Endowed Chairs and Fellowships

Endowed Chairs help the University of Ottawa Heart Institute (UOHI) attract and support top-calibre researchers. They provide long-term support to areas of research and academia identified as a priority for the Institute. Chairs bring prestige and recognition to our researchers. 

Endowed Fellowships and Graduate Awards build the next generation of cardiovascular experts. They serve as tools to retain current talents and to recruit new talents. These Fellowships and Awards provide salary stipends to postdoctoral fellows, clinical fellows, and graduate students through a peer reviewed, competitive process.

These funding initiatives are made possible by the generous support of donors, the University of Ottawa Cardiac Endowment Fund at the Heart Institute, and the UOHI Foundation.

Endowed Chairs

The Heart Institute offers a total of 14 Endowed Chairs to support our world-renowned physicians and scientists in their leadership, research, and educational activities. 

We are grateful to the donors for their support of these Endowed Chairs.

  • Gordon F. Henderson Chair in Leadership
    Held by the President and CEO, Thierry Mesana, MD PhD
  • Vered Chair in Cardiology 
    Held by the Chief of Cardiology, David Birnie, MD
  • Michael Pitfield Chair in Cardiac Surgery
    Held by the Chief of Cardiac Surgery, Pierre Voisine, MD
  • Endowed Chair in Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgery Research
    Held by an active cardiac surgeon who provides research and academic leadership in cardiac surgery, Marc Ruel, MD
  • Dr. T.G. Messana Endowed Team Chair in Valvular Heart Disease
    Held and co-chaired by one cardiologist and one cardiac surgeon conducting research to advance knowledge of valvular heart disease, Vincent Chan, MD and David Messika-Zeitoun, MD, PhD
  • Donald S. Beanlands Endowed Chair in Cardiology Education
    Held by an active cardiologist who provides leadership in cardiology education, Michael Froeschl, MD
  • Endowed Chair in Electrophysiology Leadership
    Held by the Director of the Electrophysiology Program, Girish Nair, MD
  • Merck Frosst Canada Chair in Atherosclerosis Research
    Held by an Institute researcher leading translational research in atherosclerosis. These funds were established by Merck Frosst in recognition of Drs. Ruth McPherson, Ross Milne, and Yves Marcel, the founders of the Institute’s Lipoproteins and Atherosclerosis Research Group, Ruth McPherson, MD PhD 
  • Minto Chair in Interventional Cardiology Leadership
    Held by the Director of the Interventional Cardiology Program, Derek So, MD
  • Pfizer Chair in Hypertension Research
    Held by a researcher leading hypertension research, Thais Coutinho, MD
  • Saul and Edna Goldfarb Chair in Cardiac Imaging
    Held by an active clinician leading cardiac imaging research, Ian Paterson, MD
  • Women’s Heart Health Research Chair (term Chair)
    Held by a researcher leading women’s heart health research
  • Chair in Cardiac Nursing Held and co-chaired by the vice-presidents of Clinical Services – Administration, Erika McPhee and Bonnie Bowes
  • Dr. J. Earl Wynands Associate Chair in Cardiac Anesthesiology Research
    Held by the Chief of Anesthesiology, Bernard McDonald, MD, PhD

Endowed Fellowships and Scholarships

Strategic Research Fellowships

The Strategic Research Fellowship provides a stipend for a two-year term to a postdoctoral or clinical fellow working in an area of research that aligns with the current Research Strategic Plan. 

2023

  • Noreen Ahmed, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow
    Supervisor: Darryl Davis, MD
    Decoding the Mechanism: Unraveling Inhibition of NLRP3 Inflammasome Activation by Extracellular Vesicles
  • Sergio David Garcia Schejtman, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow
    Supervisors: Erik Suuronen, PhD & Emilio Alarcón, PhD
    Peptide-Based Methylglyoxal Trapping Materials for Heart Repair

2022

  • Jonathan Salazar, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow
    Supervisor: Katey Rayner, PhD
    Prevention of Cerebrovascular Cognitive Impairment Through RIPK1 Regulation
  • Pascal Theriault-Lauzier, MD, PhD, Clinical Research Fellow 
    Supervisor: Derek So, MD
    Deep Learning Algorithm for Prediction of LVEF From Coronary Angiograms
  • Kamal Malhotra PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow 
    Supervisor: Darryl Davis, MD 
    Controlled Delivery of EVs to Reverse Adverse Atrial Remodeling

Division of Cardiology Research Fellowships

These Fellowships provide stipends for up to two years to postdoctoral or clinical fellows conducting research in the Division of Cardiology.

