Dr. Claire Bombardier is a distinguished rheumatologist and clinical researcher who has profoundly shaped evidence-based musculoskeletal care over her five-decade career. She currently serves as a Senior Scientist at the Toronto General Research Institute and Professor of Medicine at the University of Toronto, maintaining an active clinical practice at Mount Sinai Hospital. Her professional journey began in the early 1970s as Chief Resident at Montreal's Royal Victoria Hospital, where she navigated a predominantly male medical field with remarkable determination. Following this, she pursued medical economics at Stanford's Clinical Scholar Program, which laid the foundation for her unique expertise in clinical epidemiology and health economics. Dr. Bombardier has held numerous leadership positions including Director of Rheumatology at the University of Toronto for thirteen years and Co-Scientific Director of the Canadian Arthritis Network from 2007 to 2014.
Dr. Bombardier's groundbreaking contributions to rheumatology include pioneering the development and implementation of evidence-based clinical guidelines that have transformed the safe pharmacologic treatment of rheumatoid arthritis patients worldwide. As founder of the Ontario Best Practice Research Initiative (OBRI) in 2005, she established a comprehensive data platform that has grown to include 86 rheumatologists and over 4,000 patients, enabling longitudinal monitoring of treatment safety and efficacy in routine clinical practice. Her scholarly impact is evidenced by more than 395 peer-reviewed publications, with her work on rheumatoid arthritis treatment guidelines adopted internationally to improve patient care standards. In October 2022, Research.com ranked her as the 15th top female scientist in Canada and 487th globally, underscoring her exceptional research influence across multiple disciplines including clinical epidemiology, knowledge translation, and health outcomes assessment.
Beyond her direct research contributions, Dr. Bombardier has been instrumental in advancing methodological rigor in clinical research through her editorial leadership with Cochrane Back and Neck, where she served as co-editor from 1995 to 2013 and continues as founding editor emeritus. Her international expertise in quality improvement research has positioned Canada as a global leader in epidemiology, measurement, and knowledge transfer related to musculoskeletal diseases. Dr. Bombardier has mentored countless researchers and clinicians, fostering the next generation of rheumatology experts through her academic positions and collaborative initiatives. Her current work continues to focus on optimizing the use of clinical data and improving patient outcomes through ongoing expansion of the OBRI platform, reflecting her lifelong commitment to translating research evidence into practical clinical applications that enhance arthritis care.
