KT Canada Seminar Series - Dr. Melanie Barwick & Alison Hoens
2026-02-12 12:00 - 13:00 (America/Toronto)
Presenters: Dr. Melanie Barwick & Alison Hoens
Presentation topic: Overview and Implications of the WHO Global Research Agenda on Knowledge Translation and Evidence-informed Policy-Making
Date: Thurs, Feb. 12, 2026
View the recording here.
Learning objectives – by the end of the presentation, participants will be able to:

Provide a concise overview of the WHO Global Research Agenda on Knowledge Translation (KT) and Evidence-informed Policy-Making (EIP), including its purpose, methodology, and key findings;
Critically examine the implications of the Global Research Agenda for advancing KT research and practice in Canada, highlighting opportunities for collaboration and innovation;
Identify priority areas and methodological considerations from the Global Agenda that can inform future implementation science initiatives.

Bios
Dr. Melanie Barwick, Ph.D., C.Psych, is the Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Implementation Science and Practice and a Senior Scientist in the Child Health Evaluative Sciences Program of the SickKids Research Institute and the SickKids Centre for Global Child Health. As the Scientific Director of the Knowledge Translation Program at the SickKids’ Learning Institute, she also leads professional and resource development in dissemination and implementation research and practice. Full bio here.

Alison Hoens is a Clinical Professor with the UBC Faculty of Medicine Department of Physical Therapy, Arthritis Research Canada, and the Physiotherapy Association of BC. Her education and experience in knowledge mobilization and implementation science have led to facilitating partnerships in over 90 projects between more than 530 researchers, clinicians, decision-makers and patients for the development of resources and tools to support evidence-informed practice that have crossed healthcare disciplines, fields of research and settings. These partnerships have been successful in securing more than $45 million in funding and the publication of over 120 peer-reviewed articles.
Website: https://physicaltherapy.med.ubc.ca/physical-therapy-knowledge-broker/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alison-hoens-6ba45232/
Mastodon: PhysioKTBroker@mastodon.world; Bluesky: physioktbroker@bsky.social; X:@PhysioKTBroker

KT Canada Seminar Series - Dr. Kristin Reynolds
2026-03-12 12:00 - 13:00
Presenters: Dr. Kristin Reynolds
Presentation topic: Engaging adults ages 55+ and community organizations across Canada in the co-development, implementation, and evaluation of a tele-health program targeting mental health and loneliness among older Canadians
Date: Thurs, March 12, 2026
View the recording here.
Learning objectives – by the end of the presentation, participants will be able to:

Understand gaps in knowledge translation in research on aging and mental health
Explore partnership engagement methodologies in co-development and implementation science
Examine emerging findings in partnership engagement and knowledge translation

Bio
Dr. Kristin Reynolds, is a Registered Clinical Psychologist, Associate Professor, and Director of Clinical Training in the Department of Psychology at the University of Manitoba (UM), and an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Psychiatry. She is a Leadership Fellow with the UM Centre on Aging. She is the Director of the Health Information Exchange Laboratory, where her research aims to understand and increase access to evidence-based mental health-related information and services. Dr. Reynolds is an Associate Editor for Qualitative Health Research, and her work employs mixed methods, knowledge translation, and intervention science frameworks.

