A multidisciplinary team involving a full network of experts

José A. Morais, MD, FRCPC, CSPQ,Scientific Director

José A. Morais, MD, FRCPC, CSPQ,

Dr. Morais is Full Professor of Medicine at McGill University. He holds a MD degree from the University of Montreal (1987) and completed a specialty in Internal Medicine and Geriatrics at McGill University, Canada. He went on to complete a three-year Research Fellowship in Nutrition and Metabolism at the McGill Nutrition Centre.

He is Senior Scientist at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) in the Metabolic Disorders and Complications axis, in Montreal, Canada. In 2009, he became Director of the Division of Geriatric Medicine, McGill University, as well as of MUHC and Jewish General Hospital. Dr. Morais is also co-Director of the Quebec Network for Research on Aging and is Lead of the Dementia Education Program of the McGill Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. He was the Founder and first Director of the Centre of Excellence on Aging and Chronic Disease of the RUIS McGill from 2012-2015. During this time, he was co-leader of the implementation of the Quebec Provincial Alzheimer’s Plan in Primary Care. He is also Past President of the Canadian Geriatrics Society.

His research interest relates to the assessment of protein metabolism and cellular regulation at whole-body and muscle levels and of protein requirements with age, frailty and diabetes. He is also participating in several studies involving the nutritional assessment of elderly persons with the aim of improving their nutritional status and level of physical function. He shares an interest in improving services and care to patients afflicted with chronic diseases. He holds research grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and collaborates in several projects supported by provincial and national agencies. He has more than 150 original publications, most of them in high impact journals in the field of aging, nutrition and metabolism.

Administrative Director

Ms. Cindy Starnino

Cindy Starnino is the administrative Director of the Center of Excellence on Longevity, McGill Integrated Health and Social Services University Network (RUISSS McGill). She is the Director of Academic Affairs and Research Ethics of the Integrated Health and Social Services University Network for West-Central Montreal. is a member of the National Seniors Council since 2018. The Governor in Council reappointed Ms. Starnino for a term of one year beginning on June 25th, 2020.

Ms. Starnino holds a Master’s degree in Social Work from McGill University. She has over 30 years of experience in forging strong relationships between the world of practice and research. Her work focuses on developing cutting edge practices and services in several areas including:

  • caregiving
  • prevention and health promotion programs for seniors and
  • intervention regarding the mistreatment of the elderly
  • home care (President of the Board of Directors of the Canadian Home Care Association)
  • education (Chair of the McGill University Integrated Health and Social Services Network Education Committee, Member of the Quebec Provincial Table of Teaching)
  • research (member of the Quebec Provincial Table of Research)

She has:

  • integrated university mission in several healthcare institutions
  • co-created the Elder Mistreatment Helpline of Quebec (mandated by the Government of Quebec in 2010)
  • held several strategic positions as:
    • Director of Home and Senior Care
    • Director of Quality, Performance and University Mission
    • Associate Director of Inter-professional services

Experts at the Centre of Excellence on Longevity

As the Centre for Excellence on Longevity attracts the collaboration of high calibre experts, complementary professional practices and various environments, it is capable of addressing the full spectrum of fields associated with human longevity.
Therefore, the Centre of Excellence on Longevity can call upon the knowledge of an extensive community of provincial, national and international subject-matter experts, on a frequent or infrequent basis, and seek complementary opinions upon a variety of specialities relating to human longevity.
These subject-matter experts — university researchers, teachers, entrepreneurs, sociologists, nurses, occupational therapists, designers, professional caregivers, communication and marketing specialists, territorial development specialists, geriatricians, gerontologists, doctors, home automation specialists, trainers, political representatives and advocates for the elderly, among others — have been enlisted from various associations, universities, communities, public services, economic sectors and government agencies.

