Our Leads
Dr. Sathya Karunananthan
Research Chair in Language as a Social Determinant of Health
Sathya Karunananthan is an Associate Professor in the Interdisciplinary School of Health Sciences at the University of Ottawa and an investigator at the Institut du Savoir Montfort where she holds the Ottawa Academic Health Network Research Chair in Language as a Social Determinant of Health. Her research on health services focuses on improving access to care for older adults with complex health conditions, such as dementia, frailty, chronic pain and Parkinson's disease. She investigates disparities in care access among underserved communities, specifically, linguistic minority and racialized groups and studies the impact of health technologies like electronic consultation and artificial intelligence on inequities in access to care and health outcomes.
Dr. Sharon Johnston
Scientific Director, Institut du Savoir Montfort
Dr. Sharon Johnston, MD, LLM, CCFP is Scientific Director of the Institut du Savoir Montfort and an Associate Professor in the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Ottawa. She is the recipient of a Tier 2 Clinical Research Chair in Primary Care Learning Health Systems: PREMs, AI, and Data Integration. A family physician and clinician scientist, Dr. Johnston leads nationally recognized research focused on developing digital and AI-enabled solutions that enhance patient engagement, deliver multilingual health education, and embed research seamlessly into clinical care. Her Tier 2 Chair program aims to transform how primary care leverages patient-generated data and digital tools to advance equity, personalized care, and health system integration.