One key value at CommiSur is our student-centeredness. Graduate students are our core team, not just completing their individual degrees but actively interacting and collaborating with each other and with multiple supervisors in a very fertile discovery “playground”.

All graduate students are in the Department of Experimental Surgery, McGill University Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences unless otherwise specified.

New students interested in pursuing graduate degrees in our lab are invited to contact Dan Poenaru.

PhD Candidates

Zanib Nafees, BSc, MSc

PhD Student 2025, McGill University

Supervisor: Dr. Dan Poenaru

Thesis Title: Adaptation and translation of the Patient Reported Experience Measure for Children and Young People (PREM-CYP) at The Montreal Children’s Hospital

My thesis focuses on improving children’s experiences at the hospital and we are designing a survey that will tell us exactly how children want us to improve their experiences at the hospital. I love working with children, so I spend my late afternoons tutoring French and Math to elementary kids and high schoolers on a weekly basis. I love hiking and swimming in the summer and skating during the winter. I am really happy to be part of the Commisur lab and work with such a lovely and supportive team!

Alexandra Dimmer, MD, MSc

PhD Student 2027, McGill University

MD 2020, St. George’s University

Msc 2014, McGill University

Co-Supervisors: Dr. Pramod Puligandla and Dr. Dan Poenaru

Thesis: Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia Long-term Follow-Up Clinic Patient and Family Satisfaction

I’m a surgical resident at SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, NY who is currently completing my MSc at McGill as part of her dedicated research time. I’m a Toronto native, who completed both her Bachelors and Masters degrees at McGill University, before pursuing a medical degree from St. George’s University. My future career aspirations are to become a pediatric surgeon.

Gianluca Bertolizio, MD, F.R.C.P.C.

Pediatric Anesthetist

PhD student 2027, McGill University

Supervisor: Dr. Dan Poenaru

Thesis: Comparison between virtual reality- and high-fidelity-based simulation in training postgraduate anesthesia residents

I’m Assistant professor, McGill University in the department of anesthesiology. My research interests are brain physiology, Pediatric airway, Pain, Virtual Reality, Perioperative anesthesia. Currently I’m doing my master’s in virtual care with Dr. Dan Poenaru. I am learning downhill longboarding. I love working with children and their families because  every day they teach me a new way to be resilient and positive.

Sacha Williams, MD, MSc, MPH

PhD Student 2027, McGill University

Supervisor: Dr Dan Poenaru, Global Surgery

Thesis: Gender inequity in pediatric surgical access and outcomes in LMICs.

I am a Jean-Martin Laberge Global Pediatric Surgery Fellow. My research focus is on gender inequity and global surgery, particularly in low and middle income countries. I am strongly committed to: ameliorating clinical systems, patient care, health equity, and social justice to better serve vulnerable communities.

Shreenik Kundu, MD, MSc

PhD Student 2027, McGill University

Supervisor: Dr Dan Poenaru, Global Surgery

Thesis: Trauma and disaster management, democratizing emergency and trauma education through virtual reality

I am a Ph.D. in Experimental Surgery at the Commisur Lab, McGill University. My research interests are centered around trauma and disaster management, democratizing emergency and trauma education through virtual reality, and MedTech research and development. I completed my medical school and training at the West China School of Medicine, Sichuan University, in China. I completed a fellowship at the Global Surgery Foundation in Geneva, Switzerland, and a two-year research fellowship at the Harvard Program in Global Surgery and Social Change in Boston, United States.

Mohsen Amoei, B.Eng, M.Sc.

PhD Student 2027, McGill University

Supervisor: Dr Dan Poenaru

Thesis: Large Language Models, Knowledge Graphs and Computer Vision to improve healthcare

I am a Ph.D. candidate in Experimental Surgery at McGill University and a researcher at MILA, specializing in Medical Machine Learning. I completed my Master’s from Concordia University, where my research focused on utilizing computer vision and advanced data analytics. My research interests include large language models, reinforcement learning, and computer vision, and have contributed to several impactful machine learning projects in both academia and industry. I aim to leverage these technologies to gain a comprehensive understanding of patient needs, ultimately predicting patient outcomes and interventions.

