Every month, researchers across Unity Health Toronto celebrate important honours, achievements and awards. Congratulations to our researchers who have been recognized this month!


Dr. Kamran Khan

Congratulations to Dr. Kamran Khan, an infectious disease physician at St. Michael’s, scientist at the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute and Founder and CEO of BlueDot, who is one of two recipients of the Temerty Health Innovation & Technology Chair.

Dr. Khan’s experience in Toronto with the SARS epidemic motivated him to dedicate his career to helping the world prepare for future infectious disease threats. Driven by this, Dr. Khan launched a scientific research program at St. Michael’s to study how the world’s population is connected through commercial air travel. Originally called BioDiaspora, the research program helped predict the spread of infectious disease on a global scale. Incorporated in 2013, BioDiaspora became BlueDot – a company of its own that went on to play a significant role in predicting the global spread and impacts of Ebola, Zika Virus, and COVID-19.

As a Temerty Health Innovation & Technology Chair, Dr. Khan will support the emergence and growth of new health-care technologies arising from the Faculty’s ecosystem. He will be a mentor at the Health Innovation Hub (H2i), a campus-linked accelerator within the Temerty Faculty of Medicine whose mission statement is “to educate, enable, partner, and facilitate early-stage entrepreneurs in the commercialization of health matters.” There, he will support fellow innovators on the practical and/or commercial implementation of their ideas during early stages of translational design work and concept development.


Dr. Sharon Straus

A study run by the Knowledge Translation Program has received $1.29 million from Health Canada to investigate how to optimally implement, scale up and sustain rapid antigen testing for flu and COVID-19 testing in congregate settings.

The study will fill a key gap in knowledge about how best to operationalize such testing in congregate settings, where rapid testing can identify respiratory infection early and stop their spread.

Dr. Sharon Straus, director of the Knowledge Translation Program and her team will work with 60 shelters, 5 retirement homes and 5 long-term care homes to evaluate the feasibility of and barriers to rapid antigen testing for COVID-19 and the flu. Congratulations to the team!


Dr. Ahmed Bayoumi

Congratulations to Dr. Ahmed Bayoumi, scientist at MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions, who has been awarded the 2021 Dr. David Sackett Senior Investigator Award for excellence in research from the Canadian Society of Internal Medicine (CSIM).

This award recognizes excellence in research by a senior Canadian general internist and to increase awareness of high-quality research by general internists in Canada and to foster such research.


Dr. Rola Saleeb

Dr. Rola Saleeb, Director of the Immunopathology Laboratory at St. Michael’s, has received a research grant from the Cancer Research Society. Funded in partnership with CIHR, this grant will support Dr. Saleeb in tracing the origin of kidney cancer from renal stem cells and understanding tumour pathogenesis for effective cancer prevention.

The research projects were chosen using a rigorous process; committees composed of over 95 researchers and clinicians generously gave of their time to select the most promising projects from among the 350 applications received. Congratulations to Dr. Saleeb for this achievement. Learn more about the grant here.


Dr. Darren Yuen

Congratulations to Dr. Darren Yuen, nephrologist at St. Michael’s and scientist at the Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science, who has been awarded the Canadian Society of Transplantation Research Excellence Award.

This award recognizes research achievement and excellence in the field of transplantation, with significant promise to make a further substantial contribution to the field of transplantation. Dr. Yuen continues to contribute to this field through his work developing diagnostics and treatments for kidney transplant injury. Learn more about this prestigious achievement here.


Dr. Jennifer Watt

Dr. Jennifer Watt, geriatrician at St. Michael’s and researcher at the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, has been awarded the Rising Star Achievement Award as part of the Alumni Awards of Distinction from the University of Ottawa.

This Rising Star Achievement Award recognizes outstanding alumni who have demonstrated professional excellence and exceptional leadership while making significant contributions in the advancement of health outcomes and patient care. This award serves to honour young alumni with 10 to 20 years of professional experience in their respective field. Congratulations to Dr. Watt on this honour, which you can learn more about here.


Dr. Chi-Ming Chow

Congratulations to Dr. Chi-Ming Chow, cardiologist at St. Michael’s, who has been awarded the Dr. Harold N. Segall Award of Merit from the Canadian Cardiovascular Society.

This award was created in 1991 in honour of the late Dr. Harold N. Segall, who was a founding Member of the CCS and for many years served as the Society’s Archivist. It is offered in recognition of a significant contribution to the prevention of cardiovascular disease or the promotion of cardiovascular health in Canadians. Dr. Chow has demonstrated sustained commitment to and passion for the prevention of cardiovascular disease and the promotion of heart health of Canadians. Learn more about this award here.