News & Events
Follow our instagram @asha_samcmaster to stay updated!
Showing 16 events
Building Bridges Conference
On Thursday, June 12, 2025, Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS) Research hosted the Building Bridges Research Symposium. HHS invited learners of all stages conducting research at HHS to submit an abstract for poster presentation (50 posters were accepted). This year's poster competition themes included cohort/clinical studies & research translation, innovation, and entrepreneurship. Participants had the opportunity to compete for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place prizes for each research theme, with amounts of $500, $300, and $200, respectively. Saini Manivannan submitted and presented for the cohort/clinical studies theme and won first place!

2025 POPCORN Pediatrics Platform Conference
Our wonderful team members Eisha Arvikar and Shlok Panchal presented their project 'The Prevalence of Hypertension and Blood Pressure Patterns in South Asian Children Living in Canada' at the POPCORN Pediatrics Platform Conference in Montreal. This conference focused on building a sustainable, nationwide platform for pediatric clinical trials, particularly in the context of pandemic preparedness. Congratulations Shlok and Eisha!
2025 Jacques de Champlain New Investigator Award
The ASHA study's Principal Investigator Dr. Rahul Chanchlani was awarded the 2025 Jacques de Champlain New Investigator Award by Hypertension Canada. This award reflects his unwavering dedication to advancing paediatric cardiovascular and nephrotic research. Congratulations!

Faculty of Health Sciences RCI Summer Student Opportunity Scholarship
Saikeerthana Sundar was awarded $6000 to conduct research as a Research Trainee with the ASHA study. Congratulations on receiving this award and continuing to further the impact of the ASHA study!

Mid Career Research Award
Congratulations to our Principal Investigator Dr. Rahul Chanchlani on receiving the Mid-Career Research Award at Research Day 2025 from the Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence and Impact at McMaster University!

CFLI Milestones Awards Gala
The Centre for Leadership and Innovation's annual gala to recognize excellence was also an event at which members from the ASHA study connected with families regarding our research. Congratulations to all the winners!

Bachelor of Health Sciences Poster Day at McMaster University
This annual event is where Honours Health Sciences program students showcase their yearlong work through abstracts and posters. Saini Manivannan presented a poster showcasing the efforts of the ASHA study titled 'Establishing Pediatric Ambulatory Blood Pressure Reference Data in South Asians: A Cross-Sectional Study to Inform Early Cardiovascular Risk Assessment' during the BHSc poster day at McMaster University. Congratulations to Saini Manivannan!

Global Health Spotlight Podcast Hosted by UNICEF McMaster
This podcast series hosted by Unicef McMaster works to spotlight opportunities in the field of global health. The ASHA study's very own Principal Investigator, Dr. Rahul Chanchlani was featured in an episode of this series!

McMaster Child Health Research Day (MCHRD)
MCHRD is a full-day event which showcases research and innovation concerning the landscape of child health. Members from the ASHA study presented three different posters at this event, one of which won 2nd place for the category 'Top Undergraduate Poster'!

McMaster Child Health Conference
The ASHA study congratulates our research volunteers Eisha Arvikar and Shlok Panchal. Eisha won 3rd place at the Child Health Conference (March 22) for their project on hypertension in South Asian children in Canada. They presented the work together at McMaster Child Health Research Day (March 26) and have both been invited to showcase it at the POPCORN Pediatrics Platform Conference in Montreal. Well done!

Science Co-op Student of the Year Award Nomination
The ASHA study's team member, Vasuki Kirubhakaran was recognized as a nominee for the Co-op Student of the Year 2024 by McMaster University's Faculty of Sciences's Science Careers and Experience Centre for her time working with the ASHA study. Congratulations!

Canadian Malayali Health Initiative (CMHI) Health Expo
The ASHA Study team was thrilled to participate in the CMHI Health Expo, where we engaged with the community and shared our research initiatives. The event was a wonderful opportunity to connect with families and spread awareness about pediatric hypertension among South Asian youth.

Radio Talk Show
Dr. Rahul Chanchlani (PI), recently shared insights about the ASHA study and kids' heart health on Radio Sargam. He delved into the critical issues surrounding the heightened risk of obesity, heart disease, hypertension, stroke, and more within the South Asian population. Moreover, Dr. Chanchlani shed light on the proactive measures undertaken by the ASHA study to combat these health challenges effectively.

McMaster Research Insight Night Event
We held a Research Insight Night on campus at McMaster University to inform undergraduate students about our study, showcasing the unique contributions and journeys of our research students, and introducing introductory roles in which other students can get involved in our team. There were over 60 attendees, and 40 applications were received!

Centre for Leadership and Innovation
The Center for Leadership and Innovation marked a significant milestone with a memorable event in December at Milliken Mills High School in Markham, ON, drawing an impressive crowd of 200 attendees. We were able to set up a booth to connect with parents. Through engaging conversations and interactions, we recruited from 24 parents to allow their children to participate in our study!

Tamil Fest
Tamil Fest, organized by the Canadian Tamil Congress, stands as the largest Tamil street festival outside the Indian subcontinent, showcasing the rich Tamil Culture to Torontonians and Canadians. With over 250,000 people attending the festival, we were able to set up a booth to recruit participants. We have recruited 72 children and continued to follow up and enroll them in the study!
