ABOUT
We’re a non-profit group of clinicians and scientists dedicated to the development of best practices in the field on neuromodulation.
Founded in 2006, we have members across Canada working in all aspects of neuromodulation including: neurosurgeons, urologists, anesthetists, nurses, coordinators, technicians, corporate members and more.
MISSION
Our Mission is to promote education and access to neuromodulation therapies across Canada. Education includes professional development and encouragement of best clinical practices as well as supporting patient, family and community awareness. Promoting access to care includes government advocacy and leadership in healthcare policy concerning neuromodulation.
OUR TEAM
Dr. Anuj Bhatia
MBBS, MD, PhD, FRCA, FFPMRCA, FRCPC (Anesthesia and Pain Medicine), FIPP, EDRA
President
MBBS, MD, PhD, FRCA, FFPMRCA, FRCPC (Anesthesia and Pain Medicine), FIPP, EDRA
President
Dr. Anuj Bhatia is a Professor at the University of Toronto and Clinical Director, Comprehensive Integrated Pain Program – Interventional Pain Services at Toronto Western Hospital, University Health Network. He is also the Director of the Neuromodulation for Pain program at this hospital. He is the Chair of the Neuropathic Pain Special Interest Group of the Canadian Pain Society and also the Chair of the Pain Medicine Specialty Committee of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. Dr. Bhatia’s clinical and research interests include the use of epidemiological tools and wearable technology for assessing outcomes of treatments for pain including neuromodulation. He has also evaluated the impact of image-guidance (fluoroscopy and ultrasound) on enhancing the accuracy, efficacy, and safety of interventional procedures for chronic neuropathic, musculoskeletal, and cancer pain. Dr. Bhatia has published over 100 papers, 6 book chapters, and co-authored two books on pain and interventional pain procedures. He is a member of the Editorial Boards of Anesthesia & Analgesia, Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, European Journal of Pain, Canadian Journal of Pain, and Pain Medicine. Dr. Bhatia is also an Examiner for certification examinations of the World Institute of Pain and the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine.
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President
Dr. Keith MacDougall
MD, FRCSC
Past-President
MD, FRCSC
Past-President
Dr. MacDougall is a Neurosurgeon and an Associate Professor at Western University in London, ON.
He obtained his MD at The University of Alberta and his neurosurgical training at Western. His clinical practice is focused on Pain Surgery and Epilepsy.
He has published and presented on outcomes following epilepsy surgery, specifically after invasive intracranial recordings as well on the results of long-term nerve root stimulation for neuropathic pain.
Ongoing research interests include the study of novel neuro-stimulation techniques and technologies for the treatment of chronic neuropathic pain.
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Past-President
Dr. Lutz M. Weise
MD, PhD
Secretary
Dr. Weise studied medicine at the Free University of Berlin. He started his residency in Lausanne, Switzerland in 1999. Back in Berlin he subspecialized in spinal and functional neurosurgery at the Charité as a fellow between 2006 and 2009. In 2009 he was appointed attending and head of functional neurosurgery at the Goethe University in Frankfurt. Besides the clinical interest in spine surgery his research is focused on stereotactic and functional neurosurgery, which led to a number of peer-reviewed publications. In 2011 he received the Traugott-Riechert research award for functional neurosurgery. In 2014 he completed a doctorate degree on security and precision in stereotactic neurosurgery and was nominated associate professor. In 2016 he was appointed at Dalhousie University as an associate professor and head of the functional neurosurgery program, where he is involved in several clinical studies focusing on imaging and neurophysiology.
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Secretary
Dr. Jill Osborn
MD
Treasurer
MD
Treasurer
Dr. Osborn graduated from the University of BC with a Bachelor of Science in Physiotherapy in 1989. She worked as a physiotherapist at Shaughnessy hospital until it closed in the areas of Spinal Cord Injury, Medicine and Orthopedics. She also worked at the Arthritis Society and at the Allan McGavin Sports Medicine center as a physiotherapist. She returned to The University of British Columbia on a Medical Council of Canada Scholarship and completed her PhD in Neuroscience in 1997 and her MD in 1999. She then entered an Anesthesiology Residency program at the University of British Columbia completing it in 2004 and completed it in 2005. In addition, she completed the Clinical Investigator Program in 2005 along with her completing a Fellowship in Primary Care Sports Medicine at the Allan McGavin Sports Medicine Clinic.
She has been on staff at St. Paul’s Hospital in the Department of Anesthesiology practicing general, cardiac, and regional anesthesiology as well as interventional pain management. She has been involved in Neuromodulation since 2004. She worked at the Allan McGavin Sports Medicine Center for 2005 to 2010. Dr. Osborn is actively involved in resident and medical student education. She was a Teacher Assistant Gross and Neuroanatomy courses for Medical, Dental and Rehabilitation student from 1990-1997. She is the current Head of the Acute, Chronic and Interventional Pain Program at St. Paul’s Hospital.
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Treasurer
Dr. Antonios El Helou
MD
Neuromodulation Registry Liaison
MD
Neuromodulation Registry Liaison
Dr Antonios El Helou is a Staff Neurosurgeon at the Moncton Hospital in New Brunswick. He is also “Professeur d’enseignement Clinique” at Sherbrook University and its affiliated New Brunswick Medical training center. He completed his medical school in Lebanon and Neurosurgery residency and fellowship in France at la Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital in Paris affiliated to Sorbonne University. He received “The best Foreign Resident of Paris Hospitals” in Neurosurgery in 2014. He obtained European Board of Neurosurgery after examination by the European Association of Neurosurgery.
He moved to New Brunswick to develop functional neurosurgery program. His main clinical practice in addition to general neurosurgery is focused on pain and movement disorders. He is passionate about implanting and developing new interventional procedures mainly in the pain therapy field. He is currently pursuing a master’s in sciences at the University of South Wales.