KT Canada Seminar Series - Dr. Heather Gainforth
2026-04-09 12:00 - 13:00
Presenters: Dr. Heather Gainforth
Presentation topic:Transforming research systems for meaningful engagement
Dr. Gainforth will discuss their research that aims to foster and support authentic partnerships. Drawing on extensive work within spinal cord injury (SCI) research, this talk will examine how the Integrated Knowledge Translation (IKT) Guiding Principles can be leveraged to foster collaboration between researchers and research users. Dr. Gainforth will provide practical strategies for upholding these principles and address barriers and facilitators to using the principles. Crucially, the talk will highlight the systemic shifts necessary to transform research systems to enable meaningful engagement.
View the recording here!
Date & time: Thurs, April 9, 2026; 12:00-1:00pm Eastern time
Learning objectives – by the end of the presentation, participants will be able to:
1. Explain the development and purpose of the IKT Guiding Principles in addressing tokenism and ensuring research is relevant, useful and used.
2. Analyze the multi-level barriers and facilitators that influence decisions to meaningfully engage.
3. Identify necessary systemic shifts required to enable and sustain authentic research partnerships.
Bio
Dr. Heather Gainforth is an Associate Professor at the University of British Columbia Okanagan and a Canada Research Chair in Research Coproduction and Implementation Science. Dr. Gainforth is the Director of UBC’s Centre for Health Behaviour Change and the Associate Director of Meaningful Engagement within the International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries. She is a leader in meaningful engagement and research coproduction, helping to bridge gaps between researchers and those who use research. Through her work, she has led an international partnership who co-developed guiding principles for conducting and disseminating spinal cord injury (SCI) research in partnership.

KT Canada Seminar Series - Dr. Jessica Reszel
2026-05-14 12:00 - 13:00
Presenter: Dr. Jessica Reszel
Presentation topic: Translating knowledge from implementation science into practice: A toolkit to build implementation capacity in maternal-newborn care
View the recording here.
Date & time: Thurs, May 14, 2026; 12:00-1:00pm Eastern time
Learning objectives – by the end of the presentation, participants will be able to:
1. Identify key content areas needed to build capacity for implementation practice,
2. Describe differences between current implementation approaches and implementation-science informed approaches in maternal-newborn settings,
3. Summarize the development, core components, and initial evaluation of an implementation toolkit for maternal-newborn settings.
Bio
Dr. Jessica Reszel is a Registered Nurse who recently completed her PhD in the School of Nursing at the University of Ottawa, where her research focused on making implementation science knowledge practical and useful for healthcare providers in maternal-newborn settings. She currently works as a Knowledge Translation Specialist at the Better Outcomes Registry & Network (BORN Ontario), the province’s perinatal, newborn, and child data registry, supporting the effective use of BORN data and innovations to improve care and inform policy.

