FORMER STUDENTS, INTERNS, RESEARCH ASSISTANTS AND INVITED FELLOWSWilliam AffleckFormer Research AssistantWilliam Affleck completed a Master's degree in Biomedical Ethics at McGill University. His interests included clinical ethics, mental health ethics, and qualitative health research. Will's research at the Unit examined issues and concerns surrounding Research Ethics Boards approval of emerging neuroimaging technologies; the social / health needs and experiences of bereaved parents; and ethical issues in research involving emotionally vulnerable populations. Upon completion of his MA, Will entered a PhD program in Social and Transcultural Psychiatry at McGill.
David BouvierFormer InternDavid Bouvier completed a PhD in cellular and molecular neurobiology from the University of Montreal. He pursued his interests in neuroscience and neuroethics through an internship at the Neuroethics Research Unit, from 2006 to 2007, examining stakeholder perspectives and public understanding of the ethical and social issues of cognitive enhancement using methylphenidate. He afterwards pursued postdoctoral neuroscience research in Geneva and Montreal.Luciana CalimanInvited FellowAfter studies in psychology, Luciana Caliman did a Master's and a Ph.D. in Collective Health at the Institute for Social Medicine (IMS), State University of Rio de Janeiro. She spent two years at Max-Planck-Institute for the History of Science, Berlin, researching for her doctoral thesis on “The historical constitution of the moral biology of attention”. Currently, she is professor at the department of psychology, Brazilian Faculty UNIVIX, and a postdoctoral student at the Institute of Psychology, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Her research interests include the history of the inattentive individual, and the ethical challenges of the extension of the childhood diagnosis of ADHD to adults.Zoë Costa-von AeschFormer Research AssistantZoë Costa-von Aesch received her BScH from Queen's University and completed her MSc at McGill University, specializing in Biomedical Ethics. Her research interests include women's health, HIV/AIDS and research ethics. Zoë is now a MD / PhD candidate at McGill University. Ariane DaoustFormer Master’s StudentAriane Daoust completed a Bachelor of Science in Nursing at Université de Montréal and was a practicing nurse since 2003. Her work in a pediatric intensive care unit led to her interest in bioethics. She pursued her studies in the Master's programs in bioethics at the Université de Montréal. She was a member of the bioethics committee of the CHU Sainte-Justine. Her graduate work at the Neuroethics Research Unit dealt with the neurological determination death. Ariane is also interested in clinical ethics, and palliative care.
Constance DeslauriersFormer Master's Student Constance Deslauriers graduated from California State University Sacramento with a degree in Biologics Sciences with minors in Organic Chemistry and Microbiology. Her concerns and interests for diverse biomedical ethic questions guided her towards the Neuroethics Research Unit where she focused on the ethical issues that arise from a recent neuroimaging. Constance also developed an interest for qualitative research.
Marie-Josée DionFormer InternMarie-Josée Dion was a graduate student in Biomedical Ethics at McGill University and attended medical school at Université de Montréal. She has a particular interest in applied clinical ethics.
Maya Dufourcq-BranaFormer Research AssistantMaya completed a Master's degree in Social Psychology at the Université de Bordeaux and a PhD in Social and Human Sciences at the Université de Bretagne-Sud in France. She published many articles in social psychology journals and presented her work at international conferences. She also wrote articles for the French journal Science et Vie and organized conferences in neurological sciences at the University of Montreal. Her interest in neurosciences led her to work as Research Assistant for the Unit where she contributed to research projects and the organization of an international workshop on ethics in DBS. Amaryllis FerrandFormer InternAmaryllis studied biomedical sciences and psychology at the University of Ottawa and then pursued medical studies at the at the same university. Her interest for questions at the intersection of neuroscience, ethics and epistemology led her to join the Neuroethics Research Unit for an internship in 2007.
Megan GaleuciaFormer Research AssistantMegan Galeucia completed her Bachelor of Arts at McGill University in anthropology and social studies of medicine in the spring of 2011. Her interests included: understanding the linkages between social justice and the lived-experience of health and illness, fostering civic engagement and the responsible and ethical translation of policy and scientific knowledge to the public sphere, and conducting community-based health research. Her research projects at the Unit focused on how neuroscience research is affecting our understanding of moral concepts such as free will and personhood, as well as how neuroscience research on morality is transmitted to the general public through the media and the potential social and policy implications it may have. Megan has begun a Master's of Public Health at Columbia University last Fall.
Marta KarczewskaFormer InternMarta Karczewska studied at McGill University. She finished the Medical Preparatory year in May 2006 and started Medical School the same year. She is interested in ethics and would like to pursue a career as a physician involved in clinical practice as well as research.Katja KuehlmeyerInvited Fellow
Danaë Larivière-Bastien Former Master’s Student Danaë Larivière-Bastien completed a degree in international studies (Law profile) of the University of Montreal and the International Program diploma of the Institute of Political Studies of Paris. She did a Master's in bioethics within the Programs of bioethics of the University of Montreal and received one of the scholarships of excellence in 2008-2009. She has worked with disabled persons in the school setting. She was a member of the clinical ethics committee of Maisonneuve-Rosemont hospital. She is interested in the ethical issues related to the various aspects of the experience of people living with a disability, particularly with cerebral palsy. Jayne LuckeInvited FellowGhislaine MathieuFormer PhD StudentGhislaine Mathieu pursues a PhD program in Applied Human Sciences (Bioethics option) at the Université de Montréal. Her interests in the field of neuroscience research and neuroethics had led her to pursue her training under the co-supervision of Dr. Racine. Her research aimed at studying social, legal and ethical challenges emerging from the current regulatory frameworks for functional neurosurgery using deep brain stimulation for the treatment of neurological and psychiatric disorders. One of her key interests concerned the Canadian system for the evaluation and approval of medical devices. Ghislaine has had the opportunity to present posters and communications on her work at different national and international conferences, such as the Canadian Bioethics Society, the Canadian Neuroscience Association, the International Association for Bioethics, the Neuroethics Society, and the Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health.
