Current Trainees

Arjun Balachandar

Education: MD (University of Toronto Medical School), Bachelors Honours Neuroscience (McGill University)

Division: Neurology

Supervisor's Name: Dr. Alfonso Fasano (primary supervisor), Dr. George Ibrahim (co-supervisor)

Title of Research:  Adaptive neuromodulation using electrocorticography and deep brain stimulation to treat freezing of gait in Parkinson’s disease.

Scopus ID: 57224269710

Michael Colacci

Education: HBSc with High Distinction (Human Physiology and Biology), University of Toronto; MD (cum laude), Feinberg School of Medicine; MSc (Clinical Epidemiology), University of Toronto

Division: General Internal Medicine

Supervisor's Name: Dr. Muhammad Mamdani

Title of Research: Application of machine learning within internal medicine

Scopus ID: 55913443900

Mitchell Elliott

Education: B.Sc. – University of Windsor; M.D. – University of Toronto; Internal Medicine (FRCPC) – University of Toronto; Medical Oncology (FRCPC) – University of Toronto

Division: Medical Oncology

Supervisor's Name: Dr. David Cescon

Title of Research: Defining genomic determinants of drug sensitivity and acquired resistance in triple negative breast cancer

Scopus ID: 57200631550

Education: MD, Université de Montréal; Neurology residency, University of Toronto

Division: Neurology

Supervisors' Names: Dr. Connie Marras, Dr. Maria Chiu

Title of Research: Investigating the relationship between phosphoglycerate kinase 1 activator exposure and Parkinson's disease risk and progression

Scopus ID: 56680763100

Education: MD, McMaster University 

Division: Geriatric Medicine

Supervisor's Name: Dr. Paula Rochon

Title of Research: Characterizing the health outcomes of older adults with lived experiences of homelessness 

Scopus ID: 57195132599

Yu Qing (Jenny) Huang

Education: Med-P, McGill University; Residency (Internal Medicine), Université de Montréal; Residency (Geriatric Medicine), University of Toronto; MSc-PhD (Clinical Epidemiology and Health Care Research), University of Toronto

Division: Geriatric Medicine

Supervisor's Name: Dr. Sharon Straus

Title of Research: Risk of dementia, long-term care placement, and home care use following traumatic brain injury among community-dwelling older adults: A retrospective cohort study

Scopus ID: 57894946800

Education: BSc, Queen's University; MD, University of Toronto, General Internal Medicine, University of Toronto; Infectious Diseases, University of Toronto; Diploma of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine,Gorgas Course and University of Alabama Birmingham; Infection Control Fellowship, University of Toronto

Division: Infectious Diseases

Supervisors' Names: Dr. David Lewinsohn, Dr. Deborah Lewinsohn

Title of Research: Mucosal invariant T cells and their memory potential - How they may be crucial in future tuberculosis vaccine development

Scopus ID: 54079719700

Education: HBSc (Physiology), University of British Columbia; MD, University of British Columbia; Internal Medicine (FRCPC), University of Ottawa

Division: Gastroenterology & Hepatology

Supervisor's Name: Dr. Gideon Hirschfield

Title of Research: Primary sclerosing cholangitis: A deep clinical and cross-discipline phenotypic evaluation to improve our understanding of disease course

Scopus ID: 57209414211

Education: HBSc (Psychology), Wilfrid Laurier University; MSc (Cellular and Molecular Medicine), University of Ottawa; MD, University of Toronto; MSc Candidate (Clinical Epidemiology)

Division: General Internal Medicine

Supervisor's Name: Dr. Eyal Cohen

Title of Research: Adult impact of complex childhood-onset diseases

Scopus ID: 57208159950

Ayodele Odutayo

Education: BHSc (with distinction), University of Western Ontario; MD, University of Toronto; MSc (Global Health Sciences), University of Oxford; PhD (Cellular and Molecular Medicine), University of Oxford; Residency (General Internal Medicine), University of Toronto

Division: Nephrology

Supervisors' Names: Dr. Jacob Udell, Dr. David Cherney

Title of Research: Expanding the use of SGLT-2 inhibitors to improve cardiorenal disease

Scopus ID: 36665010700

Education: BSc (Microbiology), University of Manitoba; MD, University of Manitoba; MSc Candidate (Clinical Epidemiology and Health Care Research), University of Toronto