Brigitte Durieux, BS

PhD Student 2027, McGill University

Supervisor: Dr. Dan Poenaru and Dr. Justin Sanders

Thesis: AI applications in serious illness care and patient needs

I am a PhD student in the Department of Family Medicine at McGill University, interested in exploring AI applications in serious illness care with a focus on what patients and their families deem acceptable. My research interests include health equity, computational tool-building, and the practical application of research to enhance patient experience. I am particularly interested in better understanding the needs and nature of communication and relationships in sensitive medical contexts, and how art and multimedia approaches can help make research in this field more accessible to a broader audience.

Riya Sawhney, MD

PhD Student 2027, McGill University

Supervisor: Dr Dan Poenaru, Global Surgery

Thesis: Patient-centered care for children undergoing surgery in low- and lower-middle income countries (LMICs)

I am a Jean-Martin Laberge Global Pediatric Surgery Fellow. My research interests are in global health and global surgery, surgical education and innovation, diversity, and equity. Currently, I serves as the Chair of the Gender Equity Initiative in Global Surgery (GEIGS) and Student Lead of the Association of Academic Global Surgery’s Advocacy Committee.

Dunya Moghul, MD

PhD Student 2027, McGill University

Supervisor(s): Dr Dan Poenaru and Dr. Maeve Trudeau, Global Surgery

Thesis: 

I am a Jean-Martin Laberge Global Pediatric Surgery Fellow. I am a pediatric surgeon from Afghanistan. My research interests are in children’s surgery, gender equity and global surgery. I have been awarded the Greenwood Fellowship and Global Alliance Partnership (GAP) Fellowship in the past.

Ayla Gerk, MD

PhD Student 2027, McGill University

Supervisor: Dr Dan Poenaru, Global Surgery

Thesis: Leveraging pediatric surgery and equity in Global Surgery

I completed my Medical Degree in Argentina. I’m currently pursuing her Master’s in surgical and interventional sciences at McGill University as a Jean Martin Laberge Global Pediatric Fellow. I am also a research collaborator, of the Program in Global Surgery and Social Change at Harvard Medical School. With a passion for leveraging pediatric surgery and equity in Global Surgery.

Justina Seyi-Olajide, MD

PhD Student, McGill University

Supervisor(s): Dr Dan Poenaru, Global Surgery

Suganthi, Rajasegaran, Bsc, PhD

Postdoctoral Fellow, McGill University

Research title: Longitudinal patient-reported outcomes (PROs), patient-reported experiences (PREs), social determinants of health (SDoH) and health services utilization following major neonatal surgery

I completed my PhD at Universiti Malaya, Malaysia in Paediatric Surgery. My research interests involve exploring the long-term impact of diseases in the area of congenital anomalies and requirements for healthcare support, providing insights into improving care for patients. The connection between my doctoral and postdoctoral research projects lies in the shared goal of improving long-term outcomes and quality of life for pediatric patients. My love for children fuels my passion for advancing patient-centered care, making every step of my research journey both meaningful and rewarding.

Master’s Students

Aylin Erman

MSc Student 2024, McGill University

Supervisor(s): Dr Dan Poenaru and Dr. Jackie Cheung, Computer Science

Thesis: Machine learning applications for healthcare

I’m a computational biochemistry and computer science graduate with research experience across biochemistry, bioinformatics and computer science. I am currently working on machine learning applications for health.

Carmel Daskalo, BSc

MSc Student 2026, McGill University

Supervisor(s): Dr Dan Poenaru

Eve Wang

MSc Student 2026, McGill University

Supervisor(s): Dr Dan Poenaru

Thesis: Democratizing the diagnosis of Hirschsprung’s Disease with AI

I am currently pursuing a MSc in Experimental Medicine at McGill University. I have previous research experience developing machine learning models in hopes of increasing the efficacy of drug discovery pipelines and using statistical models to assess multiple sclerosis progression in patients. My primary interest includes using artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques to help improve workflow in hospital settings.

Spandana Veeravalli

MSc, McGill University

Supervisor(s): Dr Dan Poenaru, Global Surgery

Giuseppina Cipolla, MD

MSc Student, McGill University

Supervisor(s): Dr Sherif Emil