Scientific Advisory Committee Medical Devices Used in Cardiovascular Systems - Membership List and Biographies

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Membership List and Biographies

Core Members

• John Ducas(Chair), MD, FRCPC
• Luc Bilodeau, MD, FRCPC
• Marino Labinaz, MD, FRCPC, FACC
• Alan Menkis, MD, FRCSC
• Joaquim Miró, MD, FRCPC
• L. Brent Mitchell, MD, FRCPC, FACC
• Tofy Mussivand, PhD, FRSC
• Ratika Parkash, MD, MSc, FRCPC
• Nancy Poirier, MD
• John G. Webb, MD
• Raymond Yee, MD, FRCPC

Ad Hoc Members

• Charles R. Kerr, MD, FRCPC
• Bob Kiaii, BSc, MD, FRCSC
• Stephen Lownie, MD, FRCSC
• John Lewis Sapp Jr., BSc, BSc (Med), MD, FRCPC
• Christopher Simpson, MD, FRCPC, FACC

Related Information: The Summary of Expertise, Experience, Affiliations and Interests for the Scientific Advisory Committee on Medical Devices used in Cardiovascular System accompanies the member biographies. It summarizes the information provided by each member regarding their expertise/experience, and their affiliations and interests, which is required as part of the nominations process.

Core Members

John Ducas (Chair), MD, FRCPC

Interventional Cardiologist, St-Boniface General Hospital
Associate Professor, University of Manitoba
Winnipeg, Manitoba

Biography

John Ducas completed medical school, training in Internal Medicine and Cardiology at McGill University in Montreal. He is an Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Manitoba and an Interventional Cardiologist and CCU Attending at the St. Boniface General Hospital. Previously, he was Head of Cardiology (1998-2002) and Director of Catheterization Laboratories (1998-2005) at the University of Manitoba. He has been a member of various national committees for the Canadian Cardiovascular Society and the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada and provincial committees for the Manitoba Medical Association (now Doctors Manitoba). He is active in clinical research of Acute Coronary Syndromes, Coronary Atherosclerosis and Interventional Cardiology. He has published over 60 papers in peer reviewed journals and 7 book Chapters.

Luc Bilodeau, MD, FRCPC

Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, Montréal Heart Institute
Cardiologist, Catheterization Department, Montréal Heart Institute
Montréal, Québec

Biography

A native of Shawinigan, Luc Bilodeau received a secondary school diploma in 1978 from Sainte-Marie high school. He graduated from Collège de Shawinigan in 1980 from the Pure and Applied Sciences Program. He began his medical training at the University of Laval, and then enrolled in internal medicine, including an intergraded internship in the university hospital associated network. He went on to pursue his studies in Cardiology at the Montréal Heart Institute (1988-90) where during his fellowship, he completed one year in Interventional Cardiology followed by two years at Birmingham, Alabama under the supervision of Garry S. Roubin. Since 1993, he has worked as a research clinician at the Montréal Heart Institute, with interests in percutaneous medical devices and bio-materials. He has published over 40 scientific articles and 140 scientific abstracts. His current fields of research encompass percutaneous replacement valves, peripheral vascular disease and acute coronary syndrome.

Marino Labinaz, MD, FRCPC, FACC

Director, Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory and Interventional Cardiology, Ottawa Heart Institute
Professor, Division of Cardiology, University of Ottawa
Ottawa, Ontario

Biography

Marino Labinaz did his undergraduate and medical training at Queens University followed by a three-year residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Western Ontario. He received his fellowship in Internal Medicine in 1991 and his fellowship in Cardiology in 1992. Following his training in Cardiology, he completed a two-year interventional fellowship at Duke University Medical Centre after which he returned to the Heart Institute as a full time member of the Division of Cardiology in 1994. He is currently a Full Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Ottawa. Clinically, his areas of expertise are in interventional cardiology, acute coronary syndromes and acute cardiac care. He serves as the Director of the Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory and the Interventional Cardiology Fellowship Program at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute. He has published over 185 research publications, presentations, book chapters and reviews. He serves on the editorial board of Current Cardiology Reviews and does reviews for a number of journals including Circulation, the American Heart Journal and the Canadian Journal of Cardiology.

