Dr. Olivieri received a B.Sc. from the University of Toronto and an M.D. from McMaster University in 1978. She pursued training in Internal Medicine and Hematology at McMaster, University of Toronto, and Harvard University and over the past 25 years has sustained continuous funding for research in the hemoglobin disorders. The author of over 200 scientific papers, reviews and book chapters, Dr. Olivieri was elected to The American Society for Clinical Investigation in 1996.

Since 1996, Dr. Olivieri has conducted research studies on the island of Sri Lanka where Sir David Weatherall and their respective research teams, have examined and documented a population of patients with Hemoglobin E beta thalassemia, in an effort to determine factors potentially important in the phenotypic diversity of this disorder, the world's most common serious hemoglobinopathy. Over this period in Sri Lanka, the combined efforts of the Toronto and Oxford research teams have also stimulated community outreach, prevention programs, clinical guidelines, and capacity building for thalassemia. A National Thalassemia Center was established in Sri Lanka in 2001; in 2003, Dr. Olivieri and her team founded Hemoglobal, a registered charity to further assist in capacity building and support for thalassemia patients throughout Asia. Dr. Olivieri recently obtained support from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research to pursue similar work in Bangladesh. With Dr. Weatherall, she continues efforts to expand an Asian Thalassemia Network with links throughout that continent.

During a controversy which also began 15 years ago and continues to this day involving issues of the influence of drug companies on medical research, Dr. Olivieri received among other honours, The Callaway Award for Civic Courage from the Nader Foundation; The Milner Memorial Award from the Canadian Association of University Teachers; and the Scientific Freedom and Responsibility Award from the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Dr. Olivieri went on from her struggles with industry to pursue a Masters in Medical Ethics and Law, Kings? College, London UK.

A course created by Dr. Olivieri, titled Health and Pharmaceuticals, offered at the University of Toronto since 2009, explores aspects of the pharmaceutical industry, its role in society, and its influence on research and on the evidence base of medicine. Dr. Olivieri is a founding member and sits on the Advisory Board of The Tommy Douglas Program, an evolving program at the University of Toronto which is dedicated to the ideals of Tommy Douglas, the founder of Canadian medicare.

Dr. Olivieri is currently a Senior Scientist, Research Institute, Toronto General Hospital; and a Professor of Pediatrics, Medicine, and Public Health Sciences, University of Toronto. In collaboration with colleagues internationally, she continues to be actively involved in interventional trials, clinical investigation, and better care for patients with hemoglobin disorders in Toronto.