KT Canada Summer Institute 2026
2026-06-08 - 2026-06-10
2026 KT Canada Summer Institute
KT Canada is pleased to be co-hosting this year’s Summer Institute with:
University of Ottawa’s School for Epidemiology and Public Health
The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute
Knowledge Translation Program, Unity Health Toronto
InformationGuests & SpeakersApplyAgendaSponsors and PartnersTestimonialsProgramWe are pleased to announce the Knowledge Translation (KT) Canada Summer Institute to be held in Ottawa, Ontario, from June 8-10, 2026. It’s being held at the University of Ottawa. The theme this year is “Implementation Science – Applications and Advancements“.
The Summer Institute incorporates both the science and practice of KT. Trainees from the Summer Institute may pursue careers in KT science, KT practice, or both, across various settings.
The Summer Institute provides participants with the opportunity to increase their understanding of knowledge translation research as well as opportunities and challenges in this field. The Summer Institute will also provide participants with the chance to network with colleagues including national and international KT experts.
New this year: There will be two streams or “tracks” for Summer Institute participants. Descriptions of the two tracks follow.
Track 1: Applying implementation science in Practice
Description: Track 1 is designed to provide a grounding and training in foundational steps applying the tools of KT and implementation science in practice. Track 1 is especially well-suited to applicants who are relatively new to KT and implementation science in their training and/or those in roles and positions that need to implement evidence-based practices.
Track 2: Advancing the science of implementation
Description: Track 2 is designed to provide attendees an opportunity to identify and discuss how to address conceptual and methodological gaps in the field of implementation science and develop grant-writing skills for implementation science projects to advance the field. Track 2 is especially well suited for applicants who are researchers or trainees with an interest advancing the science of knowledge translation.
Registration fees:
Trainees: $495 CAD
Jr faculty & Research staff: $1,099 CAD
Registration fees cover meals and snacks during the event.
Expenses such as transportation and accommodations are not covered by registration fees. For accommodations, you can book a dorm room at the university of Ottawa for a fairly reasonable rate. Applicants who are accepted will receive more information about this in their acceptance email.
Email Meghan.Storey@UnityHealth.to with questions.
Additional facilitators and speakers TBD.
Dr. Jamie Brehaut (University of Ottawa) is a Senior Scientist with the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Full Professor in the School of Epidemiology & Public at the University of Ottawa, and member of the Centre for Implementation Science and the Ottawa Methods Centre. Dr. Brehaut has expertise in knowledge translation/ implementation science and psychological theory. Much of his current work focuses on the application of theory-informed approaches to facilitate health care practice change, clinical trial participation, and resilience against health misinformation.
Dr. Melissa Brouwers (University of Ottawa) is a Professor and the Director of the School of Epidemiology and Public Health (SEPH) in the Faculty of Medicine at University of Ottawa. She also holds appointments at McMaster University in the Department of Oncology and the Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence and Impact (HEI). At SEPH, Dr. Brouwers is a co-leader of the Knowledge Synthesis and Application Unit (https://www.ksau.ca/) and a co-lead of the AGREE Research Enterprise (www.agreetrust.com). Dr. Brouwers holds a wealth of experience as a health services researcher with special interest in knowledge translation, implementation science and evaluation, and knowledge synthesis and guidelines. She has a passion for graduate school education and international research collaborations. She obtained her PhD in Social Psychology from Western University.
Dr. Janet Curran (Dalhousie University) is a Professor in the School of Nursing at Dalhousie University and a Research Chair in Quality and Patient Safety at IWK Health, Nova Scotia Health and Dalhousie University. She is the Implementation Science Co-lead for the CHILDBRIGHT Network and the Scientific Lead in the Strengthening Transitions in Care lab at IWK Health where her program of research is focused on co-designing and evaluating best practice and policy change interventions to improve transitions in care for patients and families. Her co-design work is informed by collaborating with multiple stakeholders including patients, parents and caregivers, healthcare providers, and policy makers.
Dr. Maoliosa (Mo) Donald (University of Calgary) is an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary. She is trained as a health services researcher, implementation scientist, and physical therapist. Her research interests include interventions that support person-centered care, and innovations that address the evidence-practice gap. Mo has extensive experience in stakeholder engagement in the implementation of health innovations. She is interested in applying theories, methods, and frameworks to determine factors that promote or impede implementation, adaptation, and sustainability in ways that are effective and practical for various contexts.
Dr. Tara Elton-Marshall (University of Ottawa) is an Associate Professor in the School of Epidemiology and Public Health at the University of Ottawa. Her research evaluates addiction and substance use-related policies and programs with the goal of providing the evidence needed to strengthen future policy and programming, and ultimately reducing addiction and substance use problems. She is currently the Nominated Principal Investigator (NPI) on a CIHR funded team grant to evaluate the impact of cannabis policy in Ontario.
Dr. Christine Fahim (Knowledge Translation Program, Unity Health Toronto) is a Scientist for the Knowledge Translation Program, St. Michael’s Hospital and leads the Team for Implementation, Evaluation and Sustainability (TIES). She is an Assistant Professor in the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto and an Associate Scientist in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Fahim is a member of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research’s governing council. She obtained her MSc in Health Systems at the University of Ottawa followed by a PhD in Health Research Methods, Evidence and Impact from McMaster University and a postdoctoral fellowship at the Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Fahim’s research focuses on the science and practice of knowledge translation to implement evidence-based interventions at the provider, organization, and health systems levels.
Dr. Alison Krentel (University of Ottawa) is an Associate Professor in the School of Epidemiology and Public Health at the University of Ottawa and a senior scientist at Bruyère Health Research Institute. She holds a PhD in Public Health and MSc in Public Health in Developing Countries from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. As principal investigator of the Threads Lab, Dr. Krentel’s research focuses on interconnected areas of global public health, including health equity and effectiveness, implementation research, infectious disease control programs, community engagement, and health systems strengthening. Her work emphasizes facilitating community engagement in public health program execution and conducting implementation research to support health systems in infectious disease control. A significant aspect involves translating research results into programmatic action, bridging the gap between academic findings and real-world health interventions.
Dr. Krystina Lewis (University of Ottawa) is Associate Professor in the School of Nursing at the University of Ottawa and Affiliate Researcher at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute with a particular interest in cardiovascular disease, implementation science, and knowledge translation to patients and the public. Her research has two main strands. First, she develops, evaluates, and implements approaches that help people make better health and health-care decisions by translating complex evidence into forms that are meaningful and usable for people. Second, she studies equitable co-produced research, examining how partnerships among people with lived and living experience, clinicians, and researchers can improve research quality, uptake, and real-world impact. She holds a Heart & Stroke New Investigator Award (2024-2027) focused on engaging patients in decisions about their brain-heart health and in 2024, was awarded Early Career Researcher of the Year in the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa. Supporting and mentoring undergraduate and graduate students is a central and deeply rewarding part of her role.

