Dr. Shirzad is an emergency physician and hyperbaric and undersea medicine specialist, as well as an educator and health system leader whose career bridges frontline care, public health, and medical education.

From 2017 to 2025, he served as Assistant Dean of MD Admissions in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia, where he provided strategic leadership in shaping the next generation of physicians and advancing equitable admissions practices. He completed his Bachelor of Science (Honours) at Simon Fraser University and earned his medical degree at UBC before completing his Royal College specialization in Emergency Medicine.

He went on to pursue fellowship training in Texas in Hyperbaric and Undersea Medicine and later earned a Master of Public Health from Harvard University. His work spans acute care, diving and hyperbaric medicine, public health, and addiction medicine — fields connected by a focus on complex systems, vulnerable populations, and health equity.

Dr. Shirzad has lived and worked in Nunavut, providing care in remote and underserved communities, an experience that continues to shape his perspective on access, resilience, and community partnership. He currently practices at Vancouver General Hospital and provides addiction medicine services within Fraser Health.

Above all, he considers his most meaningful role to be that of husband and a father to three boys and a baby girl — an experience that continues to ground his work in purpose, humility, and hope.