This year’s event supported the MCI Living Lab for Personalized Medicine, a groundbreaking initiative led by Dr. Marta Kaminska and Dr. Basil Petrof. The Living Lab is the first innovation hub of its kind at the MUHC, designed to integrate real-time patient data, such as blood tests, imaging, sleep studies, and genetic profiles, into personalized treatment strategies. By embedding research directly into patient care, the Living Lab will accelerate discoveries that improve lives today while shaping the medicine of tomorrow.

Thanks to the generosity of participants, donors, and the dedicated organizing team at Raymond James, we are one step closer to funding essential infrastructure for this transformative initiative.

Together, we are redefining what’s possible in respiratory health—one swing at a time. THANK YOU!

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Raymond James Charity Softball Game 2025 Fundraising Page

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It is with great pleasure that we announce Kalpana Chaudhary as the recipient of the 2025-2026 Dr. Margaret Becklake Fellowship in Respiratory Research. Kalpana’s commitment to public health research has been shaped by nearly two decades of experience addressing health inequities affecting women and children in Nepal. Her journey began in 2007 with undergraduate training in public health in Kathmandu, where she developed foundational skills in epidemiology, program evaluation, and health systems research. Early independent research on adolescent reproductive health revealed the powerful influence of social norms and gender inequities on access to care, setting the stage for a career focused on translating evidence into equitable, community-responsive interventions. Following graduation, Ms. Chaudhary held leadership roles within national health system, strengthening initiatives at JSI Research and Training Institute, including the scale-up of chlorhexidine cord care across six rural districts of Nepal. This work strengthened her expertise in implementation, coordination, and maternal–newborn health policy.

Ms. Chaudhary next enrolled in a Master of Science in Public Health (Epidemiology) at Kathmandu University School of Medical Sciences. Her Master’s thesis, a randomized controlled trial evaluating a social media–based health education intervention to improve postnatal care knowledge among pregnant women, addressed a critical gap in maternal health, where postnatal care utilization remains below 40% despite high antenatal care coverage. By delivering culturally tailored educational videos via Facebook Messenger, her intervention led to significant improvements in postnatal care knowledge and was published as a first-author paper in PLOS ONE. Concurrently, her internship with One Heart Worldwide deepened her engagement with implementation science, contributing qualitative research that informed the expansion of nurse mentorship programs to strengthen maternal and neonatal care in underserved regions of Nepal.

Building on this foundation, Ms. Chaudhary joined the Institute of Implementation Science and Health as a Research Associate, where she has played a central role in multiple large-scale studies evaluating real-world interventions across the maternal and child health continuum. Her work spans longitudinal birth cohorts, mobile health and telemonitoring interventions for gestational diabetes, and advanced quantitative and qualitative analyses addressing cardiometabolic outcomes, workplace violence among healthcare workers, and implementation barriers in primary care. She has published as both first and co-author in leading journals, including Journal of Diabetes and Metabolic Disorder, PLOS Global Public Health, and BMJ Public Health. Alongside her research, she remained actively engaged in teaching, mentorship, and graduate supervision at Kathmandu University School of Medical Sciences.

Ms. Chaudhary’s joined McGill University as a PhD Candidate in September 2026. Her doctoral research project focuses on sleep-disordered breathing during pregnancy and its long-term consequences for maternal cardiovascular health, mental health, and offspring cardiometabolic outcomes, leveraging the longitudinal 3D Cohort Study in Quebec. Following her doctoral training, Ms. Chaudhary plans to return to Nepal to pursue a research-led academic career, with the long-term goal of establishing a Center of Excellence in Respiratory Epidemiology. This centre will bridge research and implementation, strengthen local research capacity, and advance equitable, evidence-based solutions for respiratory health among women and children in Nepal and other high-burden settings.

About the Dr. Margaret Becklake Fellowship

The Montreal Chest Institute Foundation and the MUHC Respiratory Division are proud to support the Dr. Margaret Becklake Fellowship. Over the course of her career, Dr. Becklake had a major interest in respiratory health in lower-income countries, including in childhood asthma and occupational lung disease. She conducted research in this area for many years. She also trained and hosted students in respiratory research from lower-income countries, who then became leaders in research and care in those countries. Beginning with the inaugural award for 2020-21, the Dr. Margaret Becklake Fellowship will be awarded to at least one trainee in respiratory research every year as they conduct research under the supervision of scientists at the Montreal Chest Institute of the McGill University Health Centre. Recipients are chosen from low- and middle-income countries as well as from Canadian Indigenous communities. This fellowship will help us train the next generation of respiratory researchers and specialists in areas of the world where the need is greatest.

