IDCCM Scholar Program

Dr. Christopher Yarnell is an intensivist and researcher at Scarborough Health Network and an Assistant Professor in the University of Toronto’s Interdepartmental Division of Critical Care Medicine. He completed his clinical training and PhD in Clinical Epidemiology at the University of Toronto and holds the Northpine Professorship in Critical Care Research. He leads the ICU research program at Scarborough Health Network, focusing on improving representation in critical care research, acute hypoxemic respiratory failure, electrolyte supplementation, and equity in critical care medicine. The IDCCM congratulates Dr. Yarnell on receiving the 2025–2026 IDCCM Scholar Award and recognizes his contributions to advancing critical care research.

Dr. Martin Urner is an attending physician in the Medical/Surgical Intensive Care Unit at Toronto General Hospital and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology & Pain Medicine at the University of Toronto. His research focuses on critical care medicine, with expertise in causal inference and predictive modelling. His work on mechanical ventilation and outcomes in patients with acute respiratory failure has been published in leading journals, including The Lancet Respiratory Medicine and The BMJ. The IDCCM congratulates Dr. Urner on receiving the 2023–2024 IDCCM Scholar Award and recognizes his contributions to critical care research.

Dr. Barbara Haas was selected as an IDCCM Scholar in recognition of her research contributions and potential as a future leader in critical care medicine. Her research focuses on the long-term clinical and patient-centred outcomes of critical illness resulting from acute injury. Since her faculty appointment in 2016, she has published numerous peer-reviewed papers and secured significant research funding, including CIHR operating grants as principal or co-principal investigator. The IDCCM congratulates Dr. Haas on receiving the 2021–2022 IDCCM Scholar Award and recognizes her commitment to advancing critical care research.

Dr. Ewan Goligher was selected as an IDCCM Scholar in recognition of his research contributions and potential as a future leader in critical care medicine. His research focuses on patient–ventilator interaction and the mechanisms of lung and diaphragm injury during mechanical ventilation, with the goal of improving ventilation strategies and patient outcomes. The IDCCM congratulates Dr. Goligher on receiving the 2020–2021 IDCCM Scholar Award and recognizes his contributions to advancing critical care research.

Dr. Elizabeth Wilcox was selected as the first Toronto IDCCM Scholar in recognition of her research contributions and potential as a future leader in critical care medicine. Her research focuses on understanding the mechanisms of newly acquired brain injury following critical illness. She leads the COGWELL study, a multicentre longitudinal study investigating risk factors for long-term cognitive impairment in survivors of critical illness requiring mechanical ventilation. The IDCCM congratulates Dr. Wilcox on receiving the 2018–2019 IDCCM Scholar Award and recognizes her contributions to advancing critical care research.