Opportunities

RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES

CURRENT RESEARCH ASSISTANTS    

1. Ms. Prabhkirat Kaur is currently in her fourth year of the Medical Sciences program at Western University specializing in One Health and Physiology. Ms. Kaur has a keen interest in epigenetic research, cancer biology and disease-prevention strategies. She is currently engaged in a study addressing pregnancy and the onset of cardiovascular arrythmias.

2. Mr. Arjun Singh graduated from McMaster University in 2023 with a Bachelor of Science in Honours Kinesiology degree. Throughout his academic journey, he has demonstrated proficiency in both qualitative and quantitative research methods. These experiences has allowed him to delve deep into the complexities of many diseases, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and osteoporosis while exploring the nuances of pathophysiology and rehabilitation. Arjun places a strong emphasis on translating research findings into practical applications for clinical practice and health policy. His experiences have involved extensive literature reviews, data collection, and image selection, which have cemented my belief in the power of storytelling in medical research. 

3. Ms. Ruhi Patwardhan is a medical student at the St. Andrews University.  She has been instrumental in working with our research team in the design and coordination of two research studies. 

4. Mr. Charith Abeygunawardena is an RN currently working at CCU and ICU Level 2 at THP. He has completed his nursing degree at McMaster University through the accelerated stream. Before completing the nursing degree, he completed an honors bachelor of science degree in Biochemistry and Human Biology at the University of Toronto. He has a keen interest in both Cardiovascular and Oncology research. Following graduation, he has participated in numerous research projects, where he has gained experience in abstract screening, literature search, data collection, data analysis, manuscript writing, and publishing.

RESEARCH ASSISTANTS - 2021-2024

Ms. Kaveenaa Chandrasekaran – Ms. Chandrasekaran is a Registered Nurse who completed her Bachelor of Science in Nursing at Toronto Metropolitan University in 2021. She is currently completing her Master of Nursing in the thesis stream at Toronto Metropolitan University. Her thesis focuses on the physical health implications of social isolation and loneliness among older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. She has previously contributed to research projects focusing on suicide prevention and nursing education. Ms. Chandrasekaran’s research interests include qualitative research methods and scoping reviews.

Ms. Tammy Bae is a nursing student at Toronto Metropolitan University. Her research interests include designing and evaluating interventions, social determinants of health, mental health, health promotion, pediatric and women’ health. Ms. Bae has received training through the Volunteer Research Assistant Training Program (VRATP) at Toronto Metropolitan University; and is currently in the process of designing a social media intervention for CONNECT. Previously, Ms. Bae has worked with the COVID-19 Infectious Disease Division at the Hospital for Sick Children. Ms. Bae’s professional and long-term career goals include completing a graduate degree in nursing; and pursuing leadership positions within academia.

Mark Sochaniwskyj is a nursing student at Toronto Metropolitan University. His research interests include designing and evaluating interventions, social determinants of health, and cardiac health promotion and delivery. Mark has received training through the Volunteer Research Assistant Training Program (VRATP) at Toronto Metropolitan University; and is currently in the process of designing a social media intervention for CONNECT.  He has used his personal experience in undergoing multiple open-heart surgeries to fuel his interest in cardiovascular research and care. He has gained hands-on experience as a clinical extern on the cardiology floor at Humber River Hospital and the Medicine unit at Mississauga Hospital. Mark’s professional and long-term career goals include completing a graduate degree in nursing while also becoming a nurse practitioner to work with cardiac patients and promoting heart health. @MSochaniwskyj

CURRENT MENTEES

1. Ms. Rachel Hamilton (September 2024 - present) is an RN. She is currently working on her PhD in Nursing at the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing at the University of Toronto. Ms. Hamilton’s goals are to engage in innovative research exploring pediatric cancer survivorship and to improve monitoring and evaluation of children following cancer therapy. Ms. Hamilton has previously engaged in a Pediatric Oncology Priority Setting Partnership (PSP) in which data were collected from members of the pediatric oncology community.

2. Mr. Mohammad Goudarzi Rad (September 2022-present) is an experienced ICU nurse who graduated with the Master of Critical Care Nursing program at the Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Iran. He is currently a second-year PhD. student in nursing at the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing, University of Toronto. His research interests are cardiovascular nursing, respiratory depression, and mechanical ventilation. In his Ph.D. project, he is currently evaluating a transcutaneous electrical stimulator for the early treatment of opioid-induced respiratory depression in postoperative patients.

