ICORD - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Research Staff Member
- President 's Academic Excellence Initiative PhD Award, UBC
Job Titles:
- President
- Optics and Photonics Education Scholarship ( SPIE )
- Top Trainee Poster Presentation ( UBC, Faculty of Medicine )
President's Academic Excellence Initiative PhD Award (UBC)
Job Titles:
- Administrative Staff Member
Job Titles:
- President
- Research Staff Member
- Trainee Travel Award, the Rick Hansen Foundation
President's Academic Excellence Initiative PhD Award, UBC
Job Titles:
- Experimental Medical Research Day )
Job Titles:
- Doctoral Trainee Competition ( Canadian Association on Gerontology )
Job Titles:
- Administrative Staff Member
Job Titles:
- Medtronic Spinal Research Award for Best Paper ( Spine Society of Australia Annual Scientific Meeting )
Job Titles:
- Women's & Children 's Professional Development Scholarship Fund
Job Titles:
- Investigator
- Member of F2N2
- Member of SCIRE
- Member of the International Non - Traumatic SCI Study Group
Dr. Townson is a member of SCIRE, the Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation Evidence Project. SCIRE is a multi-domain, multi-group project working to bring together rehabilitation evidence to improve the health of people living with SCI. By accessing the work of SCIRE, health care providers and patients can use the latest research evidence in spinal cord rehabilitation and apply it immediately in the clinical setting. As a member, Dr. Townson helps to review knowledge on SCI and improve its clinical use.
Dr. Townson is a member of F2N2, otherwise known as Fatigue and Function of Neuromuscular and Neurological conditions. This team of investigators, which includes Drs. Bill Miller, Hugh Anton, Sue Forwell, and Catherine Backman (Department of Occupational Science & Occupational Therapy, University of British Columbia), is attempting to address the debilitating effects of fatigue by developing improved measures and strategies to cope with this secondary health condition.
Dr. Townson is also a member of the International Non-Traumatic SCI Study Group (NTSCI), led by Dr. Peter New from the Caulfield Hospital in Australia and including co-investigators from eight other countries.
Job Titles:
- Associate
- Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Lungpacer Medical Inc
Dr. Hoffer is the Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Lungpacer Medical Inc., a SFU spin-out company that is developing a new, minimally invasive approach for pacing the diaphragm in critically ill, mechanically ventilated patients who are at risk of failing to regain independent breathing due to rapid atrophy of the diaphragm muscle.
Choi, WJ, Hoffer, JA, Robinovitch, SN. 2010. The effect of positioning on the biomechanical performance of soft shell hip protectors.. J Biomech. doi: 10.1016/j.jbiomech.2009.11.023.
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor
- Principal Investigator
Dr. Mortenson is an Associate Professor in the Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia. He is also an Adjunct Professor at the Simon Fraser University and is a Principal Investigator at ICORD. He completed his B.Sc. in Occupational Therapy at the University of Alberta, followed by his M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Rehabilitation Science at the University of British Columbia. He completed his post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Montreal, funded by a CIHR grant, and a post-doctoral fellowship at the Simon Fraser University, funded by a Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship Award.
Job Titles:
- Principal Investigator
- Surgeon
- Clinical Research
Dr. Kwon is a surgeon-scientist with advanced training in spine surgery and also a PhD in neuroscience. He is a Professor in the UBC Department of Orthopaedics. As an attending orthopaedic spine surgeon at Vancouver General Hospital his practice is focused on the management of adult spine trauma, spinal cord injuries, and non-traumatic conditions such as spine infection, deformity, and degeneration. As a neuroscientist and Principal Investigator at ICORD, Dr. Kwon runs an active basic/translational research laboratory. Dr. Kwon is currently also serving as the Associate Director, Clinical Research, for ICORD and is the Director of Research for the Vancouver Spine Research Program.
Job Titles:
- Investigator
- Member of the Canwheel Team With Dr. Bill Miller
Dr. Birch is the Executive Director of the Neil Squire Society and a Principal Investigator at ICORD. He is also an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of British Columbia. He obtained his B.Sc. in electrical engineering and a Ph.D. from the University of British Columbia.
Dr. Birch is also a member of the Canwheel team with Dr. Bill Miller.
Job Titles:
- Clinical Professor
- Investigator
- Member of F2N2
Dr. Anton is a Clinical Professor in the Division of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the University of British Columbia. He is also the Clinical Research Coordinator for the GF Strong Rehabilitation Centre and an Investigator at ICORD. Dr. Anton completed both a B.Sc. and an M.D. at the University of Calgary.
