St. Mary's Research Center hosts several monthly knowledge transfer events. Do not hesitate to step in!
These presentation can be credited to clinical staff (Continuing Medical Education). Contact: Christina Raneburger
SMRC Scientific Series
SMRC Scientific Series take place twice a month on Thursdays from 12pm to 1pm.

September 15th 2023 - Dr. Anthony Albers
Osteoarthritis: Myths and Misconceptions
This conference aims to educate and inform the public about the myths and misconceptions surrounding osteoarthritis. In addition, participants will have the chance to learn about joint health, disease prevention and treatment.
Dr. Albers completed his medical school and orthopaedic residency training at McGill University, followed by subspecialty training in adult hip and knee reconstruction at the University of British Columbia. He holds a position of assistant professor of surgery at McGill University and is actively involved in teaching medical students, residents and fellows. He is also the current director of orthopaedic research at St-Mary’s Hospital. His research interests include technology adoption in orthopaedics, outcomes of total hip and knee arthroplasty, surgical robotics and outpatient total joint replacements. Dr. Albers has received numerous teaching awards including the McGill Division of Orthopaedic Surgery Educator of the Year for 2018, the Harvey H. Sigman Undergraduate Teaching Excellence Award in 2020 and the Robert Turcotte Altruistic Patient Care award in 2022. His clinical focus is the treatment of hip and knee arthritis, specifically all facets of hip and knee arthroplasty. He strives to deliver optimized care in a bilingual environment, leading his patients to the best possible functional outcomes.

7 SEPTEMBRE 2023 - Walter Marcantoni, Ph.D
Efficacy of intravenous ketamine infusion for treatment resistant depression
Cette conférence examine l'efficacité des infusions intravéneuse de kétamine sur les patients atteints de dépression résistante aux traitements, évaluant les scores de dépression, les taux de rémission et les réponses. Ce travail cherche à évaluer les effets à court et long terme, ainsi que la fréquence optimale des traitements. La conférence vise à révéler le potentiel de la kétamine en tant que solution novatrice pour la dépression résistante au traitement.
Walter Marcantoni a obtenu son doctorat en neuropsychologie à l'Université du Québec à Montréal. Après ses études doctorales, le Dr Marcantoni a poursuivi sa formation académique en tant que chercheur post-doctoral à l'Université McGill, où il a reçu une bourse de la Société Alzheimer du Canada pour son travail sur des études examinant le stress comme facteur prédictif de la maladie d'Alzheimer. Après ses études postdoctorales, le Dr Marcantoni a passé plusieurs années dans le milieu universitaire, notamment à l'Université Concordia, où il continue à donner des cours dans le domaine des neurosciences et des statistiques. Le Dr Marcantoni est membre de l'UETMISSS du CIUSSS- de l'Ouest-de-l'Île-de-Montréal depuis 2018, et responsable de l'unité depuis 2022.


June 1st 2023 - Dr. Julia Chabot & Sophia Mondestin
Music Interventions for the Facilitation of Sleep in the Acute Geriatric Setting: a 3-arm Randomized Controlled Trial
This feasibility study examined the impact of music and non-musical sound listening interventions on the facilitation of sleep for patients admitted to the geriatric assessment unit (GAU). A questionnaire was used to measure patients’ subjective view of their sleep quality, and secondary outcomes such as mood, pain level, and number of medications used for sleep were also measured
Dr. Julia Chabot is a geriatrician working at St. Mary’s Hospital. She completed a master’s degree in psychology research at Université de Montréal and her research interest is about the use of music in the geriatric population.
Sophia Mondestin is currently a 5th year Geriatric Medicine resident at McGill University. She completed her medical degree and Internal Medicine residency at McGill University as well. She will be starting her practice in Geriatric Medicine in Gatineau, QC this upcoming fall.