3. Dr. Salima Hemani (September 2022-present) is an RN with a PhD in Nursing from the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing at the University of Toronto. Dr. Hemani has practiced cardiac nursing for over two decades. Her area of research addresses South Asians and their risk for cardiovascular disease, particularly the self-management of chronic disease and adoption of a healthy lifestyle through engagement in preventative strategies such as healthy eating. @SalimaHemani1

4. Herleen Baath (September 2023-March 2024) is an undergraduate nursing student form the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing at the University of Toronto. 

VISITING SCHOLARS

1. Mr. Ariel Costa (June 11, 2024-November 25, 2024) - Visiting PhD student enrolled in the Clinical Care Nursing and Health graduate program at the Universidade Estadual do Ceará (UECE) in Brazil. The focus of Mr. Costa’s research is on evaluating the effectiveness of a renal protection protocol in the assessment and management of contrast-induced nephropathy in heart surgery patients.

Description of the research experience: For this visit, Mr. Costa was provided opportunities to acquire the necessary skills, knowledge, and resources to advance his clinical  practice. He was also provided opportunties to engage in mentorship and collaboration that served to enhance his role as both a cardiothoracic surgical clinician and researcher. As well, he participated in research activities that addressed cardiothoracic surgical challenges; thus allowing him to develop evidence-based interventions that contributed to improving patient outcomes.

2. Dr. Candida Canicali Primo (September 3, 2024 - October 24, 2024) : Visiting Researcher from Departamento de Enfermagem; Programa de Pós-graduação em Enfermagem (PPGENF); Programa de Pós-graduação em Saúde Coletiva (PPGSC); Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo (UFES).

During her research visit, Dr. Primo was provided mentorship related to teaching at both undergraduate and graduate levels. Dr. Primo attended 10 undergraduate, 10 master level, and 5 doctoral classes; participated in class discussion and group facilitation; and developed an understanding of a variety of learning and teaching styles during her visit.

3. Dr. Rafaela Batista dos Santos Pedrosa visiting faculty experience (January 16, 2023-April 15, 2023) – Dr. Pedrosa is a Nurse Scientist and Assistant Professor from the Faculty of Nursing at the University of Campinas (FEnf-UNICAMP) in Brazil. She currently teaches and engages in cardiac research at FEnf-UNICAMP, in addition to coordinating the Cardiac Transplant program at Hospital de Clínicas da UNICAMP. She is also an instructor of the American Heart Association Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support Course and Executive Director of the Nursing Department of the Society of Cardiology of the State of São Paulo (SOCESP) - 2022-2023. Dr. Pedrosa will work closely with Dr. Fredericks on a number of cardiovascular research projects, as part of her training as a Junior Visiting Professor. @rafapedrosa2016

4.  Rosalie Magboo’s mentorship experience (July 3-8, 2022) – Ms. Magboo is from St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, London, United Kingdom. She visited Canada last summer for her travelling fellowship hosted by Dr. Suzanne Fredericks, co-founder of CONNECT. The aim of the fellowship was to establish collaboration with international centres and universities to further develop Ms. Magboo’s PhD programme of work, which focuses on the health-related quality of life and psychosocial effects of the diagnosis and surgical interventions for aortovascular manifestations in Marfan syndrome (MFS) patients. @magboo_rena

5. Professor Julie Sander's visiting faculty experience (October 6, 2019-October 12, 2019)  was hosted by Dr. Suzanne Fredericks. Prof. Sanders is the Director of Clinical Research at St Bartholomew’s Hospital and Clinical Professor of Cardiovascular Nursing at William Harvey Research Institute, Queen Mary University of London. Her area of specialty is cardiothoracic surgery; cardiovascular nursing. She is responsible for developing research and clinical academic career opportunities (internships, MSc, PhD, post-doc) for nurses and allied professionals (AP) in cardiovascular care. She is particularly interested in mortality, morbidity and patient reported outcomes after cardiac surgery; and is the lead for the Society of Cardiothoracic Surgery (SCTS) Nursing. The aim of her research visit was to establish collaboration with international centres and universities to build on her current program of research. @julessanders2