Training the Next Generation

Debraj Das
Resident, Internal Medicine

“I was very fortunate to have worked with the VIGOUR group to publish an interesting paper associating meteorological events and decompensated heart failure using the ASCEND trial in the International Journal of Cardiology in the winter of 2014. With the help of VIGOUR I have continued working on novel and exciting research projects and have come one step closer in becoming an academic clinician scientist in Canada.”

Jenelle Pederson
MSc, Medicine

“It is a rare opportunity to work closely with leading researchers. The mentorship provided by Dr. McAlister and my co-supervisor has been the best. They challenged my reasoning and decision-making, teaching me to focus on methodological details and always to bring it back to research questions and the big picture. I am particularly thankful for many teaching moments and their critical appraisal or “red ink”. At the same time, I felt supported and have gained a motivation to achieve my best work and pursue the highest standards.”

Jeyasundar Radhakrishnan
Postdoctoral Fellow

“It is a great opportunity to work at the CVC. My mentors have been assisting me in every possible way. I was given opportunities to work with the team of biostatistical experts to learn analytical techniques using new programs, supported in finding funding opportunities and preparing applications for grants, provided a teaching assistantship to improve my teaching skills, and given support to attend and present at conferences.”

Nariman Sepehrvand
PhD Student, Experimental Medicine

“Dr. Ezekowitz has provided much insight on novel topics in the fields of heart failure management, biomarkers, risk scoring models and quality of life measures. In terms of research implementation, I have learned a lot about issues such as optimization of time-management, optimal utilization of available resources, productivity and continued performance feedback.

In 2015, with the invaluable support that I received from my mentor and all other CVC faculty, I was successful in receiving the Alberta Innovates-Health Solutions (AIHS) graduate studentship award and the CIHR-ICRH Travel Award.”

Abhinav Sharma
PhD Student, Medicine

“I have learned many things while working with the faculty at CVC. The most important is that keeping an open dialogue and communication is key to ensuring successful, collaborative research.

Dr. Justin Ezekowtiz has been an exceptional mentor. In addition to providing guidance on research, he has helped me understand the role of collaboration and developing research networks.”

Jay Shavadia
Fellow, Interventional Cardiology

“My research collaboration with the CVC has opened up networks, both locally and internationally, and has certainly paved the way to provide a rich blend in my interventional career. Having already completed a project with Dr. Armstrong, Gray Zheng and Cindy Westerhout, the prospect of working with this team on my subsequent project was irrefutable. As I had learned from the past, their mission was to see me succeed and achieve the goals and objectives I had set out to accomplish. Their open mindedness in thought process ensured that we had a view of the entire horizon, yet they also made sure that I never lost focus of the goals we had to meet.”

Jacksy Zhao
MSc Student, Transitional Medicine
Resident, Adult Cardiology

“Through working with Dr. Justin Ezekowitz and Dr. Padma Kaul, I have developed a much better understanding of research design, methodology and data analysis. Instead of just providing me with the answers, they allowed me to figure things out on my own while guiding and supporting me along the way. As a result, I have gained invaluable skills that can be applied to future research endeavors.”