Biography
Dr. Mark C. Walker is a Maternal-Fetal Medicine Specialist at The Ottawa Hospital, Senior Scientist at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, the CHEO Research Institute, and Professor in the Faculty of Medicine and the School of Epidemiology & Public Health at the University of Ottawa. He currently serves as Vice-Dean of Internationalization & Global Health.
An internationally recognized clinical epidemiologist, Dr. Walker has authored more than 450 peer-reviewed publications, holds an h-index of 104, and has secured over CAD $19 million in research funding as principal investigator. While his career has advanced perinatal epidemiology through clinical trials, cohort studies, and health services research, his most recent and transformative focus has been on artificial intelligence in healthcare.
Dr. Walker is a pioneer in applying AI to maternal and newborn health. He led one of the first proof-of-concept studies using deep learning to detect cystic hygroma on fetal ultrasound scans, demonstrating that AI can augment diagnostic accuracy in prenatal medicine. As director of the AI and predictive modelling stream of the OMNI Research Group, he develops advanced machine learning systems trained on large clinical and administrative datasets. These tools aim to identify women and infants at high risk, improve diagnostic precision, reduce medical errors, and accelerate early intervention. His work positions him as a leading advocate for AI as 鈥渁ugmented intelligence,鈥 complementing physicians鈥 expertise rather than replacing it.
Dr. Walker is co-founder and Scientific Director of BORN Ontario and the OMNI Research Group, both of which have shaped research and policy in maternal-child health. He has held key leadership roles nationally and provincially, including chairing the Canadian Perinatal Surveillance System and the Ontario Maternal Newborn Advisory Committee, and most recently co-chaired Ontario鈥檚 task force on COVID-19 and pregnancy.