Research
Message from our Research Lead
Ashton Chugh
Over the past year, the Department of Pediatrics has continued to broaden its research scope, forge new collaborations, and celebrate notable accomplishments that keep children out of hospitals and support their well-being. Many members of our community are active in the One Child Every Child (OCEC) initiative—an Alberta-led strategy driving discovery, innovation, and Indigenous-led knowledge creation to ensure every child and community thrives. We congratulate Department researchers who have received OCEC Catalyst Awards, securing millions of dollars in vital funding to further their transformative work.
Our commitment to advancing child health research and clinical care is exemplified by the 2024 Innovation Awards, where Department members presented inventive solutions ranging from improving inpatient immunization to revolutionizing medical simulation with 3D printing. Alongside these innovations, our researchers made headlines with breakthroughs in fertility preservation for pediatric cancer patients, next-generation brain-computer interfaces, and robotic therapies that enhance recovery and mobility for hospitalized children and youth.
We are proud of these remarkable achievements, made possible by strong community partnerships, philanthropic support, and a culture of collaboration and innovation. As we look ahead, we remain dedicated to promoting child and family health locally, provincially, and globally, ensuring our research discoveries translate into meaningful, life-changing care.
These metrics have been calculated by the Cumming School of Medicine’s Office of Faculty Development and Performance using different metrics in previous reports.
One Child Every Child
Numerous members of the Department of Pediatrics are actively part of One Child Every Child (OCEC), an Alberta-led initiative that is set to transform child health research in Canada by promoting Indigenous-led knowledge creation and self-determination, driving discovery and innovation, and building the foundation for global excellence and leadership in research to help every child and community thrive.
University of Calgary
University of Calgary
One Child Every Child Strategic Catalyst (OCEC) Catalyst Awards
Twenty-six research teams received $3.55 million in funding, including $1 million in support from the Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation and the Azrieli Accelerator at the University of Calgary.
Congratulations to all of the Department of Pediatrics members who were successful in the OCEC Catalyst Awards competition!
The Precision Neurodevelopment Lab
Founded in September 2022 by AMHSP Physician Dr. Sarah MacEachern MD PhD FRCPC, the Precision Neurodevelopment Lab aims to positively impact the everyday life of children with neurodevelopmental disorders (e.g., autism, intellectual disability) by conducting inclusive and equitable research using innovative precision medicine methodologies.
This includes both population-level precision medicine approaches using “big data” and machine learning methodologies and individual-level precision medicine approaches designed to address the needs of a specific complex child. Dr. MacEachern’s clinical work informs and directs her research program to ensure that – in collaboration with patient partners – her and her team are addressing common, real-world challenges that these young people and their families face.
As a Developmental Pediatrician at the Alberta Children’s Hospital (ACH), Dr. MacEachern’s clinical areas of expertise include diagnosing neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) in children and comprehensively assessing and treating children with NDDs who have behaviors of concern (BoC; e.g., aggression, self-injury) using complementary health, advocacy, and psychopharmacological approaches. She sees a large diversity of patients with NDDs in her clinical practice and has established a complementary research program focused on children with NDDs who have BoC.
Thanks in part to protected research time as an AMHSP member, Dr. MacEachern is emerging as a leader in the research and care of children with NDDs who have BoC locally and nationally. As of January 2023, she is the Medical Lead for the NDD Care Coordination Program (NDD-CC) at ACH. This program helps children with NDDs and medical complexity and their families navigate health and social care systems to meet their functional needs and thrive in society. She is also a member of the Canadian Sleep Research Consortium (CIHR-funded Spring 2023), a Steering Committee Member of the Sleep Health Equity Engagement Project (SHEEP) Team, and a Founding Member of the Canadian Pediatric Society Sleep Special Interest Group. She was awarded the 2024 Department of Pediatrics Rising Star award in recognition of "outstanding achievements in individual and collaborative research across basic, clinical, health services, and population health.”
✎ Dr. Sarah MacEachern
Neurodevelopment Lab team at the Owerko Centre at the Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute, UCalgary
Dr. Sarah MacEachern
Real-life Impact: Dr. Sarah MacEachern and Greta Heathcote’s journey | UToday Article
In early 2023, Dr. Sarah MacEachern, MD PhD, was a new faculty member in the Department of Pediatrics at the Cumming School of Medicine. She was also at the beginning stages of setting up the Precision Neurodevelopment Lab, a research team focused on finding solutions to challenges faced by children and youth with neurodevelopmental conditions and their families.
2024 Innovation Awards
It was another exciting year for our Department of Pediatrics Innovation Award competition! Applicants submitted their ideas and were invited to present to a review panel and an audience during two virtual presentation sessions. Funding for the award is provided by the Department of Pediatrics Innovation Award Endowment supported by the Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation through community donors.
