Heart & Stroke in BC & Yukon is a major contributor to four Chairs and two Professorships. These prestigious awards recognize and support outstanding scientists and leaders in their fields.
Dr. Jeff Reading: Creating systemic change for First Nations heart health
Dr. Jeff Reading (above) is a leading international expert in Indigenous health and is the inaugural First Nations Health Authority Chair in Heart Health and Wellness at St. Paul’s Hospital.
Indigenous people in Canada are up to two times more likely to develop heart disease than the general population. Although 80% of premature heart disease and stroke is preventable, First Nations, Métis and Inuit people face many barriers to the elements of prevention, such as access to healthy food.
The Chair is a global first, with a wholistic focus on First Nations heart health to drive research and the goal of improving First Nations health outcomes. Dr. Reading’s responsibilities include leading research to develop health promotion strategies that incorporate First Nations history, culture and spirit and producing health knowledge for policies and programs.
This position is also unique in that it incorporates academic, clinical and political mandates, which could facilitate systemic change.
Read more about Dr. Reading’s work.
Dr. Sandra Lauck: Ensuring the future quality of nursing
Dr. Sandra Lauck holds the inaugural Heart & Stroke Foundation Professorship in Cardiovascular Nursing at the University of British Columbia. The professorship is a first in Western Canada. Dr. Lauck is a clinical assistant professor in the UBC School of Nursing and a Clinical Nurse Specialist for the internationally renowned transcatheter heart valve program at St. Paul’s Hospital.
Nursing plays a fundamental role across the continuum of care. Not only is nursing important in clinical practice and patient care, but also in primary and secondary prevention, education and advocacy. In addition to conducting research and translating knowledge into practice, Dr. Lauck will enhance the nursing program curriculum through the dissemination of research outcomes and advances in clinical practice.
Dr. Sandra Lauck holds the Heart & Stroke Foundation Professorship in Cardiovascular Nursing at UBC.
This will ensure that future generations of nurses are equipped to provide the highest quality of care to patients, improving patient outcomes, saving lives and bettering the quality of life for patients and their families.
Dr. Philip Teal: Leading the development of new stroke therapy
Dr. Philip Teal holds the Sauder Family and Heart and Stroke Foundation of BC & Yukon Professorship in Clinical Stroke Research. A clinical professor of neurology at UBC, Dr. Teal is an internationally recognized expert in stroke.
His clinical focus includes stroke prevention, acute stroke management, neuroprotection strategies, and the planning, organization, and management of clinical trials.
Dr. Teal will help translate findings from basic research into new therapeutic applications in the clinical setting. He will become a leader in the medical and wider community to build awareness around stroke issues as well as in the education and training of students.
This will put treatment, prevention and awareness of stroke front and centre in the clinic, at patients’ bedsides and in the community.
Dr. Philip Teal holds the Professorship in Clinical Stroke Research.
This is an exciting time in acute stroke therapy. The development of new treatments requires increased public awareness, ambulance diversion policies, and easy access to sophisticated care and neuroimaging.
Dr. Teal is director of the Vancouver Hospital and Health Sciences Centre Stroke Program, past chairman of the Canadian Stroke Consortium and a board member of the BC Stroke Strategy. Dr. Teal is the division head of Clinical Neurology at Vancouver General Hospital and the University Hospital.
Learn more about BC research funding and its recipients: