@UOHS.CSUO
UOHS 2024 is going to be an amazing conference! Learn about our keynote speakers below
UOHS 2020 Speakers
UOHS 2020 will feature many speakers who will speak about exciting topics relating to healthcare today. Learn more below!
DR. KAREN LAWFORD
PROFESSOR AND RESEARCHER
BSc, BHSc, MA, PhD; Assistant Professor at Queen's University and Aboriginal Midwife
Dr. Lawford is an Aboriginal midwife (Namegosibiing (Lac Seul First Nation, Treaty 3) and a Registered midwife (Ontario). Dr. Lawford is also an Assistant Professor in Gender Studies at Queen’s University. Her research focuses on the provision of maternity care for those who live on reserve and understanding the barriers to equitable reproductive health services. Currently, she is a Co-Investigator on a Status of Women Canada research project, entitled Empowering women leaders in health: Health care, health sciences, & Indigenous health. Dr. Lawford is the lead on Indigenous health and purposefully draws attention to Indigenous women and Two Spirit leaders in health.
MIDIA SHIKH HASSAN
RECIPIENT OF THE CBC TRAILBLAZER AWARD
BHSc, BASc; uOttawa Graduate Student
Midia Shikh Hassan is a uOttawa double alumna. She is the manager of the technology accelerator program called MakerLaunch in the faculty of engineering. She is the winner of the 2018 Queen’s Young Leaders Award, 2019 CBC Trailblazer Award, and 2019 Facebook Social Entrepreneurship Award. Midia has been recognized for her outstanding work with 3D printing of prosthetics for refugees and people living in poverty and continues to be a role model for women in STEM. Her passions include technology innovation and social impact. Midia was one of 145 youth globally selected to participate in a prestigious graduate fellowship program, the Schwarzman Scholars that will begin in summer 2020 in China.
DR. HOSSAM ELSHARKAWI ​
VICE PRESIDENT FOR INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONS AT THE CANADIAN RED CROSS
BSc, PhD
Dr. Elsharkawi is the Vice President at Canadian Red Cross based in Ottawa. He oversees the support and field trainings for preparedness and response to catastrophic events domestically and internationally. For over 30 years, Dr. Elsharkawi has been training teams, setting up field hospitals, and leading the response to complex humanitarian emergencies including epidemics, earthquakes, hurricanes, and wars. His extensive experience includes assignments to more than thirty-five countries and complex humanitarian negotiations. He recently completed a one-year assignment as Senior Consultant for the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva where he developed a guidance document for medical teams deployed to health emergencies in armed conflict and insecure environments. His diverse background in education began with a Bsc in Biochemistry from the University of Alberta followed by the completion of a Certificate in Healthcare Management from the Harvard TH. Chan School of Public Health and finally a PhD in Health Management from City University in London, England. He is currently an Adjunct Professor at the University of British Columbia, branch of International Surgical Care, teaching Humanitarian Response, as well as guest faculty at McGill and McMaster Universities.
DR. ERIN MULVIHILL
TYPE 2 DIABETES EXPERT
BSc, PhD
Dr. Erin Mulvihill is a Scientist, the Director of the Energy Substrate Metabolism Research Laboratory at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute, and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, at the University of Ottawa. Her lab is currently researching a new approach for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, specifically involving DPP4 and GLP-1 which are both enzymes linked to insulin secretion in our body. Dr. Mulvihill's innovative research has allowed for the development of three drug classes: (1) DPP4 resistant forms of GLP-2 (teduglutide) have been successful in the treatment of short bowel syndrome, (2) DPP4 resistant GLP-1R agonists and (3) DPP4i have been generated for treatment of T2DM. This work is significant as over 25% of Canadians live with pre-diabetes or type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) which puts them at a great risk for heart disease causing a significant strain on health care resources (costs >16 billion dollars/year in Ontario alone). Dr. Mulvihill is also the 2019 recipient of the Amgen Stewart Whitman Young Investigator Award for her innovative and significant research contributions.
DR. MATTHEW BROMWICH
OTOLARYNGOLOGIST & FOUNDER OF SHOEBOX
BSc, MD, FRCSC
Dr. Matthew Bromwich is a pediatric otolaryngologist, primarily concerned with treatment for ear, nose, and throat diseases. Dr. Bromwich has published 23 papers and four book chapters on Otolaryngology and has held more than 2.4 million dollars of grant and research investment funds. Much of the research has been directed toward SHOEBOX which is a multi-award-winning method of hearing testing for adults and children that in 2014 won the national "TELUS award for mHealth Innovation". SHOEBOX is the maker of the world’s first easy-to-use, automated, iPad audiometer. One example of how SHOEBOX impacts society is families from Nunavut often needed to make an expensive and disruptive trip south to Ottawa (CHEO) to have a child’s hearing properly tested. Dr. Bromwich came up with SHOEBOX so they could stay home and have someone in the community easily trained to administer reliable diagnostic hearing tests. In 2016 he was nominated for the E &Y Entrepreneur of the Year award and he and his team won the 2016 Interface Health Challenge for their work on mobile hearing testing.
PANEL DISCUSSION
Canada’s Opioid Crisis:
Advocating for
Different Approaches
Canada is facing a national opioid crisis. The increase in overdoses and deaths caused by opioids and fentanyl, is a public health emergency. UOHS 2020’s interactive seminar hopes to gather a group of professionals in order to open the discussion on this complex health issue.
DR. BRODIE RAMIN
Dr. Brodie Ramin is a primary care, HIV and addiction medicine physician. He works on the front lines of the opioid epidemic and is the author of the fortchcoming book The Age of Fentanyl, which traces the history of the opioid crisis and proposes solutions to end the epidemic. Dr. Ramin is an Assistant Professor at the University of Ottawa, and a Diplomate of the American Board of Addiction Medicine. He studied at McGill, the University of Cambridge and the University of Toronto. His work has been recognized by the College of Family Physicians of Canada where he received both the Murray Stalker Award as well as the Leadership Award for Family Medicine Residents.
WENDY MUCKLE
Wendy Muckle is the co-founder and Executive Director of Ottawa Inner City Health (OICH) Inc. since 2001. The OICH is the result of concern from the many services dealing with homelessness in the downtown area and over the years has had a remarkable impact on the city of Ottawa. In addition to her work in Canada, Wendy has worked for more than a decade in Kenya writing university course curriculum in addition to volunteer work in the fields of primary education and community economic development. She is heavily involved in teaching and research in the fields of poverty, homelessness, HIV/AIDS, harm reduction, mental illness, palliative care and leadership. Wendy has a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and a Master in Health Administration from the University of Ottawa.
PETER TILLEY
Peter Tilley has been the Executive Director of the Ottawa Mission since June 2013. The Ottawa Mission is one of Ottawa's oldest yet most progressive downtown shelters for the homeless, providing a full range of services to the less fortunate in our community. Before taking over at the helm of the Ottawa Mission, Peter served for 14 years as the Executive Director of the Ottawa Food Bank, leading that organization to become recognized as one of Canada's most visible and most respected food banks. A graduate of the Business Administration Program at Algonquin College (1984), Peter has also worked as a manager in the recruitment industry and as a senior manager in the hotel industry. Peter now teaches the Introduction to Non Profit Management course at Algonquin College on weekends. Peter was a 2012 Ontario Premier Award nominee and was recently recognized as Algonquin College's Alumnus of the Year.