Mahadeo Sukhai
Dr. Mahadeo Sukhai is the world’s first congenitally blind geneticist. Mahadeo has more than 20 years’ experience as an accessibility and inclusion professional, and as a researcher within this space, as well as more than 25 years’ experience as a scientist, researcher and educator in the medical sciences and healthcare related disciplines. Dr. Sukhai is a leading expert on accessibility of postsecondary education and employment for persons with disabilities. Dr. Sukhai is one of the originators of the discipline of and discourse on accessibility and inclusion in the sciences and in healthcare. He is the Chair of the Employment Technical Committee for Accessibility Standards Canada, tasked with developing accessible employment standards; as well as, the External Co-Chair of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Expert Advisory Committee on Accessibility and Systemic Ableism. Mahadeo also serves on the Boards for Health Data Research Network Canada and the Institute of Neurodiversity Canada, and is a member of the steering committee for Disability and Work in Canada.
Education
Ph.D., Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, 2007
M.Sc., Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toronto, 2001
B.Sc. (Honours), Department of Molecular and Medical Genetics, University of Toronto, 1998
Recent Publications
Field P, Trolio M, Sukhai MA. (2024) Guide dog access barriers in Canada. Research report for the Advancing Accessibility Standards Research Program, Accessibility Standards Canada.
Iverson E, Sukhai M, Quinn MP, Aubin M-J, Freeman EE. (2024) Visual impairment, employment status, and reduction in income: the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging. Canadian Journal of Ophthalmology.
Ogedenge TO, Sukhai M, Wittich W. (2024) Towards identifying gaps in employment integration of people living with vision impairment: A scoping review. Work, 78: 317-330.
Vozza J, Knot M, Reynolds C, Moll S, Durocher E, Petrie S, Sukhai M, Gewurtz R. (2024) Accessibility and Usability of Self-serve Kiosks for Blind and Partially Sighted Canadians. Technology and Disability 36:111 – 128.
Zhao Y, Nacenta MA, Sukhai MA, Somanath S. (2024) CHI ’24: Proceedings of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, 45, 1-20.
Cockburn L, Roberts J, Lee S, Nganji J, Ho NCW, Kuntjoro A, Mbibeh L, Sikapa L, Animbom PN, Fru S, Nkouly S, Sukhai MA. (2023) Considerations when asking about “disability” in disability-inclusive research. Disability and Rehabilitation, 1–20.
