Dr. Sam Daniel is the CPD director of the Federation of Medical specialists of Quebec. He received his medical degree from McGill University and completed his pediatric Otolaryngology training at the University of Toronto. He is the current Chair of the Department of Pediatric Surgery and a Professor of otolaryngology and Pediatric Surgery in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMSS) of McGill University.

Dr. Daniel has held a number of CPD leadership roles including: President of the Quebec CPD Council (CQDPCM); Member of the leadership team of the CPD Coalition, CPD director of the Canadian Society of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery; Director of Program committee of the American Society of Pediatric Otolaryngology; Member of SACME Strategic Affairs Committee, and senior CPD educator for the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. Dr. Daniel is the recipient of multiple CPD innovation awards, and Canada's top 40 under 40. He holds the designation of Professional Certified Coach with the International Coach Federation.

Joyce M. Fried, BA, FSACME recently retired as Assistant Dean in the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and Co-Director of the UCLA Office of Continuing Medical Education. In her dual roles she touched upon all aspects of the medical education continuum including planning, overseeing, and implementing large complex initiatives including LCME accreditation, strategic planning, and industry relations. She taught second-year medical students as a Doctoring instructor. She spearheaded initiatives aimed at creating a respectful culture in medicine and published a seminal paper in this domain in 2012 in Academic Medicine. In her CME role she was responsible for all administrative aspects of the CME office and shared responsibility for developing courses, content, and innovation. She served three terms on the Accreditation Review Committee of the ACCME (2010 to 2016). She chaired the Program Committee for the 2016 CME World Congress.

She is currently Chair of the Strategic Affairs Committee of the Society for Academic Continuing Medical Education and is a member of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee. She is a reviewer for Academic Medicine, Journal of Education in the Health Professions, and the Canadian Medical Education Journal. In addition to her volunteer work for SACME she is a consultant and leadership coach for the Executive Service Corps of Southern California and a consultant to new medical schools on LCME accreditation.

Awards she has received include Best Research Presentation Award in 2007 from the Western Group on Educational Affairs; Exceptional Commitment Award for Teaching in Doctoring 2; and Distinguished Service in Continuing Medical Education Award in 2020 from the Society for Academic Continuing Medical Education. In 2021 she was elected to membership in the SACME Academy of Fellows.

Dr. Tanya Horsley is the Director of Research and Evaluation at the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, where she leads high-impact initiatives aimed at advancing medical education and professional development. With a particular focus on the intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) and healthcare, Dr. Horsley has been instrumental in the Royal College’s Task Force on AI, investigating its transformative potential in medical education, clinical practice, and healthcare delivery. She has authored several reviews on the legal, ethical, and educational implications of AI, addressing key regulatory challenges and shaping the discourse around its integration into medical education and practice.

An experienced educator, Tanya teaches evidence synthesis at the University of Ottawa’s School of Epidemiology and Public Health and serves as invited faculty in the Harvard Macy Institute’s Leading Innovations in Health Care and Education course. She is also deeply engaged in advancing global communication of research, contributing to the development of reporting guidelines that promote clarity, transparency, and the effective application of research findings in healthcare settings.

In addition to her academic and educational roles, Dr. Horsley serves as the Grant Network Chair for the Association for Medical Education in Europe (AMEE), where she leads initiatives to support innovative medical education projects through strategic research collaborations and global funding partnerships. Through these varied roles, Tanya continues to shape the future of healthcare education, with a particular emphasis on the integration of technology, the promotion of innovation, and the advancement of rigorous, impactful research communication in medical education and practice.

Morag is a higher and health professions education professional with a background in higher education, health professions education, administration, and CPD scholarship. She holds a Masters in Health Professions Education and a PhD in Higher Education, both from the Ontario Institute of Studies in Education at the University of Toronto. In both 2023 and 2024 she was a co-winner of the Fox Award for Best Research Presentation from the Society for Academic Continuing Medical Education. Her research problematizes assumptions and practices in HPE, using both theoretical and operational/administrative expertise.

Dr. David Rojas is a scientist at the Wilson Centre for Research in Education, the Director of Program Evaluation for Medical Education, at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine, and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, at the University of Toronto (UofT). David’s research focuses on the evaluation of complex healthcare and education systems. Using insights from systems engineering, David approaches program evaluation from a theory-based perspective to study the impact of phenomena like medical school accreditation, the evaluation of training models in medical education (e.g., CBME), and the assessment of teachers. His program of research aims to bring theory into program evaluation to elevate the type of data-driven decision that can result from program evaluation initiatives. David's work also studies the influence of external systems and structures in educational and healthcare programs.