Whit and Heather Tucker Fellowship

Laurie-Anne Boivin Proulx, MD, Clinical Research Fellow
Supervisor: Aun-Yeong Chong, MD
CORonary MIcrovascular Dysfunction Diagnosis Using Artificial Intelligence Algorithms: The CORMIA Trial

Vered-Beanlands Fellowship

Rene Boudreau, MD, Clinical Research Fellow
Supervisors: Derek So, MD & Aun-Yeong Chong, MD
Contemporary Methods of Assessing Competency in Cardiac Catheterization in the Era of Competency-Based Medical Education

Earnest and Margaret Ford Fellowship

Quinton Barry, MD, Clinical Research Fellow
Supervisor: Derek So, MD
Voice-Assisted Artificial Intelligence in the Triage of Patients Suspected of a ST-Elevation Myocardial Infaraction – The VAAI-MI study

Kaufman-Chan Fellowship in Cardiac Imaging

Rebecca Crosier, MD, Clinical Research Fellow
Supervisors: Hassan Mir, MD & Kerri-Anne Mullen, PhD
HER CROWN (Re-examining Her Cardiovascular Risk - Ottawa WomeN's Longitudinal Cohort Study) Echocardiography Sub-study

Lawrence Soloway Research Fellowship in Cardiac Surgery

The Lawrence Soloway Fellowship provides a stipend for up to two years to a postdoctoral or clinical fellow conducting research in the Division of Cardiac Surgery.

Ines Amara, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow
Supervisor: Erik Suuronen, PhD
Effects of Exercise on Methylglyoxal and Healing After Myocardial Infarction

University of Ottawa Cardiac Endowment Fund at the Heart Institute

These awards provide stipends for up to a two-year term to postdoctoral fellow(s) and graduate student(s) based at the Heart Institute and registered with the University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Medicine.

2023-2025

  • Noor Ghadie, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow
    Supervisors: Munir Boodhwani, MD & Michel Labrosse, PhD
    Role of Mechanical Properties and Extracellular Matrix Remodeling in Aortic Health and Disease
  • Maria Alejandra Morales Maldonado, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow
    Supervisor: Peter Liu, MD
    Investigating the Effect Of Insulin Like Growth Factor Binding Protein 7 On Cardiac And Renal Microvasculature In Diabetes Mellitus
  • Donguk Jo, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow
    Supervisor: Jodie Edwards, PhD
    Sex and Gender-Based Analysis In Response To Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation Intervention For Post-Stroke Recovery
  • Mishita Dharia, MSc Candidate
    Supervisor: Mireille Ouimet, PhD
    Activation of Mighty Lipophagy to Combat Atherosclerosis
  • Nathan Joyce, MSc Candidate
    Supervisor: Mireille Ouimet, PhD
    Role of Novel Candidate Lipophagy Regulators in Macrophages
  • Alana Renon, MSc Candidate
    Supervisor: Thomas Lagace, PhD
    Regulation of LDL-Cholesterol by PCSK9 and its Natural Variants

2022-2024

  • Termeh Aslani, MSc Candidate
    Supervisor: Kyoung-Han Kim, PhD
    The Cooperative Role of Irx1 and Irx2 in the Developing Heart
  • Andrew Clément, MSc Candidate
    Supervisor: Erin Mulvihill, PhD
    DPP4 and Novel DPP4 Substrates in Macrophage Polarization and Atherogenicit
  • An Duong, PhD Candidate
    Supervisor: Alexandre Stewart, PhD
    Irf2bp2 Deficient BMDM Protect Female Mice from LPS-Induced QT Prolongation
  • Fariborz Soheili, PhD Candidate
    Supervisor: Alexandre Stewart, PhD
    Genetic Risk Variants Contributing to Arterial Calcification

Heart Institute Research Scholarships

The Heart Institute Research Scholarships provides stipend for a two-year term to graduate students working in an area of research that aligns with the current Research Strategic Plan.

  • Maxime Emmanuel Comtois-Bona, MSc Candidate
    Supervisor: Emilio Alarcón, PhD
    In-Situ 3D Bioprinting of Small Blood Vessels
  • Aidan Macadam, PhD Candidate
    Supervisor: Emilio Alarcón, PhD
    Light-Activated Bioadhesive for Cardiac Repair
  • Jennie Wong, MSc Candidate
    Supervisor: Jennifer Reed, PhD
    Optimal Max & Submax Protocol for Achieving Peak VO2 in Patients with CAD