic and first cancer treatment modality: a population-based cohort study

Early survival for patients newly diagnosed with cancer during COVID-19 in Ontario, Canada: a population-based cohort study

Timeliness and modality of treatment for new cancer diagnoses during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada

Characterizing the impact of procedure funding on the Covid-19 generated procedure gap in Ontario: a population-based analysis

Complications following elective major noncardiac surgery among patients with prior SARS-CoV-2 infection

News Coverage

People of lower socioeconomic status less likely to receive cataract surgery in private clinics, study finds

Psychiatric care prior to cancer diagnosis linked to higher rates of death for Ontario patients

Ontario-wide research atlas shows stable rates of head and neck cancers, except for rise in HPV-related throat cancer

Colonoscopy top surgical procedure in Ontario, with regional variations in less common procedures

Study shows introduction of surgical safety checklists in Ontario have not reduced post-operative mortality or complications

Metformin use associated with significant improvement in mortality among diabetic men with prostate cancer: study

Métis more prone to diabetes, respiratory disease and cardiovascular disease

ICES Atlas on Cancer Surgery in Ontario released online today

Get in touch with David Urbach

Get in touch with
David Urbach