Alan Menkis, MD, FRCSC

Medical Director, Winnipeg Regional Health Authority, Cardiac Sciences Program,
Professor, Cardiac Surgery, University of Manitoba
Winnipeg, Manitoba

Biography

Alan Menkis achieved an MD degree from McMaster University in Hamilton and did postgraduate training in cardiovascular research, internal medicine, and surgery in Hamilton, and Memorial University in Newfoundland. He received general and cardiac surgical training at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute. He has received advanced post fellowship training in mechanical circulatory assist devices in Ottawa and at the University of Utah, in Salt Lake City. He has published extensively and has been the recipient of numerous research grants. In September 2004, he was appointed the Medical Director of the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority (WRHA) Cardiac Sciences Program and the Head of the Section of Cardiac Surgery, University of Manitoba. He is Past President of the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation and Canadian Society of Transplantation. He previously sat on the Clinical Trials Committee of the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, was the former Chairman of Cardiac Surgery at the University of Western Ontario and the London Health Sciences Centre.

Joaquim Miró, MD, FRCPC

Professor, Department of Pediatrics, Université de Montréal
Chief of Cardiac Science Services and Hemodynamic Laboratory, Sainte-Justine Hospital
Montréal, Québec

Biography

Joaquim Miró did his medical training (medical school, paediatric residency, paediatric cardiology) at Université de Montréal, followed by a 2 year fellowship in Paris (post-operative care) and in Boston (interventional catheterisation). Since 1993, he has been a staff cardiologist at Sainte-Justine Hospital (Université de Montreal), and director of the catheterisation laboratory. He has been chief of cardiology since 2003. He is a professor of paediatrics and his areas of expertise include device closure of cardiac defects and stent placement in congenital anomalies.

L. Brent Mitchell, MD, FRCPC, FACC

Professor of Medicine, Department of Cardiac Sciences, Calgary Health Region and University of Calgary
Calgary, Alberta

Biography

L. Brent Mitchell obtained his B.Sc. (Hon) in Biochemistry (1972) and his M.D. (1975) from the University of Calgary. After a Fellowship in Clinical Cardiology at Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, he undertook a Fellowship in Academic Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology at Stanford University Medical Centre, California. He is currently a Professor of Medicine in the Department of Cardiac Sciences at the University of Calgary / Calgary Zone of Alberta Health Services and is a member of the Libin Cardiovascular Institute of Alberta. He has contributed to many pivotal trials in clinical cardiac electrophysiology, most recently as Primary Investigator of the Prophylactic Amiodarone for the Prevention of Arrhythmias that Begin Early After Revascularization, Valve Replacement, or Repair (PAPABEAR) study.

Tofy Mussivand, PhD, FRSC

Director, Cardiovascular Devices Division, University of Ottawa Heart Institute
Professor, Surgery and Engineering, Medical Devices Program, University of Ottawa and Carleton University
Ottawa, Ontario

Biography

Tofy Mussivand received his doctorate in Medical Engineering and Medical Sciences at the University of Akron and Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine. He is a tenured full professor at the University of Ottawa, Faculty of Medicine, cross-appointed to the School of Information Technology and Engineering, and adjunct professor, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Carleton University. He is the Director, Cardiovascular Devices Division, University of Ottawa Heart Institute, and Chair, Medical Devices, University of Ottawa. He is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada (the highest scholarly honor in Canada), and has served the last 3 Canadian prime ministers as a member of the Prime Minister's Advisory Council on Science and Technology.