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The Montreal Chest Institute has a long and meaningful history in the city. It began in 1909 as the Royal Edward Institute, offering care and isolation for people suffering from tuberculosis (TB) — a disease that was once a leading cause of death in Quebec. At a time when sunlight, fresh air, and rest were considered essential parts of treatment, the Institute moved in 1933 to its location on Saint-Urbain Street, right next to Mount Royal Park. Designed specifically as a hospital, the new building provided a peaceful setting for patients, combining thoughtful architecture with the latest medical knowledge of the time. Over the decades, the Institute grew with the addition of a surgical tower in the 1950s and later became part of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC). After the MUHC moved to the Glen site in 2015, the historic building on Saint-Urbain remained vacant for several years.

Breathing New Life Into a Historic Site

Today, the former Montreal Chest Institute is being transformed into a new centre for life sciences research and innovation. Led by CellCarta, NEUF architect(e)s, and Inspire Bio-Innovations, the project will create modern laboratories, startup incubators, and gathering spaces for the next generation of health research. The original 1930s building will be preserved and expanded with five new floors, while the 1950s surgical tower is being adapted into CellCarta’s global headquarters. A glass atrium will connect the two structures, providing space for conferences, teaching, and collaboration. This project not only protects the Institute’s historic character but also helps position Montreal as a leader in biotechnology, supporting Quebec’s goal of becoming one of the top global hubs for life sciences by 2027.

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From Hospital to Medical Research Hub: How the Montreal Chest Institute Adapts to Modern Needs. Arch Daily. By Moises Carrasco. April 3, 2025.

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“We’re raising funds for pulmonary rehabilitation,” said Linda Ofiara, respirologist at the MUHC. “We have a lot of patients with respiratory diseases whether it’s pulmonary fibrosis, whether it’s chronic bronchitis, cystic fibrosis.”

The LASSO Montréal festival, Evenko, and the Winslow Dancers are providing line dancing lessons to the MCI team. The fundraiser, which features performances from multiple members of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC), raised over $1 million since its inaugural event in 2022.

This year, the event will take place on November 5, 2024, at the Beanfield Theatre in Little Burgundy. On Thursday, the countdown to the event was officially launched and practicing has begun. The fundraiser fosters community spirit and provides a fun, supportive environment for the health care workers, who will be performing in front of a live audience and judges. The MUHC Foundation’s CEO, Marie-Hélène Laramée, and other organizers expressed enthusiasm for the event’s positive impact on both fundraising and team camaraderie.

“We’d love people to come out and enjoy the moment,” said Ofiara. “But also to help raise funds for our programs.”

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Montreal health care workers step into line dancing, preparing for annual MUHC’s Got Talent CityNews (with video), July 18, 2024

Line-dancing health workers ‘dance for people who can’t dance’ Montreal Gazette (with video), July 19, 2024

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McGill receives three Canada Excellence Research Chairs. McGill Reporter. November 16, 2023.

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It is with great pleasure that we announce Dr. Fajri Gafar as the recipient of the 2023-2024 Dr. Margaret Becklake Fellowship in Respiratory Research. Their interest in tuberculosis (TB) research began during their Master’s research project on TB treatment in children in Indonesia – after witnessing the suffering of TB patients and the significant burden caused by the disease. Dr. Gafar’s PhD project focused on optimizing the treatment of TB in children and adolescents. Their initiatives go beyond research, impacting education, mentorship, and policy. They have supervised MSc students, taught human physiology and pharmacology in Indonesia, and actively contributed to scientific communities such as the WHO Child and Adolescent TB Working Group. Dr. Gafar’s research has directly influenced TB policy and sparked hope for more equitable and effective treatments for children worldwide. Their career aspirations reflect a deep dedication and a clear vision to transform TB research and treatment, especially in high-burden settings like Indonesia.

Dr. Gafar’s current postdoctoral project, under the guidance of Dr. Dick Menzies, focuses on optimizing high-dose rifampin treatment for TB infection and disease. Drawing from their PhD experience conducting large-scale meta-analyses of anti-TB drug pharmacokinetics in children, Dr. Gafar is now applying similar methods to adult TB patients. After completing a postdoctoral fellowship at McGill, Dr. Gafar plans to return to Indonesia, which bears the second-highest TB burden globally, and join the Universitas Padjadjaran (UNPAD) as a faculty member dedicated to the clinical pharmacology and epidemiology of TB.

