Dr. Ari Meguerditchian Appointed Scientific Director of St. Mary’s Hospital in Montreal

The Montréal West Island Integrated University Health and Social Services Centre (IUHSSC) announced that Dr. Ari Meguerditchian has been appointed as the Scientific Director of the St. Mary’s Hospital Research Centre. Dr. Meguerditchian is an Associate Professor within the Department of Surgery at the Faculty of Medicine of McGill University and the Gerald Bronfman Department of Oncology, where he is the graduate program Director.

Dr. Meguerditchian’s research focus in health services and his vision of strengthening connatections between community hospitals and family medicine groups were key factors in the selection committee’s decision. Dr. Meguerditchian is a clinical leader in his field who also brings established research expertise and a strategic vision for developing the quality of our practices, our organization, and the efficiency of our services. He is a surgeon and oncology researcher specializing in breast cancer, melanoma, and sarcoma at the McGill University Health Centre. He is recognized and funded for his research on the integration of information technologies into the optimization of cancer care. In addition, he is a member of the Institut national d’excellence en santé et services sociaux (INESSS), where he contributes to the development of evidence-based practices as a member of the committee responsible for reviewing new cancer treatments as well as participating in numerous scientific and review committees. As Director of the Cancer, Quality & Innovation program, he has actively contributed to the academic development of the Rossy Cancer Network. Through the creation of a research-funding program focused on the quality of care, the creation of a professional development program for healthcare professionals in oncology, and a program of improvement initiatives in cancer care at the McGill hospital network.

In his role as Scientific Director, Dr. Meguerditchian will consolidate the academic mission of St. Mary’s Hospital Center among McGill University-affiliated hospitals. Having the Research Centre formally designated, as part of the McGill University-affiliated network will be one of his primary mandates. Another significant mandate is the consolidation and expansion of the network of research centre partners within the IUHSSC, to include a broad range of departments, schools, researchers, and clinicians from the Faculty of Medicine, as well as the Douglas Mental Health University Institute. He succeeds Dr. Jeannie Haggerty, who had been interim director since November 2017. Dr. Meguerditchian will maintain his surgical practice at the McGill University Health Centre and will develop his research at the Montreal West Island IUHSSC. This integration of his clinical research will solidify partnerships within McGill University’s Réseau Universitaire Intégré de Santé et Services Sociaux (RUISSS). He will assume his duties on January 20, 2020.