Platform Axe Leads

Kim Lavoie, PhD, FCPA, FABMR (Université du Québec à Montréal, Canada)

Dr. Kim Lavoie is co-Director of the MBMC, holds the Canada Research Chair in Behavioural Medicine, and is a researcher in the Health promotion, prevention and management of chronic diseases research axis at CIUSSS du Nord-de-l’île-de-Montréal, Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal. She is a Full Professor in the Department of Psychology at UQAM and an Adjunct Professor of Medicine at University of Montreal. She is internationally recognized for her research on the impact of psychological and behavioural factors on the development and progression of chronic diseases, and the impact of behavioural interventions, e.g., motivational communication, exercise, and behavioural weight loss, on key health behaviours and outcomes in chronic diseases. She is also the Chair of the Canadian Network for Health Behaviour Change and Promotion (CAN-Change) Finally, she is an internationally recognized expert in motivational communication; over 20,000 health professionals across Canada, the US, Europe (France, Spain, Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Portugal, Italy, Estonia, the UK), India and Australia/New Zealand have attended her professional training workshops. She currently holds multiple grants in the area of motivational communication training and efficacy for behaviour change in chronic disease. Dr. Lavoie is the PI of the iCARE Platform.

Gerry Molloy, PhD (University of Galway, Ireland)

Gerry Molloy is a Professor of Health Psychology at the University of Galway in Ireland where he has been based since 2012. He leads a programme of research focused mainly on medicines use across the lifespan, and has been a collaborator with iCARE since 2020. Gerry received his PhD from the University of St Andrews in Scotland and was awarded a combined Economic and Social Research Council/Medical Research Council post-doctoral fellowship, which he held at the University of Aberdeen. Subsequently, he worked as a research fellow in the Department of Epidemiology & Public Health at University College London in England and as a Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Stirling in Scotland. He was awarded Fellowship of the European Health Psychology Society in 2018 for his outstanding contribution to the field of Health Psychology. Gerry has been an Associate Editor of Health Psychology Review since 2021 and was previously an Associate Editor of the International Journal of Behavioral Medicine. He was a member of the European Society of Cardiology task force that wrote the 2024 guideline on management of elevated blood pressure and hypertension.

Nazeem Muhajarine, PhD, FCAHS (University of Saskatchewan, Canada)

Dr. Nazeem Muhajarine is Distinguished University Professor at University of Saskatchewan’s College of Medicine. He is one of Canada’s most accomplished population health researchers and a driver of change at the community level to promote better health. Specializing in social epidemiology, Dr. Muhajarine has excelled in conducting research that is translated into change. During COVID-19 pandemic, he led over a dozen epidemiological and community-based research including on public trust and trustworthiness. He was a prolific media commentator on the public health aspects of the pandemic. He also served on several national and provincial advisory committees and science tables during the pandemic.

Mariantonia Lemos, PhD (Universidad EAFIT, Colombia)

Mariantonia Lemos is a psychologist and researcher specializing in behavior change and behavioral medicine. Her work focuses on understanding how habits, emotions, beliefs, and social contexts influence health and well-being, and on translating that knowledge into evidence-based interventions. She has led and collaborated on projects in areas such as mental health, vaccination, chronic disease, and digital health, combining academic research with real-world applications in healthcare, education, and public policy. Her broader goal is to design context-sensitive strategies that promote healthier behaviors and improve quality of life.

Michael Wilson, PhD (McMaster University, Canada)

As Scientific Director and an Associate Professor in the Department Health Research Methods, Evidence & Impact, Dr. Wilson provides leadership for the many scientific activities at the McMaster Health Forum, which are focused on harnessing and contextualizing the best-available evidence along with citizen values and stakeholder insights to strengthen health and social systems and get the right programs, services and products to the people who need them. A key focus of this work is on: 1) preparing timely and demand-driven contextualized evidence syntheses that address pressing health and social system issues faced by decision-maker; and 2) leading the Evidence synthesis hub of the Evidence Support Network for Canada (ESN-CA) that provides timely, demand-driven evidence syntheses for Canadian decision-makers.