Ratika Parkash, MD, MSc, FRCPC

Associate Professor of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, Dalhousie University
Halifax, Nova Scotia

Biography

Ratika Parkash received her medical degree at Dalhousie University and has a master's degree in clinical epidemiology from the Harvard School of Public Health that enables her to conduct health services and outcomes studies that complement her clinical research. She is an associate professor at Dalhousie University and full-time staff at the Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre. She is co-principal investigator of a Heart and Stroke Foundation-funded study of the effects of cardiac re-synchronization therapy (CRT) on ventricular arrhythmias in patients with advanced heart failure. She has also received the Greg Ferrier Award, which ranked first in the Heart and Stroke Foundation's 2007 competition, and in 2008 she received a Dalhousie Medical Research Foundation Award of Excellence in Clinical Research for her outstanding accomplishments, and is the recipient of the Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR) Randomized Clinical Trials Mentoring Award.

Nancy Poirier, MD

Associate Professor of Surgery, University of Montréal
Staff surgeon, Ste-Justine's Hospital
Montréal, Québec

Biography

Nancy Poirier received her medical degree (1992) and did her cardiac surgery training (1992-98) at the University of Montreal . Pediatric and adult congenital cardiac surgery training was completed at the University of Toronto and at the Cleveland Clinic. She is Associate Professor of Surgery at the University of Montréal and a staff surgeon at Ste-Justine's Hospital since 2000 where she is also director of the Pediatric Cardiac Transplantation Program and the Pediatric Ventricular Assist Device Program, and the Head of the Multi-organ Transplant Group. Her practice at the Montreal Heart Institute includes the treatment of adult congenital and acquired cardiac disease. She has been on the primary panel of the Canadian consensus reports on the treatment of valvular disease and pediatric transplantation.

John G. Webb, MD

Director of cardiac catheterization and interventional cardiology,  St. Paul's Hospital
Professor, University of British Columbia
Vancouver, British Columbia

Biography

John Webb earned his medical degree at the University of British Columbia in 1982. He is a McLeod Family professor of valvular heart disease intervention at the University of British Columbia. He is also Director of cardiac catheterization and interventional cardiology research at St. Paul's Hospital, Vancouver. He has over 200 publications in peer reviewed journals. His research focus includes transcatheter management of valvular heart disease, adult acquired structural heart disease, coronary artery disease and new device development.

Raymond Yee, MD, FRCPC

Professor, Division of Cardiology, University of Western Ontario
London, Ontario

Biography

Raymond Yee is a Professor in the Division of Cardiology at the University of Western Ontario. He is a medical graduate, with distinction, of the University of Alberta, a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. His clinical expertise is in management of cardiac arrhythmias with particular focus on arrhythmia management devices. He has published over 300 articles in peer-reviewed journals and books. His research has been published in a variety of renowned scientific journals. He is affiliated with several professional associations, is an exam writing committee member for the International Board of Heart Rhythm Examiners, Chair of the Scientific Advisory Committee for Medical Devices Used in the Cardiovascular System for the Medical Device Bureau (Health Canada; 2002-2009) and incoming Chair of the International Standards Organization Technical Committee 150 / Subcommittee 6 on Active Implants.

Ad Hoc Members

Charles R. Kerr, MD, FRCPC

Professor, University of British Columbia
Staff cardiologist, Electrophysiologist, St. Paul's Hospital
Vancouver, British Columbia

Biography

Charles Kerr received his medical degree and specialized in Internal Medicine at the University of British Columbia. He trained from 1979 to 1981 in the Electrophysiology Program at Duke University , North Carolina. He established a clinical and research program in cardiac electrophysiology at the University of British Columbia in 1981. He has chaired the Canadian Registry of Atrial Fibrillation, a group of 8 experts in arrhythmia management across the country who follow a large cohort of patients with atrial fibrillation. He was Head of the Cardiology Division at St. Paul's Hospital and at the University of British Columbia in previous years. He is now the President of the Canadian Cardiovascular Society and the Chair of the Provincial Advisory Panel on Cardiac Health for British Columbia Ministry of Health.

