The University of Ottawa Heart Institute Foundation is pleased to announce the appointment of Lianne Laing as the new executive director, effective June 30, 2020.
Lianne Laing joins the Foundation after a successful broadcasting career at CTV/Bell Media Ottawa, and more recently as a communications consultant, a public speaker, a podcast host, and a health and wellness advocate. “Lianne is well known for her leadership and community outreach and engagement in Ottawa and beyond. Her exceptional talent and community building experience will enhance the ability of the Foundation to support the Heart Institute as one of the most advanced centres in the world dedicated to treatment, education and research in heart disease,” said Elizabeth Roscoe, incoming chair of the Foundation.
As the new executive director, Laing will report to the Foundation’s board of directors and the president and CEO of the University of Ottawa Heart Institute. She will be responsible for the leadership, management and operations of the Foundation. She will lead the Foundation’s new campaign to continue building the endowment fund for cardiovascular research – one of the largest of its kind – for the Institute, and the Canadian Women’s Heart Health Centre, as well as other fundraising efforts.
“The Heart Institute has, as most healthcare institutions have, had to compose with the unprecedented times brought forward by the pandemic. This is bringing about significant and far-reaching changes that will profoundly re-shape how we care for patients, educate new generations of medical professionals, conduct research, and more. And, our fundraising efforts will need to follow suit and adjust to this new reality. We are confident that Lianne will be able to put her strong community outreach expertise, her solid communications skills, and her creativity to use to support the Foundation’s new fundraising campaign,” said Dr. Thierry Mesana, president and CEO of the Heart Institute.
"Heart disease is incredibly close to my heart having lost my dad to a heart attack at just 57 years old. As an Ottawa native, I have always been incredibly proud to see the work of the Institute recognized on the world stage, but more importantly, I have seen its direct impact on the patients and their families here at home,” said Laing. The Heart Institute has an outstanding reputation for patient care, training and research, supported by tremendous staff, volunteers and generous donors.”
“I consider it a great honour and privilege to assume the role of executive director of the Institute’s Foundation at this important juncture in its history,” said Laing. “A storyteller for 20 years, I am excited to bring the work of the Heart Institute to the forefront, engaging our donors and educating our community to the life changing work that happens each and every day here in our own backyard."
“We would like to take this opportunity to thank Jim Orban, who for the past 9 years has built and led a dedicated and committed team to the success of the single largest fundraising campaign at the Heart Institute, raising more than $100 million in support of the Heart Institute’s expansion, its research enterprise, and the launch of the Canadian Women’s Heart Health Centre,” said Barbara Farber, chair of the Foundation.
For more information, please contact:
Leigh Morris
Media Relations Officer
(613) 316-6409
lmorris@ottawaheart.ca