Day 1 - November 4th

7:30 am

Registration, Breakfast & Exhibition Hall

Join us in the morning to pick up your badge, enjoy some breakfast and explore the Exhibition Hall before the plenary sessions begin.

8:55 am

Welcome Remarks

  • Raphael Hofstein, Chair, Clinical Trials Ontario Board of Directors
  • Susan Marlin, President and CEO, Clinical Trials Ontario

9:10 am

KEYNOTE | Research as Care: Why Canada Needs to be More Competitive

In this opening keynote, Christine Elliott draws on her extensive experience serving Ontarians and steering health systems to explore why Canada must strengthen its global competitiveness in clinical research. In her roles as former Deputy Premier, Minister of Health, and Patient Ombudsman, she brings a notable perspective that connects patient needs, policy priorities, and economic opportunity to advance research as an integral part of care.

9:45 am

The Bridge: Strategies to Connect Research to Care Across Canada

Health research leaders from across Canada will examine how to better connect research to care. This panel discussion will highlight efforts underway across the country and explore opportunities to strengthen integration, access, and system impact.

  • Dr. Geoff Payne, President & CEO, Michael Smith Health Research BC
  • Dr. Braden Manns, Associate Vice-President, Health Research, University of Calgary; Senior Associate Dean, Health Research, Cumming School of Medicine; and Nephrologist and Professor of Medicine
  • Dr. Ryan Zarychanski, Professor of Medicine (Hematology and Critical Care), Pharmacy, and Community Health Sciences, and Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Clinical Trials, Max Rady College of Medicine, University of Manitoba; Hematologist and Senior Scientist, CancerCare Manitoba and Research Institute; Scientific Director, George and Fay Yee Centre for Healthcare Innovation and Aurora Clinical Research
  • Christine Lennon, President and CEO, CATALIS Quebec
  • Dr. Bradly Wouters, Executive Vice President, Science and Research, University Health Network

10:30 am

Break, Networking & Exhibition Hall

11:00 am

How Canada is Modernizing Clinical Trials Regulations to Compete Globally

  • Supriya Sharma, Chief Medical Advisor to the Deputy Minister and Senior Medical Advisor, Health Products and Food Branch, Health Canada

11:20 am

ACT 2: Accelerating Trials and Expanding Equitable Access

Building on the foundation established through Accelerating Clinical Trials (ACT), ACT 2 will focus on accelerating the delivery of high-quality clinical trials while expanding equitable access to trial participation across Canada. This presentation will highlight lessons learned from ACT, remaining gaps in Canada’s clinical trials ecosystem, and how ACT 2 can strengthen capacity, broaden participation, and make Canada an even more competitive environment for impactful clinical research.

11:40 am

Keep Trials Moving: CanReview Report

  • Susan Marlin, Nominated Principal Applicant, CanReview; President & CEO, Clinical Trials Ontario

12:00 pm

Lunch, Networking & Exhibition Hall

1:10 pm

Advancing AI to Strengthen Clinical Trials 

  • Shurjeel Choudhri, Senior Vice President and Head, Medical and Scientific Affairs, Bayer

1:30 pm

Building Nova Scotia’s New Research Consent Program

  • Dr. Ashley Hilchie, Senior Director of Research, Nova Scotia Health; Adjunct Professor, Acadia University

1:50 pm

Getting to 45 Days: A QuickSTART Story

Panelists to be announced

2:25 pm

Break, Networking & Exhibition Hall

2:45 pm

Psilocybin and the Past and Future of Care

Through presentations from leaders in history and culture, psychiatry, and clinical research, this session explores past uses and perceptions of psilocybin, clinical trials underway in Canada today, and the opportunities and challenges shaping the future of psychedelic-assisted care.

