Wiliam H. Catherino, M.D., PhD. My research and clinical credentials have allowed me insight into the challenges that many health-care professionals face, both in the laboratory and in the clinics. My laboratory research interests focus on understanding the molecular mechanisms of uterine leiomyoma development, a common and highly symptomatic malady in women which results in infertility, miscarriage, and symptoms significant enough to warrant surgical intervention in up to 20% of women. I also have provided international teaching on endometriosis for those wishing for specialized training. I completed medical and graduate school training at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, residency training at Duke University Medical Center, and fellowship training at the NIH, where I continue clinical work and maintain fruitful laboratory collaborations. I became Board Certified in Obstetrics and Gynecology in 2005, and earned subspecialty Board Certification in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility in 2007, and have been a Boards Examiner for the past 6 years. I became Research Director in 2004, and have been promoted to Full Professor with Tenure in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at USUHS in 2013. I am currently the Chair-Research of the Department. My teaching responsibilities include students at the high-school level, undergraduate, medical school, residency, clinical fellows, and post-doctoral fellows, and include both didactic/lecture and interactive/one-on-one training. I authored over 70 peer-reviewed manuscripts, and over 110 abstracts and chapters. Furthermore, I have earned grant funding from multiple institutions. I care for patients at WRNMMC and the NIH.
Michael P. Diamond, M.D. is the Brooks Professor of the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Associate Dean for Research of the Medical College of Georgia, and Senior Vice President for Research at Augusta University in Augusta, GA. He is an internationally renowned clinical and translational investigator, who is recognized for many scientific contributions, including within the field of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility and has previously served as an IRB member or Chair for over sixteen years. Dr. Diamond has been funded by six NIH Institutes and served as Principal Investigator or Co-PI on over forty-five commercial clinical trials on diverse topics including infertility, insulin sensitivity, postoperative adhesions, uterine fibroids, ovulation induction, menstrual migraines, osteoporosis, endometriosis, and sexual dysfunction. He has served on multiple NIH study sections and special review committees, as well as served as a member and subsequently a consultant to the Obstetrics and Gynecology Device Panel of the Center for Devices and Radiological Health of the Food and Drug Administration. Dr. Diamond is a past President of his subspecialty society, the Society of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, and has served as the President of the Society of Reproductive Surgeons, as well as Chair of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine s Androgen Excess, and the Environment and Reproduction Special Interest Groups.
Dr. Mark Walker is a healthcare executive and current Chairman and Chief of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Ottawa and The Ottawa Hospital. His work in research has been as an epidemiologist, public health advocate and clinical trialist. He has published more than 280 peer reviewed articles and been awarded more than $15 million as Principal Investigator in research. As well as being a highly respected clinician and researcher, Dr. Walker has a Masters in Health Care Management from Harvard University. His leadership roles include the previous Chairman of the Society of Investigators in Obstetrics and Gynecology of Canada, the Chair of the Perinatal Health Committee of the Public Health Agency of Canada, and the Co-Chair of the Maternal Newborn Advisory Committee for the Province of Ontario. He is currently a Senior Scientist and the Scientific Director of the Better Outcomes Registry Network (BORN) as well as a board member of the Provincial Council for Maternal Child Health. Additionally, he is the Chair for the University of Ottawa, Task force for Internationalization. Dr. Walker's main research interests include health services, population health, and clinical studies in perinatology. Dr. Walker is the co-founder of the Obstetrics & Maternal Newborn Investigations (OMNI) Research Group, at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (OHRI). OMNI lead research has contributed to understanding of pre-eclampsia, thrombophilia, multi-gestation, treatment of infertility and health services utilization. In 2016, Dr. Walker and Dr. Shi Wu Wen secured funding through a CIHR Foundation Grant totaling $9.7 million over 7 years. Included in the funding from this grant is the FACT 4 Child project along with many other research projects. Dr. Walker is internationally recognized for his research, medical leadership as well as health services and policy work.
