Rebecca Valade, MSc
Rebecca began her PhD studies in September 2025 in the School of Rehabilitation Sciences at the University of Ottawa under the supervision of Drs. Heather Flowers and Jason Steffener. Her research interests include the use of neuroimaging and neuromodulation techniques, along with behavioural interventions, to improve communication outcomes in individuals with speech impairments resulting from neurological diseases.
Rebecca previously obtained a Master of Science in Neuroscience from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, where she investigated the effects of neuromuscular fatigue and cognitive stress on postural control under the supervision of Dr. Martin Bilodeau. She also holds a Bachelor of Cognitive Science with a concentration in Neuroscience from Carleton University. Rebecca has research experience in clinical, academic, and federal government research settings and enjoys engaging in interdisciplinary collaborations that bridge neuroscience and rehabilitation. She currently works as a research assistant at the the Centre for Care Access and Equity Research.
Pouran Bagherpour, MSc
Pouran is a PhD candidate in the School of Rehabilitation Sciences at the University of Ottawa under the supervision of Drs. Heather Flowers and Jason Steffener. Her research interests involve exploring cardioembolic stroke and associated speech, language, and swallowing impairments. Pouran’s doctoral research is supported by committee members including Dr. Jodi Edwards with expertise in brain-heart epidemiology and Dr. Karine Marcotte with expertise in neuroimaging correlates of communication disorders.
Pouran previously obtained Bachelor and Master of Speech-Language Pathology from the University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences (USWR), Tehran, Iran. Before beginning her doctoral studies, she worked as a speech-language pathologist in Iran and Azerbaijan across clinical and hospital settings. She is currently a research and teaching assistant at the University of Ottawa.
Saba Sadeghi, MSc
Saba is a PhD candidate in the School of Rehabilitation Sciences at the University of Ottawa under the supervision of Dr. Heather Flowers in the Faculty of Health Sciences. Her doctoral research focuses on enhancing mealtime participation in the institutionalized elderly, whereby she seeks to develop an evaluation tool for caregivers and front-line staff. Through this work, she aims to improve the quality of mealtime experiences and promote meaningful participation for older adults in institutional settings. Her PhD committee members include Dr. Janet Squires, a professor in the School of Nursing, and Dr. Mark Campbell, a physiatrist and investigator at the Bruyère Health Research Institute.
Saba holds a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Speech and Language Pathology. She has gained extensive professional experience as a speech-language pathologist across diverse clinical settings and has also served as a lecturer and clinical supervisor at the Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Iran. Saba has authored several publications and presented her research at national and international conferences. Saba has received a Mathematics of Information Technology and Complex Systems (MITACS) award to receive complementary training with Professor Shakila Dada in the Centre for Augmentative and Alternative Communication at the University of Pretoria.
Fatemeh Abnavi, MSc
Fatemeh is undertaking PhD studies in the School of Rehabilitation Sciences at the University of Ottawa under the supervision of Drs. Tim Bressmann (Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto) and Heather Flowers (Faculty of Health Sciences, uOttawa). Her research interests involve developing a new acoustic and visual signal processing approach for identifying nasality (hypo-, hyper-, and mixed) for clinical application in persons with cleft palate. Her PhD committee members include Profs Hilmi Dajani of the Faculty of Engineering, uOttawa and Suzy Ahn of the Faculty of Arts, uOttawa.
Fatemeh previously obtained a Master of Science from the Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Iran. She also worked as a SLP in multiple settings while acting as a lecturer and clinical supervisor in the IUMS patient clinic. She holds a position as research coordinator at the Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) in Toronto.
Asefeh Memarian, MSc
Asefeh is undertaking PhD studies in the School of Rehabilitation Sciences at the University of Ottawa under the supervision of Dr. Heather Flowers (Faculty of Health Sciences, uOttawa). Her research interests involve understanding swallowing and speech patterns in persons with cerebellar dysfunction. She plans to investigate coordinative behaviours with a view to informing clinical practice for the treatment of ataxia by speech-language pathologists. Her PhD committee members include Drs. David Grimes (Neurology, The Ottawa Hospital), Abdulmotaleb El Saddik (Faculty of Engineering, uOttawa), and Anna Zumbansen (Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Ottawa).
Asefeh previously obtained a Master of Science from the Iran University of Medical Sciences. She also worked for many years as a SLP in multiple settings while acting as a lecturer at IUMS and supervisor at the Amin Hospital Speech Therapy Clinic. She currently holds a research coordinator position at Bruyère Health Research Institute.
