Hospital Hosts Prestigious Heart & Stroke Barnett Memorial Lectureship

Today, the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre (the Hospital) hosted the Heart & Stroke Barnett Memorial Lectureship and Visiting Professorship, a prestigious forum where a distinguished expert in the field of cerebrovascular disease addresses current research and clinical practice.

This year’s lecture is in recognition of the late Dr. Henry J.M. Barnett’s outstanding contribution to the field of stroke. The distinguished speaker, Dr. Adnan Qureshi, professor of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Radiology at University of Minnesota and President of the International Congress of Interventional Neurology, will focus on strategies to optimize new stroke treatments.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Dr. Qureshi and the Barnett Memorial Lectureship to our Hospital,” said Dr. Mark Henderson, Executive Vice President of Patient Care Services. “We know that stroke is the most common cause of adult disability in Canada, with 62,000 new strokes occurring annually. Here in Northwestern Ontario, one disabling stroke occurs every few days. This event provides our learners and care providers with an amazing opportunity to hear about new practices that will ultimately help improve the quality of care for our stroke patients and families.”

Although the prevalence of stroke remains high, there are new treatments available which can improve outcomes for stroke patients. “New treatments and research regarding stroke care covered by today’s lecture is not only important to health care providers, it is of great interest to stroke survivors and their families,” said Dr. Henderson.

The Lectureship, funded by the Heart and Stroke Foundation, was planned in partnership with the Northwestern Ontario Regional Stroke Network, the Northern Ontario School of Medicine, and Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre.

This year’s Barnett Lectureship will address a broader audience than just the rotating host centres that provide the newest endovascular interventions. For the first time, the event will be broadcast nationally using telemedicine, webcasting and audio-conferencing technology.

Background on Dr. Adnan Qureshi:

– Recognized as an international leader in stroke and neuro-endovascular research and acute stroke management by physicians from multiple disciplines.
– Written over 570 scientific publications in prestigious journals.
– Made over 1400 presentations in various national and international meetings.
– Served as an invited speaker at numerous national and international forums.
– Has been invited as visiting professor to universities in the United States and abroad.
– Serves on editorial boards for several peer-review journals and is Editor-in-Chief for “Journal of Vascular and Interventional Neurology”.
– He was the editor of the “Atlas of Interventional Neurology” published by Demos and “Textbook of Interventional Neurology” published by Cambridge.
– Currently the principal investigator of Antihypertensive Treatment of Cerebral Hemorrhage-II trial, a large multicenter international randomized trial that recruited 1000 patients with intracerebral hemorrhage.
– Most recently, he laid the foundation of the Zeenat Qureshi Stroke Institute. Since its inauguration, the center has led the way in cutting edge research in epidemiology, clinical trials, and basic research pertaining to cerebrovascular diseases.
– He has made a significant effort towards developing treatments for both intracerebral hemorrhage and ischemic stroke.
– Has mentored over a 100 fellows and medical students. He continues to serve as course director for various educational seminars at a regional, national, and international level.

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