Bruce MaxwellFormer Postdoctoral Fellow Bruce Maxwell joined the Neuroethics Research Unit as a postdoctoral research fellow in early 2009. Prior to this position, he was a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Montreal Centre for Research on Ethics (CRÉUM) where he retained an affiliation with the division of fundamental ethics. Having worked as associate researcher at the University of Münster’s Institute of Educational Studies and Institute for the Ethics, History and Theory of Medicine, he obtained his Ph.D. in education and philosophy from that university in 2007. His research projects at the Unit dealt with the ethical and social dimensions of deep brain stimulation, theoretical frameworks for character education, emotion theory and cognitive behaviour therapy, and the ethics and moral psychology of teaching and learning about genocide. Bruce now holds a professorship at the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières in the Department of educational sciences.Simon OutramPrevious Invited Fellow Simon Outram was a postdoctoral fellow at Novel Tech Ethics, Dalhousie University funded by States of Mind: Emerging Issues in Neuroethics, and Therapeutic Hopes and Ethical Concerns: Clinical Research in the Neurosciences. Simon has a background in Social Anthropology (MA University of Manchester) and Environmental Epidemiology (MSc London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine). He completed his PhD in May 2007 (St George’s Hospital Medical School, University of London). His PhD explored the use of racial and ethnic categories in genetics and biomedical research. The study examined the relationship between science and society in the production and interpretation of racial/ethnic data, especially the conceptual and methodological frameworks used to present racial/ethnic identities as genetic categories or casual epidemiological variables. Since completing the PhD, Simon joined the Open University Innogen Research Centre in September 2007 to conduct research exploring biotechnology and science communication within sub-Saharan Africa. Brad PartridgeInvited FellowDr. Brad Partridge is a Research Fellow in the Neuroethics Group at the Unviersity of Queensland Centre for Clinical Research (UQCCR), in Brisbane, Australia. He has been awarded a National Health and Medical research Council (NHMRC) Fellowship (2011-2014) and was previously a Postdoctoral Fellow in bioethics at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesiota. Brad's background is in psychology and in addition to his recent work on concussion in sport, he has also published articles related to addiction and the use of substances for enhancement (e.g.cognitive enhancement, anti-ageing drugs, and sports doping).David RisseFormer Research AssistantDavid Risse studied philosophical ethics at the Universities Nancy 2 and Strasbourg 2 (Master’s, DEA). His doctoral dissertation at Laval University was supported by a Charles - De Koninck scholarship. He is a member and regular speaker for the International Association of French Language Sociologists and has interest in sociology of sexuality, youth and family. He plans to extend his expertise to the neuroethics of sexuality and brain development.
Catherine Rodrigue Former Research Assistant and Graduate StudentCatherine Rodrigue graduated from the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQÀM) with a degree in biology specializing in toxicology. She completed a master's degree in bioethics at the Neuroethics Research Unit and the Université de Montréal under the supervision of Dr. Racine. She had a strong interest in clinical ethics and was a member of the clinical ethics committee of the Centre hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal (CHUM). Her research project at the Unit focused on ethical issues related to decision making for patients with neurological disorders of consciousness. She also provided assistance for the “Brain Matters 2” conference and other projects.
Matthew B. SeidlerFormer InternMatthew’s work at the Neuroethics Research Unit focused around the public understanding of neuroscience and the Terri Schiavo case, where he helped gather study data. Matthew then became a medical student at McGill University.Brandy Vanderbyl Former Research AssistantBrandy obtained a Master’s degree in neurological sciences at McGill University after completing undergraduate work at the University of British Columbia in the same field. She is particularly drawn to studying vulnerable populations with neurological deficits including those with psychiatric disorders, brain cancers and degenerative disorders. Her project at the Neuroethics Research Unit focused on internet marketing of supplements to those with Alzheimer’s disease.
Lucie WadeFormer Master’s StudentWith a degree in Marine Biology and Contemporary Studies from the University of Kings College and Dalhousie University, Lucie’s ethics experience began in the field of marine mammal noise research where she explored a conflict of interest. Her master’s work at the Neuroethics Research Unit research focused around hype found in media and bioethics articles related to the phenomenon of cognitive enhancement and a similar trend that’s occurring with media coverage of the development of pharmaceuticals to “cure” intellectual disability. This latter project was completed as part of Lucie’s training with NeuroDevNet Canada. She then became an Academic Fellow in Clinical and Organizational Ethics at the Joint Centre for Bioethics (University of Toronto).She is now a clinical ethicist at the Jewish General Hospital.
Nathalie ZizzoFormer Research AssistantNatalie is a recent graduate from McGill University with a Bachelor of Science in Anatomy & Cell Biology and a minor in Neuroscience. She has also completed an exchange program with the University of Queensland, Australia. Her previous research experience includes work at the circadian rhythm research lab at the Douglas Mental Health Institute, as well as work in the neuropathology unit at the Montreal Neurological Institute. Her project at the Unit examined the ethical issues associated with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD), as well as how FASD is portrayed in the media.