Dr. Stuart Nicholls (Ottawa Hospital Research Institute) I am a Scientist in the Methodological and Implementation (MIR) program at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. The main focus of my work is patient engagement in health research – the active collaboration with patients, families, caregivers or communities in governance, priority setting, developing research questions, and even performing certain parts of the research itself. My research falls within four main areas, all of which aim to improve the methods and implementation of patient engagement in research:
1. Understanding and/or explaining what influences implementation outcomes: e.g. barriers and facilitators to engagement in research (including use of resources) & building solutions;
2. Describing the processes and practices of engagement in research (esp. underserved areas & focus on equity);
3. Conducting ethical analyses of engaging with people with lived experience (PWLE) and communities in research (research ethics and ‘everyday ethics’);
4. Improving the evidence base and quality of engagement and evaluating the implementation of patient engagement. These goals are achieved by combining research with practice through the Office for Patient Engagement in Research Activities (OPERA), which provides consultation services, training, and resources for teams wishing to engage patients, families, or caregivers as partners in research.
Dr. Justin Presseau (Ottawa Hospital Research Institute) is a Senior Scientist at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute and Associate Professor in the School of Epidemiology & Public Health and School of Psychology at the University of Ottawa. As a behavioural scientist, he leads the Psychology and Health Research Group (PaHRG) and is a core faculty member of the Centre for Implementation Research at the Ottawa Hospital. He holds a Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Aberdeen (UK). His research program operates at the intersection between behavioural science and implementation science, focusing on developing and evaluate interventions to support changing healthcare professional behaviours and health behaviours of patients and the public.

Dr. Dawn Stacey (University of Ottawa) is a distinguished university professor and Vice Dean of Research for the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Ottawa. At the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, she is a Senior Scientist in the Centre for Implementation Research and co-scientific director of the Patient Decision Aids Research Group. Her research is focused on developing, evaluating, and implementing interventions to support patients and their families/caregivers to be actively engaged as partners in making evidence-informed healthcare decisions. She has over 350 peer-reviewed publications and is internationally recognized expert in decision and implementation sciences. https://decisionaid.ohri.ca for more details.

