Co-Scientific Leads
André Carpentier
Dr. André Carpentier’s research interests include: 1) the role of postprandial fatty acid metabolism in the development of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases; 2) the investigation of brown adipose tissue metabolism in diabetes; and 3) the anti-diabetic mechanisms of bariatric surgery. He is also involved in translational research in collaboration with private partners using in vivo investigations techniques his laboratory develops to help advance diagnostic and treatment of diabetes and lipid disorders.
Gary F. Lewis
The Lewis lab has had a long interest in the mechanisms of various aspects of diabetic dyslipidemia, including postprandial lipemia, HDL lowering and hypertriglyceridemia. We have also had a long standing interest in the mechanisms of type 2 diabetes. Previously we have performed both animal and human mechanistic studies but currently are focusing exclusively on the human.
Researcher List
Mohammed Al-Omran
Dr. Mohammed Al-Omran is a clinician investigator and currently appointed as a Scientist at the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael’s Hospital and a Full Member at the Institute of Medical Science (IMS). His research interests include: atherosclerosis bench to bedside with a special interest in peripheral arterial disease and Diabetic Foot; clinical epidemiology and health services research with a focus on using large healthcare administrative databases to conduct population-based analyses of individuals with aortic, carotid, and peripheral arterial disease; knowledge translation; and systematic reviews and meta-analyses.
Geoffrey Anderson
Dr. Geoff Anderson’s professional interests include clinical effectiveness, health services outcome and evaluation, health services organization and management, knowledge transfer, acute pre-hospital and emergency care, community and home care, and the health care system. His research focuses on reducing health disparities and promoting equity for vulnerable populations, applying measures of access and outcomes at a national level, techniques to improve prescription drug utilization, outcomes of hospital staffing, maternity care guideline implementation demonstration, and improved techniques for analyzing cesarean section rates.
Neil Andersson
Dr. Neil Andersson has three decades of experience designing and managing evidence-based primary health care research initiatives. In 1985, he founded CIET, a group of NGOs, institutes, foundations and charities dedicated to community-based research and planning. His main research interests are related to primary prevention in areas such as diabetes, dengue, HIV, gender violence and maternal mortality. He has supported Indigenous communities in Canada to pursue their own research objectives, often relating to diabetes and cultural resilience for over 20 years. A specific project related to diabetes worked towards revitalizing traditional foodways to reduce diabetes risk across First Nations communities.
Ananya Tina Banerjee
Dr. Ananya Banerjee’s unique dual training in qualitative and quantitative research methods enables her to study the social determinants and lived experiences of diabetes among South Asian migrant communities living in Canada and design health promotion programs for this high-risk ethnic population. The focus of her public health research exemplifies a commitment to providing a strong foundation in methodology guided by principles of the socio-ecological framework, intersectionality, community-based participatory research and cultural safety.
Ereny Bassilious
Dr. Ereny Bassilious’s academic interests are in medical education research, particularly in interprofessional education and technology enhanced patient education. Her current study examines the role of numeracy in diabetes management for teens with type 1 diabetes and the effect of an innovative video game intervention on numeracy skills. Dr. Bassilious has an academic and clinical interest in pediatric obesity and type 2 diabetes
Mathieu Bélanger
The primary focus of Dr. Mathieu Belanger’s research program is to develop a better understanding of how behaviours develop and change over time, particularly with regard to participation in physical activity. Specific aspects of the research include identifying determinants of behavioural change and investigating the effects of behaviour change on health outcomes, including the management of diabetes. Other determinants of optimal diabetes care are also investigated from an epidemiological perspective using administrative databases.
Onil Bhattacharyya
Dr. Onil Bhattacharyya, Frigon-Blau Chair in Family Medicine Research, works closely with policy makers and system partners to evaluate new virtual care models that address system needs and are poised to scale, particularly for patients with complex needs. His research focuses on implementing new virtual care models within a particular clinical context and modifying them until he finds a balance between benefits and barriers for both patients and providers. Addressing factors such as the right features, which clinical model it supports, who is likely to benefit and what types of benefits can be expected help to improve a tool’s successful implementation.
Denis P. Blondin
Denis P. Blondin is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences at the Université de Sherbrooke and researcher at the Centre de recherche du Centre hospitalier universitaire de Sherbrooke (CRCHUS). His research focuses primarily on identifying organs, mechanisms and therapeutic strategies that can be stimulated to dissipate excess energy and investigating the impact of differentially timed lifestyle interventions on preventing the development of type 2 diabetes (TIMED consortium).
Gillian Booth
Dr. Gillian Booth’s research focuses on health outcomes related to diabetes; specifically how socioeconomic, environmental and health care factors influence the risk of diabetes and its complications. She has extensive experience in using large provincial health care and survey databases, and in using geographic information systems (GIS) methodology to study contextual factors influencing the development of diabetes. One of her major research interests is on the built environment and its role in the obesity and diabetes epidemics.
Jim Bowen
Jim has been a member of the DAC team since 2018, in the role of Program Manager within the Health Technology Assessment and Network Analytics group. Diabetes research is a major focus and he brings a wide range of skills in health technology assessment, health services research, quantitative research, clinical trials and observational study design. Current work includes the use of provincial administrative data to guide diabetic retinopathy screening, a developmental evaluation to guide the development of a foot and wound care pathway for individuals living with diabetes and the network evaluation for Diabetes Action Canada.