Dr. Anton is a member of F2N2, otherwise known as Fatigue and Function of Neuromuscular and Neurological conditions. This team of investigators, which includes Drs. Bill Miller, Andrea Townson, Sue Forwell, Noah Silverberg (Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia), and Catherine Backman (Department of Occupational Science & Occupational Therapy, University of British Columbia), is attempting to address the debilitating effects of fatigue by developing improved measures and strategies to cope with this secondary health condition.
Job Titles:
- Principal Investigator
- Canadian Research Chair in Rehabilitation Engineering Design at the British Columbia Institute of Technology
Dr. Borisoff is the Canadian Research Chair in Rehabilitation Engineering Design at the British Columbia Institute of Technology. He is also a Research Director at BCIT and an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy and the Biomedical Engineering Program, both at the University of British Columbia, as well as a Principal Investigator at ICORD. He completed his B.A.Sc. in engineering physics and his Ph.D. in neuroscience at the University of British Columbia.
Job Titles:
- Interim Director
- Preclinical Discovery Research
Dr. Marcel Dvorak speaks with Studio 4 host Fanny Kiefer about spinal cord injury and his work in collecting observational data to better understand spinal cord injuries.
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor
- Principal Investigator
Dr. Kozlowski is an Associate Professor in the Departments of Radiology and Urologic Sciences at the University of British Columbia. He is a Principal Investigator at ICORD and Associate Director of the UBC Magnetic Resonance Imaging Research Centre. He is also an Associate Member of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of British Columbia and a Research Scientist at the Vancouver Prostate Centre. Dr. Kozlowski obtained his M.Sc. at the Jagiellonian University and his Ph.D. at the Institute of Nuclear Physics in Krakow, Poland.
In his work on prostate cancer, Dr. Kozlowski developed a diagnostic tool which combines two MRI techniques in order to detect tumours with greater sensitivity. He also determined that using MRI to detect a particular organic compound called EF5 is not suitable for assessing oxygen loss in prostate tumours. This helped clarify useful diagnostic techniques for detecting prostate cancer.
Myelin water mapping is a technique for measuring myelin content. Dr. Kozlowski demonstrated that myelin water mapping is possible in the spinal cord. This technique has the potential to be a valuable tool for studying myelin damage in spinal cord injuries. Dr. Kozlowski also developed an improved method of myelin water mapping which gives increased spatial detail.
Highly prefocused selective pulses - a tool for in-vivo 31 P spectroscopic imaging
Dr. Elliot covers sexuality in males with SCI, as well as aspects of health that need to be considered.
Job Titles:
- Clinical Professor
- Principal Investigator / Clinical Professor, Departments of Psychiatry and Urologic Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia / Medical Director, BC Centre for Sexual Medicine
Dr. Elliott is a Clinical Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Urologic Sciences at the University of British Columbia and a Principal Investigator at ICORD. She is the Medical Director of the BC Centre for Sexual Medicine, Co-Director for the Vancouver Sperm Retrieval Clinic, and Physician Consultant to the GF Strong Sexual Health Rehabilitation Service and a continuing affiliate of the PCSC program. She is also a past Chair of the Canadian Male Sexual Health Council.
With Dr. Krassioukov and Dr. Phillips, Dr. Elliott performed vibrostimulation while measuring cerebral blood flow during AD (induced by vibrostimulation) using Transcranial Doppler tests in the middle and posterior cerebral arteries, as well as a newly-developed volumetric technique using duplex ultrasound of the internal carotid and vertebral arteries: this demonstrated extreme BP liability and potential endothelial damage along with queries on vascular cognitive impairment (VCI) in individuals with SCI. Dr. Elliott and her colleagues, being part of an international study in peripartum issues for women after SCI, found a surprisingly high rate of autonomic dysreflexia in women with cervical SCI while breastfeeding not previously reported in the literature. Dr. Elliott was part of the development of the Sexual Device Manual for Persons with Disabilities (provided by funding from the Disabilities Health Research Network). She, Dr. Andrei Krassioukov and two Masters of Occupational Therapy Masters students were in charge of developing a manual containing research, clinical expertise, and product information; all is intended for health care professionals and their clients.
Dr. Elliott has been integral in providing her expertise in the educational modules and magazine articles for both SCIRE and SCI-BC. As part of her work with Canadian Paraplegic Association Ontario and Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, Dr. Elliott is developing the sexuality and fertility components for the online SCI University (SCI-U), a program designed for e-learning about healthy living with spinal cord injury. It offers a repository of information, resources, and tools for the SCI community.
