Montfort welcomes two new research chairs

Ottawa, January 24, 2017 –  Hôpital Montfort is proud to announce the awarding of two new research chairs. The new chairholders are: 

• François Chiocchio, Associate Professor of Human Resource Management and Organizational Behaviour at the Telfer School of Management, University of Ottawa. Holder of the Montfort Research Chair in the Organization of Health Services, his research program focuses on collaboration in health service improvement. More specifically, his work explores the individual and organizational factors that influence collaboration within work teams and in implementation projects. 
• Pascal Imbeault, Associate Professor at the School of Human Kinetics in the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, is the holder of the Montfort Research Chair in Physical and Mental Comorbidities. His research program seeks to better understand the mechanisms involved in the development of metabolic and behavioural disorders in individuals affected by obstructive sleep apnea.

These new chairs of the Institut de savoir Montfort (ISM) bring to three the number of research chairs at Hôpital Montfort. With a combined value of $50,000 a year over a five-year period, the chairs are financed by the ISM.

“Today’s announcement shows why, for two years now, Montfort has figured among the top 40 research hospitals in Canada,” states Dr. Bernard Leduc, Chief Executive Officer of Hôpital Montfort. “With the work of the Institut du savoir Montfort, we put words into action by concretely supporting research on health services as well as physical and mental comorbidities, that is, diseases that affect body and mind at the same time.”

“We wish to congratulate our researchers for this recognition of their important contribution to health research,” states Jacques Frémont, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ottawa. “These new chairs are in keeping with the spirit of close and fruitful collaboration between the University of Ottawa and Hôpital Montfort to extend the influence of research and innovation in the health sector.”

The Montfort Research Chair in Mental Health, held since 2012 by Diana Koszycki, Full Professor in the Faculty of Education, University of Ottawa, has allowed her to pursue her research on depression and anxiety, with the goal, among other things, of treating these conditions with mindfulness meditation, in which she is a pioneer.

Awarding a research chair makes it possible to implement a recognized researcher’s innovative and productive research program, to contribute to the training of qualified staff, and to accelerate the dissemination of results and the application of research-generated knowledge.

Hôpital Montfort is Ontario’s Francophone academic hospital, offering exemplary person-centred care. The hospital serves over 1.2 million people in Eastern Ontario, in both official languages. In 2014, it earned Accreditation with Exemplary Standing from Accreditation Canada, and was designated Best Practices Spotlight Organization by the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario.