BHI Researchers awarded 13 Clinical Research Chairs as part of a $41 investment by uOttawa Faculty of Medicine and partners

Photos of Clinical Research Chair Awardees.
The Brain-Heart Interconnectome (BHI) is proud to highlight a major milestone in advancing interdisciplinary clinical research: 13 of our esteemed members have been awarded Clinical Research Chairs as part of a landmark $41 million investment by the uOttawa Faculty of Medicine and its partners. This recognition underscores the vital contributions of BHI researchers to innovative, cross-cutting work at the intersection of brain and heart health and demonstrates the growing impact of our network in shaping the future of patient-centered, systems-level care.

A total of 64 Clinical Research Chairs have been awarded through a five-year, $41 million joint funding initiative, increasing the impact on the health of individuals and populations by supporting cutting-edge research projects. Notably, 9 core academic members of the BHI were awarded including Drs. Dariush Dowlatshahi, Darryl Davis, Douglas Manuel, Jess Fiedorowicz, Roger Zemek, Smita Pakhale, Michel Shamy, Sharon Johnston, and Kevin Boczar, and 4 associate academic members, Drs. Benajmin Chow, Ian Paterson, Manoj Lalu, and Tiago Mestre.

The new support from the six research institutes, including Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (OHRI), Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute (CHEO-RI), University of Ottawa Heart Institute (uOHI), Bruyère Health Research Institute, l'Institut du Savoir Montfort (ISM), and The Royal's Institute of Mental Health Research (IMHR), is an important addition to the program permitting the funding of a significant number of new chairs in this round.  These prestigious chairs recognize and support some of the Faculty’s most accomplished and promising clinician-scientists and include all the clinical departments and research institutes. Their research spans a broad spectrum of disciplines and clinical specializations, including Dr. Benjamin Chow’s work in advanced Cardiac imaging, Dr. Darryl Davis’ work in translational cardiovascular medicine, Dr. Smita Pakhale’s work in health equity, and Dr. Sharon Johnston’s work in medical AI.

Congratulations to all the BHI researchers that were awarded a Clinical Research Chair. To read the full article and learn more about the new Clinical Research Chairs, please click here.