The applications were awarded a total of $133,362.81. Congratulations to all!
The following is a list of the successful applications (in alphabetical order of the project lead’s surname):
- Dr. Billie Au, “GEnetic Neurodevelopmental disorder Initiative (GENIe): a quality improvement project to improve care for families with Genetic neurodevelopmental disorders” (Project theme – Clinical improvement. Awarded $10,000 + $500 as session 1 audience choice award winner)
- Dr. Cora Constantinescu, “Addressing under-immunization in children during Pediatric Hospital Admission: A quality improvement study” (Project theme – Clinical Improvement. Awarded $9,925)
- Dr. Suzette Cooke, “Evaluating Barriers and Opportunities for Immunization in Hospitalized Children: a Multi-Centre Qualitative Study” (Project theme – Research. Awarded $10,000)
- Dr. Omar Damji, “Revolutionizing Medical Simulation with Ultrarealistic 3D Printing” (Project theme – Clinical Improvements. Awarded $10,000)
- Dr. De Caen, “Malnutrition Screening in Ambulatory Neurosciences Clinics” (Project theme – Research. Awarded $6,192)
- Dr. Mary Dunbar, “Management of Irritability/tone/pain behaviors in Neurologically Impaired Infants (MINII)” (Project theme – Research. Awarded $10,000)
- Dr. Adam Kirton “Sourcing potential: Characterizing the unique brain circuitry of locked in children” (Project theme – Research. Awarded $9,928)
- Dr. Sonia Menard “The Horse-Powered Curriculum: A Novel Approach to Improving Interpersonal Skills and Physician-Patient Relationships through Equine-Assisted Coaching” (Project theme – Education. Awarded $9,600)
- Dr. Winnie Nagesh “Exploring ChatGPT, Capability to Assess Healthcare Simulation Debriefings” (Project theme – Education. Awarded $8,250)
- Dr. Aru Narendran “The 15th Childhood Vaccine: Discovery and development of an immunization agent against leukemia in children” (Project theme – Research. Awarded $8,000)
- Dr. Chris Novak “Decreasing Time to Enteral Nutrition in Patients with Bronchiolitis on Heated Humidified High-Flow Nasal Cannula: a QI Project” (Project theme – Clinical Improvement. Awarded $4,200)
- Dr. Tracy Taylor “The Alberta Children's Hospital Complex Care Extensions for Community Health Outcomes (ECHO)” (Project theme – Education. Awarded $10,000)
- Dr. Gemma Vomiero “Enhancing Community Care of Children with Medical Complexity through Stakeholder Engagement” (Project theme – Research. Awarded $9,417)
- Dr. Melanie Willimann “Determining the Success Rates of Peripheral Intravenous Insertions using Ultrasound‚ a Quality Improvement Project” (Project theme – Clinical Improvement. Awarded $9,050 + $500 as session 2 audience choice award winner)
- Dr. Telford Yeung “Experiences and Attitudes Toward Extended Skin to Skin Care (Kangaroo-Mother Care) among Parents of Infants Born Preterm and Health Care Providers in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit” (Project theme – Research. Awarded $7,800)
Research in the News
Researchers preserve fertility for children impacted by cancer
University of Calgary researchers are giving children and adolescents whose fertility may be impacted by cancer, or treatments associated with cancer, new hope of having their own biological child, one day.
Department members receive $1-million injection in philanthropic funding
Drs. Adam Kirton and Alicia Hilderley are the 2024 recipients of the $1-million Hopewell M.I.N.D. Prize to advance their work in brain-computer interface (BCI) solutions.
Robotic dogs spread 'paw-sitivity' at ACH
Animal therapy is a well-known method to calm the nerves of those dealing with stress or anxiety, but a new robotic twist on the idea is now aiding in recovery efforts for the Alberta Children’s Hospital’s youngest patients.
UCalgary mobilizes students, researchers and robots to help kids thrive
“The first movement study I joined was in 2020. I have a curve in my spine and tend to tip backwards, it also impacts how I walk,” says Emme. “The robot-device I’m using now lifts my foot for me and swings it forward, so I don’t drag my toes."
Calgary teen cured of childhood illness thanks to ACHRI research
When Eleora Ogundare was only eight years old, she received a stem cell transplant that cured her of sickle cell anemia thanks to leading paediatric research conducted by members of the Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute (ACHRI).
A Mother’s Day recruitment milestone in child health research
Scientists are recruiting thousands of women living in Calgary to better understand and eventually predict those who will deliver preterm, identify opportunities to prevent preterm birth and improve health outcomes for children born preterm.
Researcher seeks to improve mental health and well-being of neurodiverse kids
In the early years of Dr. Carly McMorris's career, when she was completing her graduate degree to become a practising clinical psychologist, she worked with neurodivergent youth and their families and saw, first-hand, how the system fails them.