  • Justin Jennings, Senior Curator and curator of Psychedelics: Art. Culture. Science. Royal Ontario Museum
  • Dr. Claudio Soares, Professor of Psychiatry, Queen’s University; Director, Centre for Psychedelics Health and Research at Providence Care Hospital & Queen’s University
  • Dr. Ishrat Husain, Department Head, UHN’s Centre for Mental Health and Program Medical Director, UHN-CAMH Partnership

3:30 pm

Session To Be Announced

4:30 pm

CTO 2026 Reception

Join us in celebrating the achievements of our clinical trials community over the past year. Thank you to our sponsor, Innovative Medicines Canada. 

Day 2 - November 5th

7:30 am

Registration, Breakfast & Exhibition Hall 

Join us in the morning to pick up your badge, enjoy some breakfast and explore the Innovation Showcase before the plenary sessions begin.

9:00 am

Welcome Remarks

  • Susan Marlin, President and CEO, Clinical Trials Ontario

9:05 am

KEYNOTE | Smarter, Better, Faster: Trial Innovations from Denmark and the EU

  • Dr. Tor Biering-Sørensen, Professor and Founding Head of Center for Translational Cardiology and Pragmatic Randomized Trials

9:45 am

Unlocking Trial Potential Through Data and Registries

  • Dr. Tor Biering-Sørensen, Professor and Founding Head of Center for Translational Cardiology and Pragmatic Randomized Trials
  • Dr. Beth Potter, Professor, School of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Ottawa
  • Nicole Yada, Director, VITAL
  • Dr. Christopher J Yarnell, Scarborough Health Network, University of Toronto, Intensive Care Physician
  • More panelists to be announced

10:30 am

Break, Networking & Exhibition Hall

11:00 am

Hot Takes on Life Sciences Sovereignty 

In this interactive session, panelists share hot takes on current policy challenges and opportunities facing the life science sector – and audience members get to decide whether they agree! Themes will include the global race for talent, Most Favoured Nation drug pricing, and the promise of forging new partnerships.

12:00 pm

Thanks for the Advice – Now Let’s Talk Sovereignty

Indigenous Peoples have long been invited to advise research systems while decision-making authority remains elsewhere; yet advisory roles are not a substitute for sovereignty, self-determination, or shared governance. Drawing on the Grandmothers’ Council, WCHRI’s Indigenous Governing Council, and the proposed CanReview model, this session explores what it means to build research structures in which Indigenous Peoples sit alongside institutional partners, not beneath them, while holding meaningful authority over research that affects our peoples.

12:30 pm

Lunch, Networking & Exhibition Hall

1:30 pm

Building a Safer and More Inclusive Clinical Trials Ecosystem

Clinical trials cannot deliver better outcomes if they fail to reflect the communities they serve. Join a diverse panel of experts and advocates as they discuss opportunities to advance equity, inclusion, safety, and representation across the research ecosystem.

  • Moderator: Dr. Jaris Swidrovich, Assistant Professor, Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto
  • Dr. Natalie Dayan, Assistant Professor of Medicine, McGill University; Director; McGill University Health Centre Obstetrical Medicine
  • Kim Meeking, Co-Lead / Director, Queering Cancer
  • Kearie Daniel, Executive Director, Founder,The Black Women’s Institute for Health
  • Miranda Miller, Research Project Manager, Canadian Collaboration for Child Health: Efficiency and Excellence in the Ethics Review of Research (CHEER), Queen’s University

2:10 pm

When Less is More: A Participant’s Perspective on De-Escalation

Can less treatment deliver better outcomes? Join investigator Dr. Mark Clemons and trial participant Beth Ciavaglia for a candid conversation about a groundbreaking breast cancer study that challenged convention, reduced treatment burden, and put patient experience at the centre of research.

  • Beth Ciavaglia, Patient Advocate and Advisor
  • Dr. Mark Clemons, Clinician Scientist, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute; Staff Medical Oncologist, Ottawa Hospital Cancer Centre; Professor of Medicine, University of Ottawa

3:00 pm

Closing Remarks & Conference Concludes

Agenda subject to change as sessions are finalized

Attendance at our conference may be eligible for SOCRA continuing education credits. All conference delegates may request a certificate of attendance.