Director, Genetic Test Evaluation Services

Diane Allingham-Hawkins joined Hayes in early 2008 to launch the industry’s first ever Genetic Test Evaluation (GTE) Service. A 20-year veteran of the healthcare industry with deep hands-on experience as a genetics laboratory director, Dr. Hawkins brings Hayes to the forefront of genetic testing and provides added value to Hayes’ clients seeking to understand the science behind these tests, the hard clinical evidence supporting them, and the use of genetic tests in clinical practice.

Prior to joining Hayes, Dr. Allingham-Hawkins was employed by North York General Hospital (NYGH) in Toronto, ascending to the position of Director, Molecular Genetics and Cytogenetics. Her key accomplishments during her tenure at NYGH included reducing backlog and improving quality of patient care for critical cancer tests; overseeing the successful application for a grant to build a center for diagnosing key prenatal abnormalities (resulting in the largest grant in the hospital’s history); and managing the genetics unit through the 2003 Canadian SARS scare.

Prior to joining NYGH, Dr. Allingham-Hawkins was Associate Director of the Molecular Genetics Laboratory at The Hospital for Sick Children, a teaching hospital affiliated with the University of Toronto that is home to the world’s second largest hospital-based pediatric research facility.

Dr. Allingham-Hawkins received her BSc degree in Honors Genetics from the University of Western Ontario, and her PhD in Human Genetics from McMaster University in 1993. She is a recognized leader in the field of human genetics who has served on 12 committees to study genetics, has authored or coauthored 49 publications, and has presented 57 scholarly papers at organizations such as the American Society of Human Genetics, the American College of Medical Genetics, and the Michener Institute for Applied Health Sciences. She is a past President of the Canadian College of Medical Geneticists.

In 2004, Dr. Allingham-Hawkins was part of a multicenter team that received a Can$11.4 million grant from the Canadian Foundation for Innovation to study molecular cytogenetics.