Dr. Elisabeth Vesnaver is an embedded implementation scientist at BORN Ontario within the Prenatal Screening Ontario provincial program, Investigator at the CHEO Research Institute, and an Adjunct Professor in the School of Epidemiology and Public Health at the University of Ottawa. She is supported by a CIHR Health System Impact Embedded Early Career Researcher Award. Her work aims to improve health equity by understanding the needs and amplifying the voices of underserved populations in the health care system and at policymaking tables by applying rigorous theory-informed implementation science methods. She takes a
participatory approach and is supported by both community engagement and integrated knowledge translation with health system partners. She currently leads work related to 1) equitable implementation of new prenatal screening technologies and 2) blood donor inclusion. Applications have now closed, many thanks to all who applied!
The application window will open at 12:00pm Eastern time on January 19th. The deadline for this application has been extended to February 16, 2026, 11:59PM Eastern time. Please note that applications submitted after this time will not be downloaded.
New this year: There will be two streams or “tracks” for Summer Institute participants. Descriptions of the two tracks follow.
Track 1: Applying implementation science in Practice
Description: Track 1 is designed to provide a grounding and training in foundational steps applying the tools of KT and implementation science in practice. Track 1 is especially well-suited to applicants who are relatively new to KT and implementation science in their training and/or those in roles and positions that need to implement evidence-based practices.
Track 2: Advancing the science of implementation
Description: Track 2 is designed to provide attendees an opportunity to identify and discuss how to address conceptual and methodological gaps in the field of implementation science and develop grant-writing skills for implementation science projects to advance the field. Track 2 is especially well suited for applicants who are researchers or trainees with an interest advancing the science of knowledge translation.
Items to submit for Track 1:
Please submit:

Support letter from one referee. The letter should highlight that your research area is linked to KT. It should illustrate how you were involved in the work, what you hope to learn at the summer institute, and how the summer institute will support your career. The referee should send their letter of support directly to Meghan Storey (Meghan.Storey@unityhealth.to) before the deadline: using the subject heading: Summer Institute support letter & applicant last name.
An abstract for your research project. This abstract can describe a project that is in progress or has been completed. The abstract should speak to the dissemination or implementation of evidence with or without advancement of KT science, methods or theories.

-Abstracts should include the following headings:
-For those with results: Background, Methods, Results and Discussion/ Conclusions
-For those without results: Background, Methods, Planned Analysis, Expected Outcomes.
-Title and authors.
-Max 300 words.

A description of your current research interests and how they relate to knowledge translation and knowledge translation research (max 200 words).
A description of your expectations for the summer institute and how attending would support your career goals (max 200 words).
CV (any format is acceptable; CV should include your work and academic experience, research publications, presentations, grant and award funding, and any relevant KT work or involvement).

Items to submit for Track 2:
Please submit:

Support letter from one referee. The letter should highlight that your research area is linked to KT. It should illustrate how you were involved in the work, what you hope to learn at the summer institute, and how the summer institute will support your career. The referee should send their letter of support directly to Meghan Storey (Meghan.Storey@unityhealth.to) before the deadline: using the subject heading: Summer Institute support letter & applicant last name.
An abstract for your research project. This abstract can describe a project that is in progress or has been completed. The abstract should depict an implementation science research proposal or idea that you would like to develop during the summer institute. Please describe the research objective or evidence-based practice that you want to implement; the planned methods and analysis plan; and anticipated results and impact.

-Abstracts with results should include: Background, Methods, Results and Discussion/ Conclusions.
-Title and authors.
-Max 300 words.

A description of your current research interests and experience and how they relate to KT. Please include a description of your career goals, your expectations for the summer institute and what you hope to learn/achieve during the summer institute (max 300 words).
CV (any format is acceptable; CV should include your work and academic experience, research publications, presentations, grant and award funding, and any relevant KT work or involvement).

Stay updated via our social media and/ or newsletter:
LinkedIn: @Knowledge Translation Program
Bluesky: @KTCanada and @KTProgram
subscribe to the KT Canada newsletter. Coming soon.
We extend a huge thank you to our sponsors and partners!

Janet, Wendy, and John Last Endowment

See what past Summer Institute participants are saying:

“I really liked the engagement with other trainees and faculty members. It was a very collaborative experience.“
“I think the institute was structured very well. There was a good variety of lectures, workshops, and breaks. I never felt too overwhelmed or fatigued. The content was directly relevant to me and my work in patient engagement.“
Ellen Wang – “Growing understanding of knowledge translation practice and research“
The full program will be posted in May 2026.
