Niagara Health Knowledge Institute Research Day

Niagara Health Knowledge Institute Research Day returns Thursday, May 7, 2026. 

The sixth annual edition of the event, where healthcare researchers from throughout Niagara, Hamilton and the Greater Toronto Area gather to share their work, happens at Niagara College’s Daniel J. Patterson Campus in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

This year’s theme is Building Research Capacity in Community Hospitals by Strengthening Collaboration, Expanding Education, and Deepening Engagement with the Communities They Serve. 

This year, we are excited to present a keynote panel featuring physician researchers, health research administrators and a patient partner. The panel brings together diverse voices to explore innovative strategies for enhancing research capabilities in community healthcare settings. By focusing on collaboration, the panel will discuss how fostering partnerships between hospitals, academic institutions and community organizations can lead to more robust and impactful research outcomes.

Other highlights include relevant workshops to help healthcare researchers develop their skills and programs and networking opportunities for attending researchers. In addition, one staff research award and one physician research award will be presented to Niagara Health team members.

See the Research Day agenda, breakout sessions, poster presentations and more. Please note that registration is now closed.

Meet our keynote speakers

 

Dr. Jennie Johnstone

MD PhD FRCPC, Infectious Diseases Departmental Division Director, University of Toronto, Associate Professor, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Medical Director, Infection Prevention and Control, Sinai Health

Dr. Johnstone is the Division Head of Infectious Diseases at the University of Toronto, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine and is the Medical Director of Infection Prevention and Control (IPAC) at Sinai Health. She practices Infectious Diseases at Sinai Health and UHN in Toronto. Her research interests include preventing healthcare-associated infections from known and emerging pathogens and has published >150 peer- reviewed publications in the field. She currently chairs the Public Health Agency of Canada’s National Advisory Committee on IPAC and has contributed to numerous national and provincial IPAC guidelines.

Denise Kennedy

Patient Partner, Niagara Health Engagement Network

Patient Partners help to create meaningful improvements in quality, safety and the care experience by using their experiences and perspectives to work alongside staff and physicians on a variety of initiatives.

Patient Partners are patients, families and community members who are willing to share their experiences to improve care and services at Niagara Health. Patient Partners can determine what, when and how they wish to participate based on their interests and knowledge.

Patient Partners work alongside Niagara Health staff and physicians on committees, working groups, special projects, co-designing programs and other initiatives. Patient Partners play a key role in enhancing the patient experience.

Sinéad McElhone

PhD, Dean of Health Sciences, Niagara College

Sinéad McElhone is the Dean of Health Sciences at Niagara College, which offers a comprehensive suite of programs across the health/health care continuum.

She was employed for more than 10 years by Niagara Region Public Health in a variety of roles; first as an epidemiologist, then as the manager of surveillance and evaluation and finally as the director (acting) of organizational and foundational standards.

Sinéad has also developed and delivered courses at Brock University and supervised masters students in areas related to Health Sciences, Public Health, Epidemiology and Analytics and Health Equity.

Carley McPherson

Director of Research, Lakeridge Health

Carley McPherson is Director, Research at Lakeridge Health, a health system and hospital network serving the Durham region. Carley leads the hospital’s research program, driving strategic vision and operational excellence. She oversees clinical trials, the Research Ethics Board administration and collaborates with internal and external stakeholders to foster growth, diversification and expansion of the program.

She is passionate about advancing hospital-based research, science communication and offering comprehensive care to the community.

Dr. Christopher Yarnell

MD, PhD, FRCPC, Intensivist and Researcher, Scarborough Health Network; and Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto

Dr. Yarnell is an intensivist interested in improving management of critically ill patients with a focus on treating respiratory failure using Bayesian methods, adaptive trials, and machine learning. His medical training in Toronto included a focus in internal medicine and critical care medicine. 

As a Critical Care Physician and Researcher at Scarborough Health Network, a community hospital, his focus is on improving care for ICU patients and ensuring that the people of Scarborough are represented in the data shaping national and global medical practices.

Other research interests include motor vehicle trauma, causal inference from observational data in critical care medicine, and the impact of the social determinants of health on critical illness and end-of-life care.