McGill Cares

Susan Wener  is a TEDx alum, bestselling author, educator and therapist. At the age of 36, she was diagnosed with colon cancer. She began treatment with one goal – to see her children finish high school. She successfully underwent chemotherapy and dedicated her career to helping Montreal’s cancer community. She pursued studies in natural health, recognizing the importance of holistic treatmen...

Dr. José Morais  is Professor and Director of Geriatric Medicine at the McGill Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, the McGill University Health Centre and the Jewish General Hospital. In addition to being Academic Lead of the McGill Dementia Education Program, he is Co-Director of the Quebec Network for Research on Aging and past President of the Canadian Geriatrics Society. He conducts...

Dr. Ronald Postuma , Professor of Neurology at McGill University, is a clinical researcher and movement disorders neurologist who treats patients with Parkinson's disease and related disorders at The Neuro. His research interest focuses upon Parkinson's disease, particularly on detecting early stages of disease, examining the impact of non-motor symptoms on disease subtype and prognosis, and testi...

Mrs. Dorothy Reitman  is a respected lifelong activist and community volunteer who was appointed to the Order of Canada in 1997. She cared for her late husband who died of Alzheimer’s Disease in 2014. Mrs. Reitman currently serves as a board member for several organizations, including the Cummings Jewish Centre for Seniors Foundation, and serves as Co-chair, Alzheimer’s Research for a Cure at...

Dr. Alain Ptito  is Professor of Neurology and Neurosurgery at McGill University and Director of the Psychology Department at the McGill University Health Centre. His research involves the investigation of the mechanisms involved in cerebral reorganization and plasticity in various patient populations. In recent years, Dr. Ptito has explored new methods of using functional MRI (fMRI) for exam...

Zelda Freitas  is a graduate of the McGill University School of Social Work, with 30 years of experience in the delivery of services to older adults, their caregivers and their families. She is currently the Coordinator of Developing Practices in Support of Caregivers at the Center for Research and Expertise in Social Gerontology of the CIUSSS West-Central Montreal. Ms. Freitas will explain h...

Dr. Nadia Giannetti  is Associate Professor in Experimental Medicine at McGill University, and Chief of Cardiology and Medical Director of the Heart Failure and Heart Transplant Centre at the McGill University Health Centre. Dr. Giannetti’s specialties include advanced heart failure, heart transplant, and mechanical hearts. Dr. Giannetti will discuss the correlation between heart disease, str...

Mtre. Rhonda Rudick  is a partner at Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg. Her practice includes a strong emphasis on estate planning.  Mtre. Janet Michelin  is a partner at IMK who regularly represents and advises mandataries, estate liquidators and trustees on their legal obligations. She is currently co-lecturer at McGill University, where she teaches Trial Advocacy. Both graduate...

Gwen Nacos  founded  Cedars CanSupport  after recovering from cancer in 1988. While undergoing treatment, she noticed that many people receiving cancer therapy did not have personal or family connections to provide the practical and emotional support that she found so essential to her own recovery. Ms. Nacos will share the story behind why she founded Cedars CanSupport, a...

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, it became necessary for the  McGill School of Physical and Occupational Therapy to offer alternative clinical learning experiences for their students. This challenge became an unexpected opportunity to help meet the needs of community partners as the students turned to the online world with the goal of creating projects that would be relevant and useful for the...

Dr. Howard Bergman is Professor of Family Medicine, Medicine (Geriatrics), and Oncology, as well as Assistant Dean, International Affairs in the Faculty of Medicine at McGill University. Among numerous other accomplishments, Dr. Bergman co-founded and co-directed the Jewish General Hospital/McGill University Memory Clinic. Dr. Bergman will discuss his work with respect to seniors and dementia, in...

Matt Del Vecchio  is a Certified Professional Consultant on Aging (CPCA designation) and the host of “Life Unrehearsed” on CJAD800. He founded Lianas Senior Transition Support to help seniors and their families through decisions about where and how they wish to live out their golden years.  Dr. José Morais  is Professor and the Director of Geriatric Medicine at the McGill Faculty of...

This week’s webcast features a panel discussion to recognize LGBTQ+ caregivers.  Shari Brotman, PhD, is Associate Professor at the McGill School of Social Work. Her scholarly activities focus on access and equity in the design and delivery of health and social care services to older people from marginalized communities, and their informal caregivers. Julien Rougerie is the Program Manager for...