Bob Kiaii, BSc, MD, FRCSC

Associate Professor, Department of Surgery, University of Western Ontario
Cardiovascular Surgeon, London Health Sciences Centre, University Hospital
London, Ontario

Biography

Bob Kiaii obtained his medical degree and training from the University of Western Ontario. He is an Associate Professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of Western Ontario. He is a cardiac surgeon and Director of the Minimally Invasive Robotic Cardiac Surgery Program in the Division of Cardiac Surgery at the London Health Sciences Centre University Hospital. He is also one of the founding members of Canadian Surgical Advanced Technology and Robotics (CSTAR) of the Lawson Health Research Institute. He is one of the most experienced minimally invasive robotic cardiac surgeons nationally and internationally.

Stephen Lownie, MD, FRCSC

Associate Professor, Departments of Neurosurgery, Neuroradiology and Otolaryngology, University of Western Ontario
Co-Chief, Department of Clinical Neurological Sciences, London Health Sciences Centre
London, Ontario

Biography

Stephen Lownie obtained his medical degree at Dalhousie University followed by Neurosurgical residency training at University of Western Ontario (UWO). Subsequent education included a two-year fellowship in diagnostic and interventional Neuroradiology at UWO followed by a one-year neurointerventional fellowship at the University of California, Los Angeles. He is a Neurosurgeon and Neurointerventionalist with a primary interest in vascular diseases of the brain. He is currently Associate Professor in the Departments of Clinical Neurological Sciences, Diagnostic Radiology and Otolaryngology at the University of Western Ontario and London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC), London, Ontario. He served as Chief of the Division of Neurosurgery from 2000 to 2005 and also served as Co-Chair / Co-Chief of the Department of Clinical Neurological Sciences from 2000 to 2010. He has been a staff Neurosurgeon and Neurointerventionlist at LHSC since 1992.

He also enjoys a ten year collaboration with scientist Dr. David Holdsworth at the Robarts Research Institute, serving as Co-Principal Investigator in image-guided neurovascular therapy, and has recently completed of a 10-year project to introduce novel intra-operative angiography equipment into the operating room, which will improve quality of care for neurovascular patients.

John Lewis Sapp Jr., BSc, BSc (Med), MD, FRCPC

Director, Cardiac Electrophysiology Laboratory, QEII Health Sciences Centre
Associate Professor, Dalhousie University
Halifax, Nova Scotia

Biography

John Sapp obtained his medical degree from Dalhousie University. He is a Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiologist at the Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre in Halifax Nova Scotia, where he serves as Director of Cardiac Electrophysiology and Director of the Cardiac Electrophysiology Laboratory. He is an associate professor of medicine at Dalhousie University where he is also cross appointed to the Department of Physiology and Biophysics within the Faculty of Medicine. Research interests include clinical research in cardiac arrhythmia in heart failure, body surface potential mapping during cardiac resynchronization and during catheter ablation of ventricular tachycardia, complex catheter ablation, and clinical research and clinical trials of catheter ablation of ventricular tachycardia.

Christopher Simpson, MD, FRCPC, FACC

Chief of Cardiology, Queen's University
Medical Director, Cardiac Program, Kingston General Hospital / Hotel Dieu Hôpital
Kingston, Ontario

Biography

Christopher Simpson obtained his medical degree in 1992 from Dalhousie University, and completed Internal Medicine and Cardiology training at Queen's. He subsequently completed a Heart and Stroke Foundation Research Fellowship in Cardiac Electrophysiology at the University of Western Ontario under the supervision of Dr. George Klein. He is a professor of Medicine and Chief of Cardiology at Queen's University as well as the Medical Director of the Cardiac Program at Kingston General Hospital / Hotel Dieu Hôpital. He sits on numerous editorial boards and advisory committees and has chaired or been a member of several national and international consensus conferences. He is an author or co-author of over 150 peer-reviewed papers and abstracts.