- Endocrinologist, TLC Diabetes and Endocrinology
- Clinical Instructor, University of British Columbia
Surrey, British Columbia

Biography

Dr. Akshay Jain is the first Canadian physician to be triple board-certified by the American Boards in Endocrinology, Internal Medicine and Obesity Medicine.
He trained in Internal Medicine at Rochester, NY where he became the only 4-time winner of the prestigious Rochester Academy of Medicine Awards. He completed his Fellowship in Endocrinology at Harbor UCLA/City of Hope in Los Angeles, CA.
He is the only non-American physician to win the AACE Rising Star in Endocrinology Award (2022) and to feature on Medscape’s list of 25 Top Rising Stars of Medicine (2020). He is the first North American to win the prestigious Etzwiler Diabetes Scholarship at the International Diabetes Center and Mayo Clinic in MN, USA. In 2017, he was awarded the Rising Star of Diabetes Award at the International Symposium on Diabetes.
He is a renowned educator and has spoken at over 1000 medical conferences/events across the world till date. His clinical interests include diabetes, obesity, thyroid disorders and osteoporosis.
He has active YouTube/Instagram channels dedicated to patient education with thousands of views till date.
He is fluent in 6 languages including English, Hindi, Gujarati, Marathi, Marwari and Urdu. In 2022, he won the Top 25 Canadian Immigrant Award and also received the 2022 Healthcare Achievement Award by Drishti Magazine.

- Program Developer and Clinic
- Consultant, Lotus Health Clinic
Halifax, Nova Scotia

Biography

- Medical Director, Medical Weight Management Centre of Canada (MWMCC)
- Assistant Clinical Professor (Adjunct), McMaster University
Toronto, Ontario

Biography

Dr. Megha Poddar is an Endocrinologist and Obesity medicine specialist in Toronto, Ontario. She is a diplomate of the American Board of Obesity Medicine and an Assistant Professor (Adjunct) in the Department of Medicine at McMaster University. Dr. Poddar serves as the Medical Director of the Medical Weight Management Centre of Canada (MWMCC) and the Clinical Director of the LMC Weight Management Program. As a lead author and co-author, she has contributed to various resources on obesity education, including the McMaster textbook of internal medicine and the Assessment Chapter of the 2020 Canadian Adult Obesity Clinical Practice Guidelines. Dr. Poddar conducts research as a principal investigator in randomized control trials focusing on type 2 diabetes and obesity. She is dedicated to mentoring healthcare providers in obesity management and clinical development, both nationally and globally, and is a passionate advocate for patients living with obesity.

- Assistant Professor
- Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto
Toronto, Ontario

Biography

Dr. Jeffrey Habert is a Family Physician in Thornhill for the last 35 years.
He is an Assistant Professor in the Dept. of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Toronto. He is also an Investigating Coroner for the City of Toronto.
He is also Co-Editor of Canadian Primary Care Today.
He is a member of Diabetes Canada: Dissemination & Implementation Committee.
He is one of the co-authors of the recently released 2023 CANMAT MDD Guidelines and the upcoming Consensus Recommendations for the Management of Chronic Insomnia in Canada.
Dr. Habert is a former Peer Assessor for the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (19 years).
He has an interest in the use of clinical practice guidelines, and has participated on committees to establish guidelines in the areas of Depression, Stroke, ASA in Primary Care and Thrombosis.
He was awarded to Gerald S. Wong award by Diabetes Canada in 2023 for significant contribution to the Diabetes community.
He is the Previous co-chair of Thrombosis Canada Clinical Guides.
His clinical interests are varied, and include Diabetes, Obesity, Depression, ADHD, Insomnia, Thrombosis/Stroke and Osteoporosis.
He is also published in many of the above mentioned areas in addtion to others.
He is a National speaker in the multiple areas and actively participates on Scientific Committees involved in the creation of educational programs.

- Obesity Physician
- Founder, Haven Weight Management
- Staff Physician, MEDCAN Weight Management
Toronto, Ontario

Biography

Dr. Sandy Van is a licensed Family Physician and a Diplomate of the American Board of Obesity Medicine who has dedicated her practice to Obesity medicine for the past decade. She is the founder of Haven Weight Management, a Virtual Weight Management Program which couples medical treatment with cognitive behavioural therapy in individual and group settings. She is also a staff physician at MEDCAN Weight Management Program. Dr. Van offers a unique voice for the medical community regarding behavioural treatment for obesity and is a nationally renowned speaker at academic conferences and a regular expert contributor in television media. Dr. Van also currently serves as Medical Advisor to patient advocacy group, Obesity Matters.

- Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto
- Division of Endocrinology & Metabolism
- Mount Sinai Hospital & University Health Network
Toronto, Ontario

Biography

Dr. Alanna Weisman is a Clinician Scientist and Staff Endocrinologist at Mount Sinai Hospital and University Health Network. She is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Toronto, a Clinician Scientist at the Lunenfeld Tanenbaum Research Institute, and an adjunct Scientist at ICES.
Dr. Weisman attended medical school at Queen’s University and completed residencies in Internal Medicine and Endocrinology & Metabolism at the University of Toronto. Following her clinical training, Dr. Weisman completed a PhD in Clinical Epidemiology & Health Care Research in the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto. Dr. Weisman’s research program uses epidemiologic and health services research methods to study determinants of outcomes in type 1 diabetes, which ultimately will inform the design of novel interventions to improve outcomes for people living with type 1 diabetes.

- Diabetes Educator with an expertise in Diabetes Education, Management and Clinical Research
Winnipeg, Manitoba

Biography

Lori Berard has 37 years of experience in diabetes education, management and clinical research working as the Nurse Manager for the Health Sciences Centre Diabetes Research Program. She was also a Faculty Member at the University of Manitoba Department of Medicine Section of Endocrinology. Currently she is working as a consultant in diabetes management and clinical research operations. Lori has dedicated many years volunteering with Diabetes Canada and has extensive experience with the Clinical Practice Guidelines. She has been part of over 100 peer reviewed publications, continues to be active in medical education events and has received many honors and awards related to her work in diabetes.

- Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism
- Associate Professor of Medicine and Community Health Sciences, University of Calgary
- Member of O'Brien Institute for Public Health and The Libin Cardiovascular Institute
Calgary, Alberta

Biography

Dr. Sonia Butalia is a Clinician-Scientist in the Departments of Medicine and Community Health Sciences at the University of Calgary. Her research interests are in innovative tools and strategies to improve diabetes and other cardiovascular risk factors in the community.
She is the recipient of awards from Diabetes Canada (2018), Hypertension Canada (2020), the Department of Medicine (2021), the Libin Cardiovascular Institute (2021, 2024) and is the recipient of the Diabetes Canada/CIHR Young Scientist Award (2022) for her research contributions and achievements. Her award-winning program of work importantly engages and is informed by people (i.e., patient partners), health care providers and decision makers. Her research program is funded by the CIHR, Diabetes Canada and the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada.
She is a co-author of several national guidelines in diabetes and hypertension and has contributed to several textbooks. She also teaches at the University of Calgary’s medical school, supervises graduate and medical trainees, and was awarded a Gold Star Resident Teaching Award for her contributions.

- Associate Professor of Medicine, McGill University Health Centre
- Director of Endocrinology, Montreal General Hospital
- Co-Director Obesity Medicine, McGill University Health Centre
Montreal, Quebec

Biography

Dr Michael Tsoukas is an Associate Professor of Medicine, Division of Endocrinology of the McGill University Health Centre and Research Investigator of the Research Institute of McGill and Hygea Medical Clinic. He completed his residency in medicine at Tuft’s University in Boston and subsequently trained in Endocrinology at McGill University. Upon completion, he pursued a post-graduate research fellowship in diabetes and obesity at Harvard University (Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center), with a focus on GLP-1 receptor pharmacotherapy, brain signaling, and enterohormone treatments. Further training involved pathophysiological regulation of novel molecules such as SGLT-2 inhibitors and GLP-1 receptor agonists important in energy homeostasis, diabetes, and obesity.
On his return to his native Montreal, Dr Tsoukas continues to conduct clinical interventional studies in humans, ranging from early phase pharmacokinetic ""proof of concept"" studies, to medium and large-scale placebo-controlled clinical trials. He has authored over 40 articles in peer-reviewed journals, chapters, and abstracts. He is also involved in training future generations as the Residency Director for Endocrinology at the Montreal General Hospital.