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Neuromodulation Registry Liaison
Dr. Yasmine Hoydonckx
MD
Member-at-large
MD
Member-at-large
Dr Yasmine Hoydonckx is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anesthesia and Pain Medicine at the University of Toronto. She is also a Staff Anesthesiologist and Pain Physician at Toronto Western Hospital, Women’s College Hospital and Sinai Health System. She completed her medical school and anesthesia residency training in Belgium, followed by fellowships in Critical Care Medicine and Chronic Pain management, in Belgium and at the University of Toronto. She obtained the Fellowship in Interventional Pain Practice (FIPP) certification through examination from the World Institute of Pain (WIP).
Her clinical and research interests focus on advanced treatments for pain including interventional treatments such as image-guided procedures and neuromodulation. She is also leading the creation of a Craniofacial Pain Program at the Toronto Academic Pain Medicine Institute (TAPMI). Her research focuses on the evaluation and development of new strategies in the treatment of complex neuropathic and musculoskeletal pain syndromes. She has published on the role of new modes of spinal cord stimulation for the treatment of Complex regional pain Syndrome (CRPS) and the role of ultrasound-guided steroid injections for chronic pain syndromes. She has lectured and taught at national and international pain conferences and workshops. She is passionate about developing, evaluating and implementing strategies to improve care for patients with pain. She is currently pursuing a Masters in Clinical Epidemiology and Health Care Research at the Institute of Health Policy Management and Evaluation (IHPME) at the University of Toronto.
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Member-at-Large
Susan Schellinck
Member-at-large
Member-at-large
Insert Bio.
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Member-at-Large
Dr. Vishal P. Varshney
MD, FRCPC (Anes)
Member-at-large
MD, FRCPC (Anes)
Member-at-large
Vishal Varshney is a PGY-7 in Pain Medicine at the University of Calgary. He completed his anesthesia residency at UBC, where he also served as President of Resident Doctors of BC and Board Chair of Resident Doctors of Canada. Currently he is the Chief Technology Officer for the North American Neuromodulation Society’s Resident and Fellow Section. While he has a strong interest in Neuromodulation, he looks forward to being able to contribute to the pain medicine community in the future through research and other administrative pursuits. He will be joining the St. Paul’s Department of Anesthesia and Complex and Interventional pain group at the end of his residency.
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Member-at-Large
Victoria Bains
BScN, RN
Administrative Coordinator
BScN, RN
Administrative Coordinator
Victoria Bains currently works with the Comprehensive Integrated Pain Program at Toronto Western Hospital as the Clinical Nurse Coordinator. She works with spinal cord stimulation for management of chronic pain.
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Administrative Coordinator
Nancy Polyhronopoulos
RN, BSN
Administrative Coordinator
RN, BSN
Administrative Coordinator
Nancy is a Clinical resource Nurse in the DBS Clinic at Vancouver General Hospital. She works with individuals who undergo DBS surgery for a variety of movement disorders.
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Administrative Coordinator
Dr. Alfonso Fasano
Alfonso Fasano
MD, PhD
Member-at-Large
Edmond J. Safra Program in Parkinson’s Disease, Morton and Gloria Shulman Movement Disorders Clinic, Toronto Western Hospital, UHN, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Division of Neurology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Krembil Brain Institute, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Dr. Alfonso Fasano holds the Chair in Neuromodulation at the University of Toronto and University Health Network. He is a Professor in the Department of Medicine (Division of Neurology) at the University of Toronto. He is staff neurologist and co-director of the Surgical Program for Movement Disorders at Toronto Western Hospital, University Health Network. He is also staff neurologist at the Hospital of Sick Children in Toronto. Dr. Fasano is a Clinician Investigator at the Krembil Research Institute and KITE – Toronto Rehabilitation Hospital. Dr. Fasano leads the Core E (closed-loop capabilities) of the CenteR for Advancing Neurotechnological Innovation to Application (CRANIA) and sits in the scientific advisory board of the Dystonia Medical Research Foundation and International Essential Tremor Foundation. He’s the chair of the Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus study group of and member of the study group on tremor of the International Parkinson Movement Disorders Society; he’s also member of the Tremor Research Group and the Parkinson Study Group.
Dr. Fasano received his medical degree from the Catholic University of Rome, Italy, in 2002 and became a neurologist in 2007. After a 2-year fellowship at the University of Kiel, Germany, he completed a PhD in neuroscience at the Catholic University of Rome. His main areas of interest are the treatment of movement disorders with advanced technology (infusion pumps and neuromodulation), pathophysiology, and treatment of tremor and gait disorders. He authored more than 400 scientific papers and book chapters. Dr. Fasano is the co-editor of the section “Gaps and Controversies” of Movement Disorders Journal and editorial board member of Annals of Neurology, Movement Disorders Journal, Movement Disorders Clinical Practice and Parkinsonism and Related Disorders. He is also the principal investigator of several clinical trials.
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Member-at-Large
Dr. Dean Elterman
Dean Elterman
MD, MSc, FRCSC Canada
Member-at-Large
Dr. Dean Elterman is an academic urologist at the University of Toronto, sub-specializing in functional urology. His clinical and research interests include voiding dysfunction, particularly sacral neuromodulation, benign prostate enlargement and men’s health. He is the medical director of the Prostate Cancer Rehabilitation Clinic at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. Dr. Elterman trained at the University of Toronto, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, and Weill Cornell Medical Center. He lectures internationally on the topics of novel technologies for BPH and sacral neuromodulation, and teaches courses at the AUA and SIU.
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Member-at-Large
Dr. Himanshu Gupta
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Resident Member