Our People
The Team
The CaRDM Eq training program is supported by a multidisciplinary research team and more than 30 industry, community, academic, and clinical collaborators.
Working together, they will provide unique technical, professional, and experiential training to ensure graduates are able to transition successfully into highly in-demand careers.
Meet our team!
Research Team
Program Co-Directors
Senior Scientist, KITE Research Institute at UHN
Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering,
U of T
Distinguished Professor, Mechanical & Biomedical Engineering, U of T
Scientific Director, Translational Biology & Engineering Program
TRANSFORM HF Co-Lead
Field-Ready Point-of-Care Diagnostic Devices Experts
Alana Ogata (she/her), Chair, Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, and Anti-Racism Committee
Assistant Professor of Chemistry, U of T
Professor of Mechanical Engineering, U of T
Wearable and Embedded Sensors Experts
Leyla Soleymani, Research Theme Lead
Associate Professor of Engineering Physics and Biomedical Engineering, McMaster University
Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Biomedical Engineering, U of T
Digital Health Implementation Experts
Associate Professor, Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, U of T
Program Committee
The CaRDM Eq Program Committee guides the strategic direction of the program, evaluates its progress, and assesses its overall impact. Committee members include:
- Prof. Milos Popovic, Chair (Director of the KITE Research Institute, University Health Network & Institute for Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto)
- Prof. John A. Rogers (Northwestern University)
- Dr. Melanie Kok (
- Dr. Mike McDonald (Martha Rogers Chair in Heart Failure Training and Education in TRCHR)
- Shay Chavoshian (CaRDM Eq trainee)
Collaborators
Industry
- ams OSRAM Group
- Boehringer Ingelheim Canada Limited
- Hoffman-La Roche Limited
- Klick Applied Sciences
- Loblaw Companies Ltd.
- ZS
Community
- Dixon Hall Neighbourhood Services
- Indigenous Friends Association
- People With Lived Experience
- Unison Community and Health Services
- Weeneebakyo Area Health Authority
Clinical
- University Health Network
- Ted Rogers Centre for Heart Research
Academic Institutions
- Ideation Clinic, U of T
- International Centre for Translational Digital Health
- McMaster University
- Northwestern University
- Translational Biology and Engineering Program, U of T
- University of Toronto
Institutional Collaborators
- Anne Simard, UHN
- Angela Mashford-Pringle, U of T
- Daniel Capurro, University of Melbourne
- Dionne Aleman, U of T
- Jodie Jenkinson, U of T Mississauga
- John Rogers, Northwestern University
- Joseph Cafazzo, U of T
- Joseph Ferenbok, U of T
- Julia Abelson, McMaster University
- Mansoor Husain, U of T
- Mike McDonald, U of T
- Nicholas Woolridge, U of T Mississuaga
- Niels Peek, University of Manchester
- Sheila Gariepy, TRANSFORM HF patient partner
- William Dixon, University of Manchester
- Wendy Chapman, University of Melbourne
- Zahra Shakeri, U of T
Program Management Team
- Anne Simard (Director, Strategy & Translation, TRANSFORM HF; Staff Scientist, UHN)
- Augusta Lipscombe (Research & Communications Specialist, TRANSFORM HF)
- Samantha Engbers (
For questions about the program – please direct all inquires to Augusta Lipscombe at a.lipscombe@utoronto.ca.
Our Trainees
By 2029, CaRDM Eq will have equipped over 120 graduates with the skillsets and perspectives to translate in-demand digital health technologies that are impactful and equitable.
Welcome to our Inaugural CaRDM Eq Cohort!
Anthony Yong
Doctoral Student, Department of Chemistry, U of T
Supervised by Dr. Aaron Wheeler
Behrad TaghiBeyglou (he/him)
Doctoral Student, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, U of T
Supervised by Dr. Azadeh Yadollahi
Delaram Sadatamin
Doctoral Student, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, U of T
Supervised by Dr. Azadeh Yadollahi
Fatima Shafique
Doctoral Student, School of Biomedical Engineering, McMaster University
Supervised by Dr. Leyla Soleymani
Hugo Higueros (he/him)
Doctoral Student, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, U of T
Supervised by Dr. Daniel Franklin
Kevin Da (he/him)
Masters Student, Insitute of Biomedical Engineering, U of T
Supervised by Dr. Craig Simmons
Ruben Castillo Barberi
Masters Student, Department of Chemistry, U of T
Supervised by Dr. Alana Ogata
Ryan Li
Masters Student, Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, U of T
Supervised by Dr. Xinyu Liu
Samantha Unger
Doctoral Student, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, U of T
Supervised by Dr. Daniel Franklin
Sarvath Sharma
Masters Student, Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, U of T
Supervised by Dr. Ofer Levi
Serine Sahakyan (she/her)
Doctoral Student, Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, U of T
Supervised by Dr. Emily Seto
Shay Chavoshian (she/her)
Doctoral Student, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, U of T
Supervised by Dr. Azadeh Yadollahi
Sidy Ndiongue
Masters Student, Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, U of T
Supervised by Dr. Ofer Levi
Tselot Tessema (she/her)
Doctoral Student, Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, U of T
Supervised by Dr. Enid Montague
Zefang Zhang
Doctoral Student, Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, U of T
Supervised by Dr. Xinyu Liu
NSERC Acknowledgement
The Translating Cardiovascular Remote Monitoring and Diagnostic Technologies for Health Equity (CaRDM Eq) is a CREATE training program funded by NSERC that will train the next generation of digital cardiovascular health innovators to design for equity.
We acknowledge the support of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). Nous remercions le Conseil de recherches en sciences naturelles et en génie du Canada (CRSNG) de son soutien.