Dr. Sophie Soklaridis is a Senior Scientist and Scientific Director at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). She is the inaugural Research Chair of Recovery and Equity-Focused Mental Health Education Research. She is an Associate Professor at the Department of Psychiatry and Department of Family & Community Medicine at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, and the Vice-Chair of Mental Health Equity and EDIIA at the Department of Psychiatry. She is a Scientist at Wilson Centre for Research in Education. Her research takes a critical sociological approach on the issues of power, identity and relationships. Her scholarly foci include patient/clients as partners in research and mental health education and the influence of power and privilege on academic medicine. She is a widely published and well-funded scientist who has received multiple awards for her research.

Martin obtained a PhD in medicinal chemistry in 2004 at the Université de Montréal. He then pursued with a fellowship at the Max-Planck-Institut fur Kohlenforschung in Germany. After working for 6 years in the field of drug discovery at Boehringer Ingelheim, he made the transition to continuing professional development (CPD) by accepting a position as Director of Medical Communications in a medical communication agency. In 2018, he joined the Fédération des médecins spécialistes du Québec (FMSQ) as a Senior Research and Innovation Advisor. In his current role, Martin supports CPD endeavors through his role as the primary liaison point of contact for the 35 medical associations affiliated to the FMSQ. Along with his current position, Martin plays an active role in the Conseil québécois de développement professionnel continu des médecins and the Society of Academic Continuing Medical Education. His research interests include practice assessment, simulation, and behavioral intention.

Cynthia Whitehead, MD, PhD is Professor in the Department of Family and Community, University of Toronto Medicine and Director and Scientist at the Wilson Centre for Education Research, Temerty Faculty of Medicine and University Health Network. She is an active practicing family doctor and clinical teacher in Toronto (Women’s College Hospital) and in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. Dr. Whitehead is the BMO Financial Group Chair in Health Professions Education Research at University Health Network.

Dr. Whitehead obtained her PhD and MScCH from the University of Toronto, MD from McMaster University, and AB honors from Harvard University. She has held many education leadership positions over the course of her career. She has also provided education consultations, taught, and collaborated with colleagues in many countries across Asia, Africa, Europe, North America, and South America.

Cynthia’s research examines the effects of power relations on various structures, systems, processes, and practices in health professions education, paying attention to who and what is advantaged or disadvantaged as a result. She uses her research to promote health and education practices that are compassionate, equitable, and effective. Some of her specific content areas of interest are family medicine education, globalized medical education, accreditation, outcomes-based education, and education for collaboration. Cynthia is involved in research, scholarly capacity building, teaching, curricular design, program evaluation, and education administration locally, nationally, and internationally.

David Wiljer, PhD, is the Executive Director of Education, Technology & Innovation at the University Health Network and he is also a Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry, and Radiation Oncology, Faculty of Medicine and the Institute of Health Policy Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto. He is a past President and Fellow of the American Association of Cancer Education, and the Past President for the Society for Academic Continuing Medical Education. He is the Principal Investigator for the Digital Compassion Research Lab, TIER, UHN. He holds the Certified Professional in CPD credential awarded by the Coalition for Physician Learning and Practice Improvement. Dr. Wiljer has led research and development projects that focus on putting data and knowledge into action by utilizing health information technologies and knowledge management approaches to promote lifelong learning and better patient care. Through his work he explores the short and long-term impact of digital technologies on the patient experience, patient engagement, healthcare professional education and development. His current interests are on co-creating digital solutions and education to promote compassionate care, contributing to a healthier world.

Brett A. Diaz is a postdoctoral research fellow at the Centre for Quality Improvement and Patient Safety (CQuIPS). He completed his PhD in Applied Linguistics at Penn State in 2021, and a postdoctoral fellowship in health professions education research at Unity Health in 2023. His work centres on emotion in social phenomena, social aspects of health policy implementation, and praxis in health professions education. Most recently, he was Lead for Knowledge Mobilization Research and Learning Enrichment at CAMH, where he helped to create equity-based user centred processes and methods, and led research initiatives on improving trustworthiness in evidence-informed resources.