Division: Nephrology

Supervisor’s Name: Dr. S. Joseph Kim

Title of Research: Better decisions for better outcomes from deceased donor kidneys

Scopus ID: 57190845051

Education: BS (Public Health, cum laude), University of the Philippines Manila; MD, University of the Philippines Manila; Internal Medicine, Philippine General Hospital; Rheumatology, Philippine General Hospital; MSc (Clinical Epidemiology), University of the Philippines Manila; Spondylitis Fellowship, University of Toronto; PhD student (Medical Science), University of Toronto

Division: Rheumatology 

Supervisor's Name: Dr. Nigil Haroon

Title of Research: The role of DRAK2 as a potential biomarker of disease activity and treatment response in axial spondyloarthritis

Scopus ID: 57226351087

Education: MD, University of Toronto; HBSc (Life Sciences) Queen's University

Division: Geriatric Medicine

Supervisor's Name: Dr. Paula Rochon

Title of Research: Investigating the cognitive trajectories of patients with delirium after hospital discharge

Scopus ID: 57188591279

Katherine Sawicka

Education: BArtsSc (Biochemistry), University of Saskatchewan; MD, University of Saskatchewan; PhD Candidate (Clinical Epidemiology and Health Care Research), University of Toronto

Division: Neurology

Supervisor's Name: Dr. Brian Feldman

Title of Research: Autonomy and health-related quality of life in people with multiple sclerosis across childhood, adolescent, and adult development

Scopus ID: 56655644900

Julie Semenchuk

Education: BSc, University of Manitoba; MD, University of Manitoba, concurrent with BSc-Medicine (research-based); PhD Student (IMS)

Division: Respirology

Supervisor's Name: Dr. Stephen Juvet

Title of Research: Reprogramming alveolar macrophages with mRNA to mitigate lung transplant rejection

Scopus ID: 57203324642

Education: BHSc, McMaster University; MD, McMaster University

Division: Nephrology

Supervisor's Name: Dr. David Cherney 

Title of Research: Efficacy, mechanisms and safety of SGLT2 inhibitors in kidney transplant recipients

Scopus ID: 57216301437

Education: BSc, McGill University; MD, University of Toronto

Division: Critical Care Medicine

Supervisor's Name: Dr. Neill Adhikari

Title of Research: Practices of mechanical ventilation in patients with acute neurologic disorders

Scopus ID: 57191580880

Education: BHSc, McMaster University; MD, University of Alberta; MPH (Quantitative Methods), Harvard University; MSEd (Medical Education), University of Pennsylvania; Combined Public Health & Preventive Medicine and Family Medicine Residencies, UBC; Occupational Medicine Residency, University of Toronto

Division: Occupational Medicine

Current Degree: PhD (Health Professions Education and Health Policy, Management & Evaluation), IHPME & The Wilson Centre, University of Toronto

Supervisor: Dr. Kulamakan (Mahan) Kulasegaram

Title of Research: Fairness, equity, and inclusive excellence: Investigating medical school admissions using machine learning and computational social science

Scopus ID: 57189293478

Education: BHSc (Health Sciences), McMaster University; MD, University of Toronto; PhD (Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology), University of Toronto; Residency (General Internal Medicine), University of Toronto

Division: Medical Oncology

Supervisors' Names: Dr. Benjamin Haibe-Kains and Dr. Eric Chen

Title of Research: Applying multi-omics data to precision oncology

Scopus ID: 59071122200

Education: BSc, University of Toronto; MD, McMaster University; PhD Candidate (CEHCR, IHPME), University of Toronto

Division: Geriatric Medicine

Supervisor's Name: Dr. Sharon Straus

Title of Research: Cost-effectiveness of the geriatrician-led comprehensive geriatric assessment: An economic evaluation in using public health care payer perspective

Scopus ID: 57195203055

Education: MD, University of Toronto; MSc (Physiology), University of Toronto

Division: Infectious Diseases

Supervisor's Name: Dr. Kevin Kain

Title of Research: Reducing adverse pregnancy outcomes with L-arginine

Scopus ID: 57201343963

Kevin Yau

Education: HBSc (Life Sciences), Queen's University; MD, University of Toronto; MSc Candidate (Clinical Epidemiology and Health Care Research)

Division: Nephrology

Supervisor's Name: Dr. Ron Wald

Title of Research: GLP-1 receptor agonists in CKD patients

Scopus ID: 57224823568