With fellow PI Dr. Jaimie Borisoff, Dr. Elliott has also worked on pilot studies with the BrainPort. The BrainPort is a sensory substitution device which is commonly used with a video camera to translate visual information into a stimulation pattern that is displayed on the user's tongue. With Dr. Borisoff, Dr. Elliott has shown that the use of the BrainPort tongue device has the potential to re-awaken some sexual sensory signals below the level of an SCI . She hopes to continue to participate in newer research on neuromodulation as noted above.
Job Titles:
- Principal Investigator
- Member of F2N2
Dr. Forwell is a member of F2N2, otherwise known as Fatigue and Function of Neuromuscular and Neurological conditions. This team of investigators includes Drs. Bill Miller, Hugh Anton, Andrea Townson, and Catherine Backman. The F2N2 is comprehensively addressing the debilitating effects of fatigue by developing improved measures and strategies to cope with this secondary health condition.
Hynes, SM, Ghahari, S, Forwell, SJ. 2019. "Waiting for Science to Catch up with Practice": an examination of 10-year YouTube trends in discussions of chronic cerebral spinal venous insufficiency treatment for multiple sclerosis.. Inform Health Soc Care. doi: 10.1080/17538157.2019.1582052.
Job Titles:
- Principal Investigator
- Member of F2N2
- Professor
Dr. Miller is a Professor in the Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy at the University of British Columbia. He also holds a joint appointment with the UBC School of Rehabilitation Sciences and is a Principal Investigator at ICORD. He pursued his B.Sc. in occupational therapy at the University of British Columbia, followed by an M.Sc. and a Ph.D. at the University of Western Ontario and a Post-Doctoral Fellowship back at the University of British Columbia.
Dr. Miller is a member of F2N2, otherwise known as Fatigue and Function of Neuromuscular and Neurological conditions. This team of local investigators, which includes ICORD clinical scientists Drs. Hugh Anton, Sue Forwell, and Andrea Townson, is attempting to address the debilitating effects of fatigue by developing improved measures and strategies to cope with this secondary health condition.
Dr. Miller research program also features the development and evaluation of clinical outcome measures. The focus of his work to date relates to measures of wheelchair seating and mobility as well as tools designed to capture information on confidence with ambulation and wheelchair use.
Job Titles:
- Fellowship Health Professional ( CIHR )
Job Titles:
- Research Staff Member
- President 's Academic Excellence Initiative PhD Award ( UBC )
Job Titles:
- Resident Research Award for Best Paper ( North Pacific Orthopaedic Society, 85th Annual Meeting )
Job Titles:
- Undergraduate Student Research Award ( Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada )
Job Titles:
- Chairman, Clinical Spinal Cord Injury Research, University of British Columbia / Scientific Director, Rick Hansen Institute
Job Titles:
- Killam Graduate Teaching Assistant Award [Nominee] ( UBC )
President's Staff Award for Emerging Leadership (UBC)
Job Titles:
- Administrative Staff Member
Job Titles:
- President
- President 's Academic Excellence Initiative PhD Award, UBC
Job Titles:
- UBC Delegate for the Canadian National Medical Students Research Symposium ( CNMSRS )
Job Titles:
- Undergraduate Student Research Award ( Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada )
Job Titles:
- Administrative Staff Member
Job Titles:
- Administrative Staff Member
Job Titles:
- Dean 's Best Thesis Award, UBC Faculty of Applied Science
Job Titles:
- Undergraduate Student Research Award ( Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada )
Job Titles:
- Communications & Administrative Manager
Job Titles:
- Senior Administrative Assistant
Job Titles:
- Student Research Data Collection Award ( BC Network for Aging Research )
- Trainee Award, 2008 - 2011 ( Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research )
Job Titles:
- Postdoctoral Trainee Award ( AGEWELL )
Job Titles:
- Geriatric Research ( Canadian Institutes of Health Research )
Job Titles:
- Administrative Staff Member
Job Titles:
- President
- Research Staff Member
- President 's Academic Excellence Initiative PhD Award, UBC
Job Titles:
- Globalink Research Internship, MITACS
Job Titles:
- Award for Contribution to the UBC PM & R Residency Program ( University of British Columbia, Division of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. 2012 )
Theo van Rijn Award for Contribution to the UBC PM&R Residency Program (University of British Columbia, Division of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. 2012)
Job Titles:
- President
- Research Staff Member
President's Academic Excellence Initiative PhD Award (UBC)