May 18th, 2023 - Hinatea Lai, MSc & Bertine Sandra Akouamba, PhD
Self-care for mental health: concept definition and models
The purpose of this conference is to present the results of the Self-Care for Mental Health project. The results of this work have led to the development of a definition of the concept of self-care and the proposal of an ecological model of self-care in mental health.
Hinatea Lai holds a Master's degree in Public Health from the Université de Montréal. She will join the team of the Unité d'évaluation des technologies et modes d'intervention en santé et services sociaux (UETMIS-SS) of CIUSSS de l'ouest-de-l'ile-de-Montréal (CIUSSS ODIM) in 2019.
Bertine Sandra Akouamba holds a PhD in microbiology and immunology from the Université de Montréal. She has been working in technology assessment and intervention methods (TAMI) for over 11 years. First, at CHU Sainte-Justine in 2012; then at INESSS in 2016; and since 2018, at UETMIS-SS of CIUSSS ODIM

May 4th,2023 - Sydney Wasserman
Coping-Together Advanced: Evaluating the acceptability of Coping-Together for patients with advanced cancer and their caregivers
The aim of this qualitative study is to evaluate the acceptability of Coping-Together, a self-directed self-management intervention originally developed for patients with an early-stage cancer and their caregivers, among patients with advanced cancer and their caregivers.
Sydney Wasserman is a registered nurse clinician and has been working clinically at the Emergency Department, while also conducting research in the field of psychosocial oncology under the supervision of Dr. Sylvie Lambert

April 20th 2023 - Dorothy Williams PhD
Exploring Black care-giving in Quebec predating the 20th century
- Origins of Blacks as caregivers during Quebec's period of enslavement.
- Evolution of Black caregivers as household and institutional labour.
Dr. Williams will address caregiving's legacy of marginalization affected community development, migration, and demography in Quebec throughout the past centuries.
Photo by Muhammad-taha Ibrahim (Unsplash)

March 30th, 2023 - Dan Bilsker Phd
Supported self-management (SSM) for depression:
A 15-year project
Dr. Dan Bilsker is a Director of Vancouver Psych Safety, a consulting firm, Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of BC and an Adjunct Professor at Simon Fraser University. The conference will focus on The Antidepressant Skills Workbook, a tool developed to improve supported self-management of depression.
The Antidepressant Skills Workbook was developed to enhance supported self- management of depression. It is available for free download in 7 languages and is evidence-based, user-friendly and feasible for wide dissemination. It has been downloaded over 2 million times globally.
The surprising potential of supported self-management for depression will be discussed.

March 16, 2023 - Jeannie Haggerty Phd & Victoria Wicks MSc(c)
Jobs To Be Done:
A new perspective on needs assessment
Needs assessments are used to identify how product or services can better meet the gap between a current state and a desired outcome for a target group. The Jobs to Be Done Theory focuses on why that gap matters.
What started out as a project to understand patients’ top needs in navigating the health system turned into a broader exploration of the functional, emotional and social dimensions of that need to better identify relevant solutions.
Photo by Maksym Kaharlytskyi on Unsplash

February 16, 2023 - Miriam Carver et Tamara Carver
Let’s Talk Conflict!
We all experience differences of opinion and conflicts every single day in both our work and home lives. Yet for the most part we are not educated in how to talk to each other in these situations, so we either avoid them all together because we’re afraid to make things worse, or perhaps we jump right in and create the outcomes we most fear. The reality is that however good or bad we are at dealing with conflict we can learn to be better.
Following this talk you will be able to:
- Define what conflict is
- Identify approaches to use when you are facing differences of opinion or conflicts
- Explore triggers to escalating conflict
- Apply a simple and effective process to use when having difficult conversations
It will be a highly interactive and engaging session and we look forward to meeting and working with you.
Invited Speakers:
Miriam Carver MEd, President of Carver Institute Inc., an organizational development firm providing learning and consulting services to a wide variety of clients across North America and globally. She is an expert in the field of conflict resolution and is a certified international workplace mediator.
Tamara Carver PhD, Director of the Office of Ed-TECH (Education Technology and E-learning Collaboration for Health) for the McGill University Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. She is an Associate Professor at the Institute of Health Sciences Education and an Associate Member of the Department of Surgery.
Photo by Tim Gouw sur Unsplash

