Science isn’t just about what we do today. It’s about building a strong foundation that future research can be built upon. That’s why a key part of the CTN+’s mission in supporting Canadian HIV and STBBI research is our Postdoctoral Fellow program. For 2026–2027, we’re welcoming six new faces to the Network.
Each of our Fellows are tackling important topics in HIV and STBBI research from bold, fresh angles. Throughout their fellowships, we will be highlighting their individual stories and taking a deep-dive into each of their projects, but here’s the lowdown.
Dr. Tejan Baldeh is a physician and researcher who earned his medical degree at the University of Limerick and is currently completing specialty training in Public Health and Preventive Medicine at Queen’s University. Under the supervision of Dr. Sahar Saeed, his research focuses on improving the use of point-of-care testing for syphilis within Canadian public health settings, with an eye towards evidence-informed approaches to STBBI prevention, diagnosis, and control.
Dr. Chinyere Njeze is a Black African woman–scholar and postdoctoral fellow in the Faculty of Social Work at the University of Manitoba. With her research unapologetically grounded in anti-racism and equity, Dr. Njeze is conducting community-based research on PrEP use, awareness, and perception among African, Caribbean and Black communities in Manitoba.
Dr. Marc Parsons is a biostatistician interested in clinical trial design and meta-analysis who earned his PhD from McGill University in 2026. In his capacity as the ViiV Fellow and under the supervision of Drs. Guillaume Fontaine, Shirin Golchi, and Lawrence Mbuagbaw, Dr. Parsons work will be looking to improve how new health interventions are studied in clinical trials and help speed up their eventual rollout to the wider population.
Niki Petrakos is a PhD candidate at McGill University under the direction of Dr. Erica Moodie. As a CANFAR–CTN+ Fellow beginning this coming October, she will be investigating the real-world implementation of cardiovascular health interventions among people living with HIV through statistical methods.
Dr. Fatoumata Korika Tounkara is an epidemiologist who holds her PhD from Université Laval. Serving under the supervision of Dr. Valérie Martel-Laferrière, Dr. Tounkara’s research as a CTN+ Postdoctoral Fellow will be evaluating HPV prevalence and the cervical cancer screening continuum among women who use drugs in Montreal.
Dr. Emma Kileel is a public health researcher and epidemiologist who received her PhD from the University of Boston. As the Mark Wainberg Fellow, she will be working under the supervision of Dr. Marina Klein to answer the question: as people living with HIV live longer on effective antiretroviral therapy, how can clinicians better prevent and manage the cardiometabolic complications that come with long-term treatment?
The CTN+ is also thrilled to announce the renewal of Drs. Alexa Keeshan, Ngozi Joe-Ikechebelu, Olivia Price, and Paolo Palma for a second year of fellowship support. If you’re in Montreal next spring for CAHR 2027, we hope you’ll catch their presentations. For now, we’d like to put our hands together as we welcome our newest cohort of postdoctoral fellows. We wish them every success in their research and look forward to seeing the meaningful contributions their work will make.