Dr. Jonathan Afilalo, MD, MSc, FACC, FRCPC
Researcher, Lady Davis Medical Research Institute
Director of the Cardiology and Epidemiology Divisions
Assistant Professor at the Department of Medicine, McGill University
Associate Member of the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McGill University

Dr. Marc Afilalo, MD, MCFP (EM), CSPQ, FACEP, FRCP
President of the Executive Committee of Emergency Medicine, McGill University
Professor at the Faculty of Medicine, McGill University
Director of Emergency Medicine at the Jewish General Hospital

Dr Ben Albright, MD, CM, CCFP (COE)
Director of the Elderly Patients Treatment Program and Assistant Professor at the Department of Family Medicine, McGill University

Isabelle Aumont
Head of the Information Operations and Performance Evaluation Service at CIUSSS West-Central Montreal

‎Dr John Barden, PhD
Associate Professor, Faculty of Kinesiology and Health Studies, Neuromechanical Research Centre, University of Regina, SK

Dr Olivier Beauchet, MD, PhD
Full Professor of Geriatric Medicine, McGill University
Holder of the Dr. Joseph Kaufmann Chair in Geriatric Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University
Senior Researcher, Lady Davis Medical Research Institute
Consultant in Geriatric Medicine, Department of Medicine, Geriatrics Division, Sir Mortimer B. Davis Jewish General Hospital
President of the Scientific Committee at the Congress of the Canadian Geriatrics Society (Montreal, 2018)
Joint President of the Quebec Committee of the OPUS-AP Program
Visiting Professor at Nanyang Technological University and at the Faculty of Medicine of Lee Kong Chian School, in Singapore

Nouha Ben Gaied, PhD
Director of Research and Development, Quebec Federation of Alzheimer Societies, Montreal

Dr Howard Bergman MD, FCFP, FRCPC
Director of the Department of Family Medicine
Professor of Family Medicine, Geriatric Medicine and Oncology, McGill University

Dr Louis Bherer, PhD
Neuropsychologist and full Professor at the Department of Medicine, University of Montreal
Research Centre of the Montreal Cardiology Institute
Preventive Medicine and Physical Activity Centre (EPIC)
Centre de recherche de l’Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal (CRIUGM)

Pr Nathalie Bier, Erg., PhD
Associate Professor, School of Occupational Therapy, University of Montreal
Researcher, Centre de recherche de l’Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal (CRIUGM)

Erica Botner, MSc RS
Program Manager, Cummings Centre
Conference Leader, Applied Human Sciences, Concordia University

Christine Bougie
Research Nurse and Clinical IT Analyst, Jewish General Hospital

Dr Richard Camicioli, MD
Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB

Isabelle Caron, MSc, N
Associate Director of Geriatric Nursing, Documentation and Digitalization, Department of Nursing Care, Jewish General Hospital, CIUSSS West-Central Montreal

Dr Julia Chabot, MD
Assistant Professor, Division of Geriatric Medicine, St. Mary’s Hospital Centre .

Dr Victoria Chester, PhD
Co-Director of McCain Human Performance Laboratory, Faculty of Kinesiology University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB

Dr Ming-Yueh Chou, MD
Director of the Geriatrics Department, Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital, Taiwan

Dr Benoit Cossette, B.Pharm, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Community Health Sciences, Université de Sherbrooke
Researcher, Research Centre on Aging, Sherbrooke
Pharmacist, CIUSSS Estrie — CHUS

Carmen Desjardins, BSc Inf
Program Manager of the Dementia with Psychiatric Comorbidity Program, Douglas University Institute for Mental Health, CIUSSS West Montreal

Dr Gustavo Duque, MD, PhD, FRACP, FGSA
Professor and Chair of Medicine, Western Health
Director, Australian Institute for Musculoskeletal Science (AIMSS)
President, Australian and New Zealand Society for Sarcopenia and Frailty Research (ANZSSFR), Melbourne Medical School, University of Melbourne

Dr Ruby Friedman, MD, FRCP
Site Director, Geriatrics Department, Jewish General Hospital

Kévin Galéry, MS, Gérontologue
Scientific Assistant Director, Scientific Project Manager and International Medical Research Coordinator, Centre of Excellence on Longevity

Camille Gagnon, PharmD
Assistant Director, Canadian Deprescribing Network

Dr Sébastien Grenier, PhD
Research Assistant Professor in Psychology/ Gerontology, Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC

Pr Vasilii A. Gromov, PhD, DSc
Senior Researcher and Research Officer of Centre for Reliability and Sustainability of Structures of Dnipropetrovsk National University
Associate Professor of Computational Mathematics and Mathematical Cybernetics Department of Applied Mathematics Faculty, Dnipropetrovsk National University, Ukraine
Full Professor, Department of Data Analysis and Artificial Intelligence, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russia

Dr Paul C. Hebert, MD, MHSc, FRCPC
Head of the Medical Department and Permanent Researcher at the CHUM Research Centre
Professor at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Montreal
Deputy Scientific Director, CHUM Clinical Research, Centre hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal

Dr Cyrille Launay, MD, PhD
Service of Geriatric Medicine and Geriatric Rehabilitation, Department of Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital, Switzerland

Marie-Christine Le Bourdais
Director, program and Services, Alzheimer Society of Montreal

Dr Guillaume Léonard, PhD
Assistant Professor School of Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Université de Sherbrooke, QC

Dr Teresa Liu-Ambrose, PhD
Canada Research Chair (Tier II), Physical Activity, Mobility and Cognitive Neuroscience Director, Aging, Mobility, and Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC

Dr Josefina Maranzano, MD
Full Professor, Department of Anatomy, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières
Researcher, Montreal Neurological Hospital and Institute, McConnell Centre of Cerebral Imaging, Magnetic Resonance Imaging Laboratory, McGill University

Éric Maubert, LLB, MSc
Project Coordinator, Centre of Excellence on Longevity, McGill RUISSS
Project Manager for the Ministerial Initiative on Alzheimer’s Disease and other major neurocognitive disorders, McGill RUISSS Territory

Dr Mary Mittelman, PhD
Research Professor, Departments of Psychiatry and Rehabilitative Medicine
Director, NYU Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias Family Support Program
NYU Langone Health, NYU School of Medicine

Dr Maxime Montembeault, PhD
Centre de recherche de l’Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal (CRIUGM)
Department of Psychology, University of Montreal

Dr José Morais, MD, FRCP, CSPQ
Director of the Division of Geriatric Medicine, McGill University, Jewish General Hospital & Montreal General Hospital (CUSM)

Pam Orzeck, MSW, PhD
Pam Orzeck, MSW, PhD, Assistant Professor, Director of Field Education, McGill University School of Social Work

Dr Soham Rej, MD, MSc
Geriatric Psychiatrist and Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Jewish General Hospital, Lady Davis Medical Research Institute, McGill University

Samantha Remondière
Art Therapist, Gerontologist
Coordinator of the Geriatric Inclusive Art Workshops, Jewish General Hospital
Art therapist, Evasion Centre

Julie Roy, B.Pharm, MSc, PhD
Deputy Head of Research and Teaching, Department of Pharmacy, Jewish General Hospital, CIUSSS West-Central Montreal

Dr Patrice Tremblay, MD, CCFP (COE)
Assistant Professor at the Department of Family Medicine, McGill University Faculty of Medicine
Director of Pre-Doctoral Education in Family Medicine at St. Mary’s Hospital Centre

Valérie Schneidman, MSc (A) ENC(C)
Nursing Care Coordinator for Emergency Medicine, Head Emergency Unit Nurse, Jewish General Hospital, CIUSSS West-Central Montreal

Christine Touchette, MSW
Deputy Director, CIUSSS West-Central Montreal
Support for Elderly Autonomy Program Directorate, CLSC chapter

Katy Shadpour, MSc (IT)
Coordinator, Centre of Expertise in Telehealth (CECoT), CUSM

Maude Sigouin
Coordinator, Counselling-Network, Montreal Alzheimer Society

Cindy Starnino, MSW
Director of Academic Affairs, CIUSSS West-Central Montreal

Dr Tony Szturn, PhD
Department of Physical Therapy, College of Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB

Maria Veres
IT analyst, Information Management Service, Jewish General Hospital

Christine Vilcocq, MSc, BSc Comm, Gérontologue
Director of Public Relations and Partnerships, Centre of Excellence on Longevity, McGill RUISSS COO of Biomathics, Consortium Applying Biomathematical Modelling to Human Longevity