About the Dr. Margaret Becklake Fellowship

The Montreal Chest Institute Foundation and the MUHC Respiratory Division are proud to support the Dr. Margaret Becklake Fellowship. Over the course of her career, Dr. Becklake had a major interest in respiratory health in lower-income countries, including in childhood asthma and occupational lung disease. She conducted research in this area for many years. She also trained and hosted students in respiratory research from lower-income countries, who then became leaders in research and care in those countries. Beginning with the inaugural award for 2020-21, the Dr. Margaret Becklake Fellowship will be awarded to at least one trainee in respiratory research every year as they conduct research under the supervision of scientists at the Montreal Chest Institute of the McGill University Health Centre. Recipients are chosen from low- and middle-income countries as well as from Canadian Indigenous communities. This fellowship will help us train the next generation of respiratory researchers and specialists in areas of the world where the need is greatest.

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Fifty years of excellence in respiratory research. June 28, 2023. RI-MUHC News.

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Read the MUHC Foundation article

The Meakins-Christie Laboratories: 50 years of breathtaking respiratory research. June 6, 2023. MUHC Foundation

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(Time on Podcast: 9:33). The MUHC hospital holds one of the largest public art collections in Quebec. The relationship between art, healing and health is deep and longstanding. Dr. Jonathan L. Meakins, grandson of Dr. Jonathan C. Meakins, who lent his name to the Meakins-Christie Laboratories, is the Director of the Art and Heritage Centre at the MUHC. Listen to the podcast to learn about the history of the Art and Heritage Centre. The collection includes a portrait of Dr. Dorothy Wiselberg, painted by her sister. This portrait is exhibited at the Annual Doctor Dorothy Wiselberg Seminar organized by the MUHC Adult Respiratory Medicine Division. Dr. Dorothy Wiselberg was one of the first female physicians to work in the are of pulmonary diseases in Montreal. She was based at the Montreal Chest Hospital – now the Montreal Chest Institute – where her work focused on tuberculosis. Dr. Meakins also touches upon his relationship with the Meakins-Christie Laboratories. He was a chief resident when the laboratories were created. The inauguration of the Meakins-Christie Labs is an example of the type of leadership that transformed a unit at the University and hospital. Subsequent leaders of the Meakins further expanded the laboratories and made the world-renowned centre for respiratory research that we know today.

(Time on Podcast: 19:35). The 2023 edition of Le Bal Rouge took place on May 26th. The theme was the Great Gatsby and the Roaring 20s. It was a special evening that raised $1.68M for the Montreal Chest Institute and Respiratory Research. Dr. Basil Petrof attended the event that honored his colleague, Dr. Kevin Schwartzman. Kevin Schwartzman was honored for his leadership of the Respiratory Division over the past 10 years. Kevin is not only a great doctor, but also an accomplished researcher, and has been a great advocate for respiratory research. This kind of support from philanthropy really allows the Montreal Chest Institute to do things that it normally can’t do – not only for patient care, but support of game-changing innovative research. These donations will help us realize a more personalized approach to care. With advances in genetics and other area, each patient is very different, and being able to predict what drug or treatment might work in a patient is now becoming possible because of respiratory research. Our goal is to get a fingerprint for each patient to better identify treatments and diagnoses. This month also marks the 50th Anniversary Symposium of the Meakins-Christie Laboratories. Over the last 50 years, the Meakins-Christie Labs have made many discoveries, from effects of smoking, how best to care for patients in the ICU, such as during the COVID-19 pandemic, and many things that have become standard textbook knowledge that are still taught to our medical students today. Some of our current strengths at the Meakins include asthma, emphysema, and lung fibrosis, as well as lung immunology and lung infection research. The Meakins is also known as an international school for respiratory research. Many past trainees and fellows went back to their home countries to start their own very successful research units that were often modeled on their experience here. These past trainees still feel a strong bond to the Meakins and many came back to Montreal to attend our 50th Anniversary Symposium.

Listen to the Podcast

Uniting specialists to fight a rare and deadly cancer. MUHC Foundation Health Matters Podcast. June 4, 2023.

Web: https://bit.ly/3CvxdMb
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/32HFxrc
Apple: https://apple.co/35NvItS

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