Hemophilia Ontario is deeply grateful to share news of the retirement of Dr. Jerry Teitel, whose career has been intertwined with our community for decades and whose impact on hemophilia and bleeding disorders care in Canada is hard to overstate.
As Medical Director of the Comprehensive Hemophilia Care Treatment Centre at St. Michael’s Hospital, Dr. Teitel cared for generations of patients and families, many of whom knew him not just as a physician, but as a steady, trusted presence through some of the most difficult and most hopeful moments in our community’s history.
Dr. Teitel’s career began in the shadow of the tainted blood tragedy of the 1980s and 90s. In its aftermath, he stepped up to chair the National Blood Safety Council, helping rebuild trust in Canada’s blood system when our community needed it most. He went on to co-chair the national Comprehensive Care Standards for hemophilia, helping shape how care is delivered across the country to this day, and he spent years contributing to the Canadian Bleeding Disorders Registry (CBDR), quietly strengthening the safety net behind every patient’s treatment.
In more recent years, Dr. Teitel collaborated on one of the earliest hemophilia B gene therapy trials, helping bring this promising treatment to Canadian patients and contributing to its emergence as a real option for people living with bleeding disorders today. Along the way, he found time to mentor colleagues, publish over 100 papers, present at international congresses, and extend care beyond our borders through outreach partnerships.
It is rare for one career to span an entire era of a disease’s history — from crisis, to comprehensive care, to gene therapy — but Dr. Teitel’s has. On behalf of Hemophilia Ontario and the community he has served so faithfully, thank you, Dr. Teitel. Your compassion, expertise, and unwavering commitment have changed lives, and your legacy will continue to shape hemophilia care in Ontario and across Canada for years to come.
We wish you a retirement filled with the same warmth and generosity you brought to your patients every day!
