Brain sciences is an ever-evolving field and it’s an exciting time for the Hurvitz Brain Sciences Program at Sunnybrook. Last week, over three days, we celebrated the completion of construction of the new Garry Hurvitz Brain Sciences Centre. With construction complete, the focus turns now to preparing the building to welcome clinical teams and patients in early 2025.
The new Hurvitz Centre features 47 private inpatient beds, 26 outpatient exam rooms and is home to:
- the Harquail Centre for Neuromodulation, one of the world’s first to offer a complete range of neuromodulation strategies to influence brain circuitry;
- the Murphy Family Centre for Mental Health, providing compassionate and comprehensive inpatient care for youth and adults; and
- the Yuval & Lori Barzakay Brain Health Clinic, where research directly impacts outpatient care in stroke, memory, ALS, traumatic brain injury and more; and
- Ontario’s first circadian sleep centre, with sleep rooms dedicated to round-the-clock testing.
We spoke with Dr. Nir Lipsman, who started his role as Chief of the Hurvitz Brain Sciences Program in July of this year to learn more about what the future holds for brain health care at Sunnybrook.
Q: Brain sciences is a vast field. What made you decide this was what you wanted to focus on?
A: I’ve always been interested in the brain; it’s been a common thread throughout my education, going back to undergrad, and even before. I’m fascinated by human behaviour and the different ways it can go wrong. The original plan wasn’t to do neurosurgery, I was going to be a psychiatrist, but realized and was inspired by neuroscientists in the field, that you can approach diseases of the brain from many different directions. The interaction and collaboration between different disciplines, coming together in service of our patients and their families, is what made me pursue neuroscience.
Q: You’ve been in your new role for a few months now. As Chief, what are some of your goals for the Hurvitz Brain Sciences Program?
A: The last two chiefs, Ken Shulman and Anthony Levitt, did an outstanding job in growing the program. Ken put a stake in the ground that we are a neuroscience centre, and Anthony took it to new heights in terms of philanthropy and growth. My goal is to build on those accomplishments in big ways. We want to foster a sense of common purpose, ensure that the care we give to our patients is excellent, and that the science we do is impactful and world-leading. My goal is to take a ‘big tent’ approach to neuroscience, and include all the amazing work happening in this space within the program. This will include, I hope, getting everyone together to share ideas and learn about what’s happening. I would love for the Hurvitz program to be a destination for top clinical and research talent, recruiting and retaining the best and brightest. This means investing in the infrastructure, as we are doing, but also fine-tuning our goals: to conduct more clinical trials, rapidly translate pre-clinical work to practice, and ensure that patients get the care they need, when they need it, whether in hospital or outside. In fields like dementia, stroke and mood & anxiety, I’d love to see us continue being world leader and set the national and global agendas for care and prevention.
Q: In a few months, your team will be moving into the new Garry Hurvitz Brain Sciences Centre. What excites you about the new space and how will it change the way patients are treated at Sunnybrook?
A: The Hurvitz Centre is the first big infrastructure project at Sunnybrook in years, and it’s an incredible building. Not only the brick and mortar, the expanded beds, clinical spaces and meeting rooms. It’s much more than that. The building embodies everything we strive to do in neuroscience: bring together the brightest minds, from all brain disciplines, under one roof and focus on a common problem. In this case tackling nothing less than changing how we understand and treat the most common brain disorders. So no more running across floors to meet with collaborators; no more questions about where brain science ‘lives’ at Sunnybrook. Bringing people together is what’s always excited me about academic medicine, and that’s what the building represents. It also happens to be a beautiful place to walk through and work.
Q: Brain sciences is a field that’s always changing. If you were to give advice to someone considering your field of study, what would you tell them?
A: Embrace the complexity; lean into the challenges that the brain represents. We have never known more about the brain than at this moment, and we haven’t scratched the surface of that understanding. Adapt quickly, and be open to new opportunities; you never know what tools or instruments you’ll be using in 5, 10, or 15 years, so develop skills that can be universally applied: good clinical practice, compassionate care, judicious and sound science. Find a team you love to work with and understand that the most exciting discoveries are made at the edges of disciplines, where people find common ground.
Q: Is there anything else you’d like to add?
A: I’m incredibly grateful for the team I have the privilege of working with on a daily basis, from the Foundation to SRI. This includes Anne Marie McLeod, our Operations Director who keeps things running efficiently, and Ru Taggar and our senior leadership, who are laser focused on growth that is sustainable and impactful. The Hurvitz building, and within it the Harquail Centre and Barzakay Clinic, wouldn’t be possible without the incredible generosity of our donor community. The goal really is improving the lives of our patients, current and future, and I cannot be more excited for what’s ahead.
