Three Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry researchers named Fellows of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences

Sara Davison, Sean Bagshaw and Lisa Hartling. Photos supplied.

On Sept. 12, the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences announced 49 newly elected fellows, including three members of the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry. Congratulations to Sara Davison, Sean Bagshaw and Lisa Hartling on receiving this prestigious honour.

Sara Davison
Professor, Department of Medicine

Sara Davison’s program of research focuses on the delivery of quality supportive care for patients with advanced kidney failure. She engages with these patients to integrate their voice into her research, a process she says has a powerful impact. “It's incredibly difficult to turn away from personal stories of suffering, where small changes could have had a vast impact on someone's life.”

Davison founded the Kidney Supportive Care Research Group early in her medical career after recognizing a gap in care for her patients. “Almost immediately, I was overwhelmed by the distressing symptoms and suffering experienced by my patients and the lack of interventions or even focus in our daily work to address these issues.” 

She integrates research into clinical innovation and practice whenever possible and as early as possible. While she acknowledges this takes time, these small wins can be evaluated and used to fuel further positive changes. 

In addition to her research, Davison is aiming to develop international guidelines for kidney supportive care through her work with the Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes Supportive Care Group. She is also a consultant to support the establishment of kidney/palliative care programs.

Davison advises young researchers to pursue something they are passionate about and to stay true to that passion, often sharing with them the strategies she has used in her own work. “It takes time and perseverance to enact change, but we can make positive changes that initially may seem insurmountable if we tackle things in incremental steps and celebrate each small win.”  

“I'm very grateful to the CAHS for the warm reception I have received from current members and I look forward to being able to work with CAHS as I continue to advocate for my patients.” 

Sean Bagshaw
Professor, Department of Critical Care Medicine

Sean Bagshaw has designed, facilitated and participated in a wide variety of research, always with the goal of improving outcomes for patients with critical illness and the care they receive while in the intensive care unit.

With curiosity serving as his inspiration, Bagshaw gravitates toward research themes that represent important gaps in our knowledge. He has focused primarily on the care of critically ill patients with acute kidney injury and receiving renal replacement therapy; vulnerable populations at risk of developing or who have developed critical illness, such as frail and older adults; and on understanding how we organize intensive care units and critical care services.

Among Bagshaw’s accomplishments is a 10-year research program culminating in the CIHR-funded Standard vs. Accelerated Initiation of Renal Replacement Therapy in Acute Kidney Injury trial, led with his colleague Ron Wald. The trial involved nearly 3,000 patients across 15 countries.

“This work has inspired a new clinical trial re-evaluating the optimal dose of dialysis therapy that we currently prescribe for critically ill patients receiving acute continuous dialysis therapy in the intensive care unit,” says Bagshaw.  

Bagshaw acknowledges that research is a journey characterized at times by uncertainty and setbacks, but believes perseverance and resolve can lead to unanticipated opportunities. “I have been thankful for the opportunities to build research capacity, to train new generations of researchers and contribute to improving the outcomes and experiences of patients with critical illness and their families.”

He is grateful to the many research participants, energetic trainees, countless supervisors and inspiring mentors he has encountered and learned from. “This is a wonderful honour and a privilege to have been recognized and acknowledged by my peers in academic health sciences.” 

Lisa Hartling 
Professor, Department of Pediatrics

Lisa Hartling believes that health-care decisions should be supported by the best available research evidence and is working with patients and families as well as front-line health-care providers and organizations to ensure that happens.

Hartling focuses her research on knowledge mobilization, which she believes is essential to addressing the current epidemic of information overload, and on getting credible information into the hands of people making critical decisions about and who support health-care needs. 

Her work to get evidence-based resources to those who need them includes Translating Emergency Knowledge for Kids, which she co-directs, and a research program working with parents to develop knowledge-translation resources such as animation videos and interactive infographics. These are intended to guide parents in caring for their children and making decisions about when and where to seek health care.

In addition to these research programs, Hartling works with the Public Health Agency of Canada on priority topics for Canadian health and produces clinical practice guidelines to inform primary health care and patient decision-making with the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care. She is also a Distinguished Researcher with the Stollery Science Lab supported by the Stollery Children's Hospital Foundation.

Hartling encourages early career scientists to find their people. “I believe research doesn’t happen in a silo; we need to find partners and collaborators to advance science in a meaningful way and to support each other on the journey,” she explains. For Hartling, this includes colleagues from different disciplines with different research paradigms, as well as parents and families who will use the evidence and information she produces.

Hartling is very honoured to have been recognized for her contributions to health sciences as well as impacts with community groups beyond her academic position.