January 26, 2023 - John William Kayser RN, PhD, CPMHN(C)®
The implementation of Strengths-Based Nursing and Healthcare at the Montreal West Island Integrated University Health and Social Services Centre
John William Kayser is a Senior Nursing Advisor in the Nursing Directorate of the Montréal West Island CIUSSS, a member of the SBNH Clinical Partnership Group, and a lecturer at the Ingram School of Nursing, McGill University.
Strengths-Based Nursing and Healthcare Leadership (SBNH-L) provides a value-driven philosophy intending to humanize our fragmented healthcare system. This approach is founded upon a unique partnership across three health networks and their academic centre, the Ingram School of Nursing, McGill that shares a common goal and commitment to a culture of lifelong learning and excellence in nursing.
The challenge is how to translate this philosophy into nursing leadership and clinical practice, which targets behaviours, beliefs and attitudes of care among diverse stakeholders at all levels of our healthcare system.
The objective of this presentation is to describe the strategic approach to implementation of SBNH at the Montréal West Island CIUSSS and across three University Health Networks in Montreal.

December 15, 2022 - Guillaume Fontaine, RN, PhD
An introduction to Implementation Science and an overview of key considerations for successful implementation efforts
This webinar will explore the historical roots, disciplinary origins and rationale of Implementation Science and provide an overview of models, theories, frameworks and tools that can be used in research and on the field to implement and evaluate innovations.
Guillaume Fontaine is a researcher at the Center for Nursing Research at the Jewish General Hospital and a Banting Postdoctoral Fellow (CIHR) in the Clinical Epidemiology Program at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. He is also a member of the Center for Implementation Research and the Psychology and Health Research Group at The Ottawa Hospital. (Presentation in French)
Where are the missing cancer cases? How the pandemic will keep impacting cancer prevention and care into the future
February 2nd 2023, 12pm to 1pm
https://mcgill.zoom.us/j/88577307205
The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the entire continuum of cancer control and care, from prevention to screening to diagnosis to treatment. These changes are expected to influence cancer outcomes for years to come.
This presentation will focus on how decision modeling can help predict and prepare for changes in the future, how decisions made today can influence cancer tomorrow, and what are the data gaps that still exist for assessing and improving future trends in cancer, especially in more vulnerable populations.
Talía Malagón is an epidemiologist, mathematical modeller, and academic associate in the Gerald Bronfman Department of Oncology at McGill University.
Leveraging the Power of the Community to Improve Cancer Survivorship
January 19, 2023, 12pm-1pm
https://mcgill.zoom.us/j/88577307205
Dr Garland will describe how her partnerships with people with lived experience and community cancer organizations has helped to:
- Build the evidence base for the effectiveness of interventions to improve sleep health and other symptoms in cancer survivors
- Understand and advocate for the needs of young adults with cancer
- Increase access to research opportunities and evidence-based treatments through virtual and mobile technologies.
Dr. Sheila Garland is a registered clinical psychologist and associate professor of psychology and oncology at Memorial University and Senior Scientist with the Beatrice Hunter Cancer Research Institute. Her research bridges the areas of psychology, oncology, and sleep medicine.
Towards excellence in cancer control research
January 12, 2023, 12pm to 1pm
https://mcgill.zoom.us/j/88577307205
Dr Anita Koushik will present her research on cancer in females.
- Influence of modifiable lifestyle factors on cancer risk and survivorship
- Biological factors considerations
- Secular trends in lifestyle and other behaviours
Dr Koushik is a full professor at the University of Montreal (Department of Social and Preventive Medicine) and a researcher at the CHUM Research Center (CRCHUM) in the Health Risks axis.