Dr. Munir Boodhwani is a Professor in the Division of Cardiac Surgery at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute. Following a BSc from the University of Toronto and MD from Western University, he pursued cardiac surgery residency at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute. During his residency, he undertook a research fellowship at Harvard Medical School in clinical and translational research, and following his residency completed a fellowship in complex aortic and mitral valve repair at St. Luc Hospital, Brussels.

 His clinical and research interests include aortic Valve Repair, open and endovascular repair of the thoracic aorta, transcatheter valve therapies, mechanical circulatory support and heart transplantation. Dr. Boodhwani is the founder and Co-director of the Ottawa Heart Institute Thoracic Aortic Program. He is a co-founder of the TITAN clinical trials network. 

Following a Doctorate of Medicine from McGill University in 1997, Dr. Appoo completed Cardiac Surgery training at the University of Alberta (FRCSC 2003), fellowships in Advanced Adult Cardiac Surgery at the Royal Brompton Hospital in London, England (2003-2004) & at University of Pennsylvania (2004-2005). Having acquired specialized training in Thoracic Aortic Surgery, Endovascular Aortic Stent Grafting and Heart Failure Surgery, he joined the Libin Cardiovascular Institute in 2005, and helped establish a new program in artificial heart surgery. In 2006, he implanted the first left ventricular assist device ever in southern Alberta. In 2007, Dr. Appoo founded a multidisciplinary program in Thoracic Aortic Surgery that involved open, hybrid and minimally invasive endovascular surgery. He is an international thought leader in Thoracic Aortic Surgery and serves on the Editorial Board of the Annals of Thoracic Surgery. In 2019, Dr. Appoo transitioned to Associate Research Professor. He is currently national co-Principal Investigator on 2 randomized trials in aortic surgery. Professionally, Dr. Appoo is interested in evolution of aortic disease management, technological innovation in healthcare and healthcare policy.

Khatira Mehdiyeva is the TITAN Research Project Manager in the Division of Cardiac Surgery at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute.
She holds a Master’s degree in Applied Public Health from Cardiff Metropolitan University (UK), a Diploma in Health Information Management from Douglas College (Canada), and an MD in Preventive Medicine from Azerbaijan Medical University, where she also completed residency training in Public Health and Healthcare Management.

With over a decade of experience in clinical research and public health, Khatira has worked with academic and government institutions in Canada, the United States, and Azerbaijan, focusing on multi-site clinical trials, health systems, and policy research.