Dr. Wendy Chiu  is an Assistant Professor of Geriatric Medicine at McGill University and a geriatrician at the Montreal General Hospital (MGH), McGill University Health Centre. Her work primarily involves multidisciplinary assessment and rehabilitation of the "frail elderly" at the MGH Geriatric Day Hospital. Dr. Chiu  will discuss strategies for coping with challenging behaviours in per...

Dr. Gerald Fried  is the Director of the Steinberg Centre for Simulation and Interactive Learning, and Associate Dean, Education Technology & Innovation in the Faculty of Medicine at McGill University. Professor of Surgery and previous Surgeon-in-Chief of the McGill University Health Centre, he was awarded the Meritorious Service Cross in 2019 by the Governor General of Canada in recognit...

Chris Wynn  is an award-winning filmmaker and Alzheimer’s advocate. Mr. Wynn documented his father’s struggles with Alzheimer’s Disease to produce an award-winning feature documentary for TVO called  Forgetful Not Forgotten . He has since produced  Much Too Young , a documentary about younger caregivers that was nominated for a Canadian Screen Award in 2017, and the web series&...

Louise Murray is the Director of Clinical Partnerships Office at the Ingram School of Nursing (ISON), McGill University and has held a variety of advanced practice nursing roles at the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC). Catherine-Anne Miller is a full-time Faculty Lecturer at the ISON. In her former role as a clinical nurse specialist in the Neuro-Oncology Program at the MUHC, she was involve...

Tamara Sussman , PhD, is Associate Professor at the McGill School of Social Work. For over ten years, she has worked with adults and families to manage health-related issues in both hospital and community settings. Dr. Sussman’s research focuses on how health services and systems impact older adults and their family members. Dr. Sussman will respond to questions about how informal caregivers can t...

Isabelle Gélinas , PhD, is Associate Professor and Graduate Program Director at the School of Physical and Occupational Therapy, McGill University. She is also a researcher at the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Rehabilitation in Montreal. Her research interests include the measurement of functional abilities in persons with cognitive deficits such as dementia. She developed the Disabilit...

Ms. Marguerite Blais has held the position of Minister Responsible for Seniors and Informal Caregivers in the National Assembly of Quebec and Member for Prévost in the Coalition Avenir Québec since October 2018. After completing her graduate studies in music and teaching for a few years, Ms. Blais pursued advanced studies in communications and spent 30 years working as a successful radio and telev...

Dr. Donald Doell practices geriatrics at the McGill University Health Centre and is an Assistant Professor in the McGill Faculty of Medicine. He is particularly interested in dementia care and has worked with many of the leading experts in neurology, psychiatry and geriatrics in Canada. He will provide insight into some of the challenging behaviours caused by dementia and look at the ways they can...

Dr. David Eidelman is Vice-Principal (Health Affairs) and Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at McGill University. A respirologist and clinician scientist, Dr. Eidelman previously served as Chair of McGill’s Department of Medicine and Physician-in-Chief of the McGill University Health Centre. During this webinar, Dr. Eidelman will answer questions about how the pandemic has impacted medicine and all...

Corrie Sirota is a clinical social worker and sessional lecturer at the McGill School of Social Work who specializes in loss, bereavement and stress management. She is the author of Someone Died... Now What? A Personal and Professional Perspective on Coping with Loss and Grief . A co-host of the weekly radio show “Life Unrehearsed” on CJAD, she is also a well-known speaker and facilitator of psych...

Dr. José Morais  is Professor and the Director of Geriatric Medicine at the McGill Faculty of Medicine, the McGill University Health Centre and Jewish General Hospital. In addition to being Academic Lead of the McGill Dementia Education Program, he is Co-Director of the Quebec Network for Research on Aging and past President of the Canadian Geriatrics Society. He conducts research on the orga...

Dr. Serge Gauthier is the Director of the Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders Research Unit of the McGill Centre for Studies in Aging and a Professor in the Departments of Neurology & Neurosurgery, Psychiatry, and Medicine at McGill University. He will answer questions about dementia: what it is, how it differs from normal aging and how it progresses. He will focus on what caregivers nee...