Dr. Laurie Betito is a clinical psychologist with a specialty in sex therapy, and has been a practicing psychotherapist for close to 30 years. For the last 27 years she has been doing radio and television, dispensing sex and relationship advice. She is a regular contributor to various magazines, newspapers and television shows. She is the host of a nightly Canadian syndicated call in show called Passion, where she discusses issues related to sexuality with her listeners. Dr. Laurie is also President of the Sexual Health Network of Quebec and Past President of the Canadian Sex Research Forum. Dr. Laurie is the author of The Sex Bible for People Over 50. Dr. Laurie is also the Director of the Pornhub Sexual Wellness Center, an online sexual health information platform. Dr. Laurie has also done two TEDx talks on the subject of sexuality
Dr. Eugene Bereza is physician and bioethicist. He studied medicine and completed his residency at McGill University before pursuing a post-doctoral fellowship at the MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics at the University of Chicago. A former Director of the Biomedical Ethics Unit at McGill s Faculty of Medicine, he teaches graduate seminars in bioethics to students in medicine, law, philosophy, and religious studies. Dr. Bereza has extensive experience in health policy development. He has been Chair on the Committee of Ethics for the Canadian Medical Association, testified before Canadian Senate committees, Quebec Commissions and the Supreme Court of British Columbia on issues that included end-of-life care, palliative care, physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia. In 2001 he was appointed by the federal Minister of Health as ethicist to the Canadian Council for Donation and Transplantation. In 2010, Dr. Bereza was awarded the Canadian Medical Association s Dr. William Marsden Award in Medical Ethics in recognition of his contribution and leadership role in Canadian medicine. In 2015, he was elected President of the Canadian Bioethics Society. Dr. Bereza has been formally consulted on more than 2,750 clinical cases. He is currently Director of the newly created MUHC Centre for Applied Ethics, where he has instituted an innovative program for an integrated, multi-disciplinary, professional approach to applied ethics.
Dr. Lina Huang completed her medical studies and OB/GYN residency at McGill University. She then went on to complete a one-year fellowship in Mature Women s Health and Menopause at Toronto University. Her training focused on menopause, primary ovarian insufficiency and hormone therapy and its alternatives. She is currently pursuing a Master s Degree in Clinical Trials at the University of London. She is currently part of the Department of OB/GYN at Lakeshore General Hospital and a part-time Clinical Faculty Lecturer in the Department of OB/GYN at McGill Universit Dr. Caroline Quach-Thanh Dr. Caroline Quach is a Professor in the Departments of Microbiology, Infectious Diseases & Immunology and of Pediatrics at Université de Montréal and the Medical Director of Infection Prevention & Control at the CHU Sainte-Justine. She works as a pediatric infectious diseases consultant and a medical microbiologist. She is the Chair of the Infection Control Committee and the Pediatric Medical Director of Optilab Montreal-CHUM (laboratory medicine). She holds a cross-appointment at the Quebec Institute of Public Health (INSPQ) where she works in the Healthcare-Associated Infections and Immunization branches. Dr. Quach graduated from the Université de Montréal Medical School, completed her pediatric residency training at the CHU Sainte-Justine, and her post-graduate training at McGill University, where she also completed an M.Sc. in Epidemiology and Biostatistics. She is a clinician-scientist and holds a salary award from the Fonds de recherche du Québec - Santé (FRQS, mérite). Her research interests are focused on the prevention of infections both healthcare-associated infections and vaccine-preventable diseases. Dr. Quach is the immediate Past-president of the Association of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Disease - Canada s (AMMI). She currently chairs the Quebec Immunization Committee (CIQ) as well as the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI). She is a member of the Quebec Healthcare-Associated Infections Surveillance Program (SPIN) steering committee.
Dr. Amanda Selk is an academic obstetrician gynecologist who practices at both Mount Sinai and Women s College Hospital in Toronto. She is the clinical lead of both the Colposcopy and Gynecology Dermatology clinics at Women s College. She is currently on the Executive of the Society of Canadian Colposcopists and the North American branch of the International Society for the Study of Vulvovaginal Disease and is involved in multiple related committees nationally and internationally. She is on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Lower Genital Tract Disease. She did her MD at Western University in London, Ontario, her BSc and Ob/Gyn residency at the University of Toronto, and she has a MSc in health research methodology from McMaster University, in Hamilton. Dr. Karen Wou M.D, After graduating from McGill University medical school and OBGYN residency, Dr. Karen Wou trained in Maternal-Fetal Medicine at the University of Toronto at Mount Sinai Hospital. She then completed a Clinical Genetics fellowship at Columbia University at the New York Presbyterian Hospital. She has been involved in clinical care and research studies including a the etiology of stillbirth and genetic causes of fetal losses. She will be discussing the genetic basis of pregnancy loss and the future of genetic testing for this entity.