Invited Faculty
  • Paul Fortin
    Université Laval
    Canada
  • Dr. Paul R. Fortin obtained his medical degree from Université Laval (Quebec City, Canada) and graduated from McGill University in Rheumatology. He obtained a Master’s in Public Health from Harvard University and completed a three-year fellowship at the Robert Breck Brigham Multi-Purpose Arthritis Center under the mentorship of Dr Matthew H. Liang. He returned as an Assistant and then Associate Professor of Medicine at McGill University between 1992 and 2000. Dr. Fortin joined the Toronto Western Division/University Health Network (UHN) and Research Institute in 2000 as a Clinician Scientist and as the Director of Clinical Research for the Arthritis Centre of Excellence. He became Full Professor of Medicine at the University of Toronto in 2007.
    Dr. Fortin was recruited back as Full Professor with tenure at Université Laval and Clinical Researcher at the “Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec – Université Laval” in 2011. He holds the Canada Research Chair on Innovation in Systemic Autoimmune Rheumatic Diseases (SARD) since 2012. He created in 2014 the SARD Biobank and Database (SARD BDB) that follows prospectively patients with lupus and other autoimmune rheumatic diseases. The SARD BDB is the corner stone of a SARD Research Program and of the Arthritis Research & Therapy center (ARThrite - UL) directed by Dr Fortin at Université Laval.
    Dr. Fortin is passionate about lupus research that matters. He has been working on a better understanding of the bio-psycho-social impact of lupus on people. Besides his own research portfolio, Dr Fortin contributes nationally and internationally to the whole spectrum of lupus research such as the development and testing of new biological and psychosocial measures of clinical importance, drug clinical trials and patient’s self-management tools. He has been a member of the Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics (SLICC) since 1991 and is currently SLICC Vice-Chair.
    Dr Fortin received the CRA Young Investigator award in 1999, the Kirkland Scholar Award in 2008, and he was given the prestigious Distinguished Senior Research Investigator Award from The Arthritis Society of Canada (2007 – 2012). In 2010, he received the Hope Award from Lupus Ontario to recognize his outstanding leadership in improving the lives of people with lupus. In May 2015, he received the Jeffrey Shiroky Research Award for his accomplishments in clinical research in rheumatology and in February 2020, he received the Distinguished Investigator Award from the Canadian Rheumatology Association.
    Research & Clinical Focus

    lupus activity

    health status

    self-management

    autoantibodies

    antiphospholipid syndrome

    • Date Time Room Session Title Lecture Title
    May 18 11:00-11:30 Room Auditorium [Plenary Session 1] SLE: Year in Review Clinical science