Network Personnel

The CSN’s CEO and Scientific Director is Dr. Antoine Hakim, who is Professor and University Chair in Neurology at the University of Ottawa, Director of the Neuroscience Research Program at the Ottawa Health Research Institute and Senior Director of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario Centre for Stroke Recovery. He holds a PhD in Biomedical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (New York State) and an MD from Albany Medical College.

Katie Lafferty
Executive Director

Katie Lafferty has served as the Executive Director of the CSN since 2001.  In addition to overseeing the operations of the CSN, Ms. Lafferty has led the CSN through the inception of the Canadian Stroke Strategy in 2003, a successful renewal of NCE funding in 2005, and the first Canadian Stroke Congress planned for 2010.  Since 2006, Ms. Lafferty has also served as co-owner and business manager of Watson’s Pharmacy and Wellness Centre, an independent pharmacy in Ottawa, Ontario.  Prior to the CSN, Ms. Lafferty was a Principal Consultant with PricewaterhouseCoopers in Washington D.C. and London, England, serving a wide range of private and public sector clients. Ms. Lafferty has served on local community Boards of Directors, has made regular appearances on local TV, and is currently a member of the Audit and Finance Committee of the Canadian Public Health Association.  Ms. Lafferty holds a BSc in biology from Queen’s University and an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Mike Sharma
Deputy Director, Clinical Affairs

Dr. Mike Sharma has a MSc in epidemiology from the University of Ottawa and a MD from Dalhousie University. He completed his Neurology Residency at the University of Western Ontario and a Stroke Fellowship at McGill University. Dr. Sharma, who is responsible for instituting organized stroke care in the Ottawa region, is currently the Medical Director of the Regional Stroke Centre at the Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa. Research interests include Clinical Trial Design and Decision Analytical Modeling. Dr. Sharma serves on the Evaluation Committee for the Ontario Stroke Strategy, the Board of the Canadian Stroke Consortium and he chairs its Research Committee.

Dr. Willis’ responsibilities include supporting the management and development of scientific, business and external affairs. He leads the Network’s public health initiative in dietary sodium reduction, and is the Privacy Officer for the Registry of the Canadian Stroke Network. After graduating with a Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of Birmingham he subsequently held research positions at the Royal Institution of Great Britain, the National Research Council of Canada (Ottawa, ON), Allelix Biopharmaceuticals (Mississauga, ON) and Procept Inc. (Cambridge, MA). Dr. Willis joined the Network in 2002 from Millennium Pharmaceuticals (Cambridge, MA) where he was Program Director for central nervous system disease research.

Cathy Campbell joined the Canadian Stroke Network as the Communications Director in 2001. A graduate of Carleton University’s School of Journalism, Ms. Campbell worked in the media for 17 years as a reporter, specializing in health issues, and as a news editor. Prior to joining the Network, she was a communications consultant to municipal government and the non-profit sector.

Robin Millbank, the Network Co-ordinator, handles the administrative functions of the Canadian Stroke Network. Robin has worked in the health-care field for nine years. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree (Law) from Carleton University.

Jennifer Masek is the Manager of Finance. Prior to joining CSN, Jennifer worked for the Ottawa Senators Foundation and the Ottawa Renegades Football Club. She holds a CGA designation and an H.B.Com degree.

Lori specializes in fostering relationships with Network stakeholders, trainees, patients and online communities. Prior to joining the CSN Lori was Communications Manager for the Stem Cell Network, and most recently was a Communications & Web Officer for Health Canada.  Lori has worked as a Social Media Consultant since 2003.  In addition to her extensive background in Web 2.0 technologies, she is a certified professional photographer and is a member of the Canadian Public Relations Society.

Dr. Lindsay joined the CSN in 2005. Dr. Lindsay completed her PhD in Health Services Research through the Department of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto in 2003, and holds appointments as Adjunct Scientist at the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, and Lecturer at the University of Toronto. Through her research she has identified a core set of performance measures for stroke care, Telestroke care, and is currently involved in similar work for secondary stroke prevention and stroke rehabilitation.

Elizabeth joined the Canadian Stroke Strategy as Executive Director in January 2008.
She returned to Ottawa in 2007 after nineteen years in the greater Toronto area where she had held senior management positions in the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care (Executive Lead – Provincial Priority Programs; Hospital Program Manager – Toronto Region), Women’s College Hospital (VP), Markham Stouffville Hospital (CEO), Whitby General Hospital (CEO), and The Toronto Hospital (now UHN, Director – Professional Services).
A graduate of the University of Ottawa MHA program and Queen’s University School of Business, Elizabeth had an earlier career in banking. She is a Certified Health Executive and an active member of the Canadian College of Health Service Executives.

Laurie joined the staff of the Canadian Stroke Network as Program Coordinator & Executive Assistant for the Canadian Stroke Strategy in March 2005. She brings with her a wealth of experience in the health care sector and government.