Simon Bacon, PhD, FTOS, FCCS, FABMR (Concordia University, Canada)

Dr. Simon Bacon is a Full Professor in the Department of Health, Kinesiology, and Applied Physiology at Concordia University, the co-Director of the Montreal Behavioural Medicine Centre, and a researcher in the Health promotion, prevention and management of chronic diseases research axis at CIUSSS du Nord-de-l’île-de-Montréal, Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal. He previously was the CIHR SPOR Chair in Innovative, Patient-Oriented, Behavioural Clinical Trials, and FRQS Co-Chair in Artificial Intelligence and Digital Health for Health Behaviour Change. Dr. Bacon has had extensive training in the delivery of behavioural randomised controlled trials and has been a PI and co-I on 14 different studies involving behavioural interventions, including exercise, weight management, stress management, and motivational interviewing. Finally, Dr. Bacon has organised several knowledge translation events, including Café Scientifiques, where he has brought a number of different stakeholders together to discuss key topics and issues, for example, trying to create a common dialogue between researchers and the media to improve health innovation reporting.

Keven Joyal-Desmarais, PhD (University of Leeds, UK)

Dr. Keven Joyal-Desmarais is a lecturer in psychology at the University of Leeds (UK). They obtained their PhD in psychology in 2020 at the University of Minnesota (USA), with a focus on social/personality psychology and quantitative methodology. Dr. Joyal-Desmarais’ research focuses on how psychological forces can be used to encourage positive behaviours in society. This includes promoting health-related behaviours (e.g., vaccination, exercise), prosocial behaviours (e.g., volunteerism), and environmental behaviours (e.g., green diets). Their core area of expertise involves how interventions (e.g., media campaigns, adverts) can be personalised to people’s personalities, values, beliefs, and goals. They are also broadly interested in expanding our understanding of theories of behaviour change and decision-making (e.g., the Theory of Planned Behaviour), personality (e.g., the Big 5; Regulatory Focus), and in improving research methodology in the behavioural sciences.

Simon Bacon, PhD, FTOS, FCCS, FABMR (Concordia University, Canada)

Dr. Simon Bacon is a Full Professor in the Department of Health, Kinesiology, and Applied Physiology at Concordia University, the co-Director of the Montreal Behavioural Medicine Centre, and a researcher in the Health promotion, prevention and management of chronic diseases research axis at CIUSSS du Nord-de-l’île-de-Montréal, Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal. He previously was the CIHR SPOR Chair in Innovative, Patient-Oriented, Behavioural Clinical Trials, and FRQS Co-Chair in Artificial Intelligence and Digital Health for Health Behaviour Change. Dr. Bacon has had extensive training in the delivery of behavioural randomised controlled trials and has been a PI and co-I on 14 different studies involving behavioural interventions, including exercise, weight management, stress management, and motivational interviewing. Finally, Dr. Bacon has organised several knowledge translation events, including Café Scientifiques, where he has brought a number of different stakeholders together to discuss key topics and issues, for example, trying to create a common dialogue between researchers and the media to improve health innovation reporting.

Samir Gupta, MD (University of Toronto, Canada)

Samir Gupta is a Respirologist and clinician-scientist at the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael’s Hospital and an Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Toronto.  He completed his Master’s degree in Clinical Epidemiology at the University of Toronto, followed by a fellowship in Knowledge Translation Research.  His main research interest is in knowledge translation across the spectrum of respiratory illness, with a focus on electronic tools for behaviour change.  He also has an interest in rare lung disease research methods, and is founder and Head of the Canadian Hepatopulmonary Syndrome Program (www.hpscare.com). He has a specific interest in science communication, through his social channel “The Feed With Dr. G” and as the medical correspondent for the CBC.  He also serves as Past Chair of the Canadian Respiratory Guidelines Committee and holds the University of Toronto Michael Locke Term Chair in Knowledge Translation and Rare Lung Disease Research.

Vincent Gosselin Boucher, PhD (Université du Québec à Montréal, Canada)

Vincent Gosselin Boucher is a Professor in the Department of Physical Activity Sciences at the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) and Director of the PHARE Lab. His research program focuses on supporting healthcare professionals in the prevention and management of chronic diseases, with the overarching goal of reducing morbidity and premature mortality. Specifically, his work targets three complementary areas: (1) strengthening the psychological and organizational support of healthcare professionals as a key condition for engagement in care relationships, (2) enhancing their capacity to navigate health literacy challenges, misinformation, and disinformation, and (3) developing and evaluating digital tools to assess and strengthen motivational communication competencies in complex and information-rich care environments. He is also actively involved in knowledge mobilization initiatives, including the Sciences 101, which promotes accessible science communication. In parallel, he co-founded the non-profit organization “Truth or What?” (Vérité ou Quoi?), which develops innovative tools such as serious games, podcasts, and digital resources to address misinformation and promote scientific literacy among youth and the general public.