Latest news with #OttawaHeartInstitute
CTV News
3 days ago
- Health
- CTV News
Ottawa scientist named as one of Canada's most inspiring immigrants
A local Scientist at the Ottawa Heart Institute has been named one of the most inspiring immigrants in Canada. A local scientist at the Ottawa Heart Institute has been named as one of Canada's most inspiring immigrants. Born and raised in Santiago, Chile, Dr. Emilio Alarcón was among 25 other recipients recognized from around the country as part of a national awards program celebrating immigrant success stories. 'We live in times where immigration is being vilified. Certainly, this is not only an award for me, but for anyone who comes to this country as an immigrant. It's a big responsibility, but at the same time, it was very rewarding and exciting. It was a memento in my life to be honest with you,' he told CTV Morning Live on Monday. Alarcón works as a scientist in the division of cardiac surgery at the Ottawa Heart Institute and is an associate professor at the University of Ottawa. He has published more than 80 articles in peer-reviewed journals, several book chapters, and edited two books on regenerative medicine and nanomaterials. He moved to the nation's capital with his family in 2009 for a postdoctoral position at the University of Ottawa. He says getting to where he got to didn't come easily, as he faced many of the issues new immigrants do when arriving in a new country. 'When I first came to Canada, I had to learn the language. I wasn't able to speak or understand or even write it. it took me awhile. It was very difficult,' he said. 'It was a long road, but looking back it was supposed to be. Immigration is not something easy, but you take it the way it goes.' Alarcón's research focuses on developing novel and biocompatible materials to repair heart tissue after heart attacks and restore damaged organs. 'In my lab, we work in tissue engineering, so we are fabricating artificial tissues and organs to repair, of course the heart, but we also do the skin and the cornea, so we do any type of soft tissues,' he said. 'We're using new tools and strategies to reveal that, so it's highly needed. You will be surprised by the number of people who need that every single day.' Alarcón also started a training program to bring students with disabilities into the biomedical and medical research space. 'Just to give you a number, around 30 per cent of the Canadian population have a disability and people like myself, I have autism, we are underrepresented in biomedical and medical research, so we're working together with 14 colleagues across Canada to really bring that talent into the picture,' he said. While Alarcón has been highly recognized for his work, he says the biggest reward Canada gave him is his son. 'He is the gift that Canada gave to me. He is the gift that I work everyday to pass along,' he said. He said gets the pride in his work at the Heart Institute from being able to change people's lives everyday. 'I'm reminded and humbled that we're doing science, not for our benefit, but to help someone else in the spirit that one day people will get that extra one minute,' he said. 'When you understand how precious time is on this planet, and how precious you being with your family is and the ones you love, you change forever. What I do is not for my own benefit, it's for my community. To build communities and to help others.'
CTV News
11-08-2025
- Health
- CTV News
Local scientist named among Canada's most inspiring immigrants
Ottawa Watch A local Scientist at the Ottawa Heart Institute has been named one of the most inspiring immigrants in Canada.
Vancouver Sun
27-05-2025
- Health
- Vancouver Sun
Jean Chrétien absent from King's address due to minor heart surgery
OTTAWA — Former prime minister Jean Chrétien was conspicuously absent from the highly-anticipated King Charles III address in Ottawa on Tuesday because the 91-year-old was admitted to the hospital for a minor heart surgery. 'Yesterday, former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien was admitted to the Ottawa Civic hospital after feeling unwell. He has since been transferred to the Ottawa Heart Institute, where he received a stent,' wrote Bruce Hartley, Chrétien's spokesperson, in a statement. Endovascular stent surgery is a minimally invasive procedure to treat blockages and aneurysms in arteries. According to the Ottawa Heart Institute, a stent is a 'small metal mesh tube' implanted in a narrowed part of the artery to prevent it from blocking again. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Hartley added: 'Mr. Chrétien is recovering well and is expected to return home very soon to pursue his normal activities.' Chrétien was expected to attend the King's address in the Senate along with other former prime ministers — Justin Trudeau, Stephen Harper and Kim Campbell — and many other dignitaries who were there for the occasion. More to come… National Post Get more deep-dive National Post political coverage and analysis in your inbox with the Political Hack newsletter, where Ottawa bureau chief Stuart Thomson and political analyst Tasha Kheiriddin get at what's really going on behind the scenes on Parliament Hill every Wednesday and Friday, exclusively for subscribers. Sign up here . Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our politics newsletter, First Reading, here .
Ottawa Citizen
24-04-2025
- Health
- Ottawa Citizen
New AI tool could reduce risks and hospital time for heart attack patients
The use of AI could change the way heart attack patients are cared for during emergency procedures, researchers from Ottawa and Montreal are reporting. Article content Article content In what is being called a major advance for heart attack treatment, researchers from the Ottawa Heart Institute, the Montreal Heart Institute, and the Centre hospitalier de l'Universite de Montreal (CHUM) have successfully used artificial intelligence to assess heart function in real time during emergency procedures. Article content Article content Researchers found the artificial intelligence tool — called CathEF — is able to accurately measure how well the heart is pumping in real time after a heart attack. That allows doctors to make 'faster, better-informed decisions, improving patient care in life-or-death situations,' said Dr. Pascal Thériault-Lauzier. He is a clinical scientist at the Ottawa Heart Institute and the lead author of the study, which was published in New England Journal of Medicine Artificial Intelligence this week. Article content Article content Using artificial intelligence to assess heart damage after a heart attack can give health care providers necessary information more quickly and prevent many patients from having to undergo more intrusive tests that carry a risk of complications. The AI tool could also allow some patients to leave hospital sooner, said Theriault-Lauzier. Article content Currently, patients rushed to hospital experiencing reduced blood flow to the heart undergo a series of procedures to assess and treat the heart. Those include a procedure called a coronary angiography in which dye is injected and doctors use X-rays to look at the heart's blood vessels and assess how well it is pumping. If a blockage is found, a balloon catheter is used to inflate and widen the artery, often followed by the placement of a stent to keep the artery open. Article content Article content Doctors assess the patient's so-called ejection fraction, which measures the heart's ability to pump blood out to the body. The information is crucial in order for health providers to decide which course of treatment the patient needs. Additional tests, such as echocardiograms or the more invasive imaging procedure, are currently used to assess ejection fraction in order to guide treatment decisions. Completing those tests takes time and can carry risks. Article content Article content Thériault-Lauzier said the use of artificial intelligence could change that by quickly assessing ejection fraction using the original images taken, without the need for further invasive procedures. Article content Patients found to be stable could leave hospital sooner and be followed up for further treatment, he said. Those with more damage would continue to be monitored in hospital and start medication quickly. Article content The results are promising, but the AI tool is not ready for clinical use. Approvals and commercialization could take a few years, said Thériault-Lauzier.
