Our Team
We’re a group of engineers, inventors, clinicians, and scientists with a drive to improve the future of cardiovascular interventions.
Ali Tavallaei, PhD, PEng
President and Director
Dr. Tavallaei is an engineer, inventor, and entrepreneur with extensive background in medical device innovation, specifically in the domains of minimally invasive cardiovascular interventions, medical imaging, and image-guided therapies. He is an electrical-mechatronics engineer by trade with a PhD degree in biomedical engineering and is an alumnus of the Medical Innovation Fellowship (jointly held at University of Minnesota and Western University). Dr. Tavallaei is the co-founder of multiple medical technology companies and his inventions are used globally.
Andrew Dueck, MD
Officer, Clinical Advisor and Director
Dr. Dueck is the head of vascular surgery at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. After completing a fellowship in vascular surgery at the University of Toronto, Dr. Dueck pursued endovascular training with Dr. E.B. Dietrich at the Arizona Heart Hospital in Phoenix, Arizona. He returned to Toronto as an Assistant Professor of Surgery at the University of Toronto and Vascular and Endovascular surgeon at the Schulich Heart Centre, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. Dr. Dueck's clinical focus is the treatment of complex vascular disease, endovascular aneurysm care, and the percutaneous treatment of occlusive disease. He is currently investigating non-contrast vascular imaging, multimodality image fusion, and advanced techniques for imaging of peripheral microperfusion.
James J. Zhou
Research and Development Engineer
Mr. Zhou is a top-ranked fourth-year mechanical engineering student specializing in biomechanics at the University of Waterloo. He has been extensively involved in research related to image guided cardiovascular interventions. His experience ranges from medical device design and testing, to implementation and monitoring of clinical trials. After working for Dr. Wright’s lab at Sunnybrook for several years, he has found his passion for developing minimally invasive surgical devices and engineering in medicine. He wishes to pursue a career in the domain of medicine and healthcare.
Aida Bashiri
Senior Manufacturing Engineer
Ms. Bashiri has many years of experience in manufacturing and NPI engineering of medical devices. She is an expert in process management, technical instruction and test procedure development. Ms. Bashiri also advises on design reviews with respect to DFA/DFM analysis, BOM structuring, and Engineering change order implementation, and is also a SME (subject matter expert) in production control related audits in both TUV, ISO 13485 and FDA.
Directors and Advisors
Ronald Dalman, MD
Clinical Advisor
Dr. Dalman is the Walter Clifford Chidester and Elsa Rooney Chidester Professor of Surgery, and Chief of Vascular Surgery at the Department of Surgery at Stanford. His clinical interests include management of lower extremity circulatory disorders, including limb salvage, as well as aortic diseases. At Stanford Health Care he serves as Co-Director and Chief Quality Officer for the Cardiovascular Service Line. At the School of Medicine, Dr. Dalman is the Associate Dean for Market Development and is part of the Steering Committee and founding member of the Cardiovascular Institute (CVI). Currently he is serving as co-Principle Investigator of the CVI's NHLBI T32 "Mechanisms and Innovation in Vascular Disease" training grant. Prior to his appointment as Chief of Vascular Surgery at Stanford Health Care, Dalman served as Chief of Vascular Surgery at the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Care System for 14 years.
Graham Wright, PhD
Scientific Advisor and Director
Dr. Wright is the Director of the Schulich Heart Research Program at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, a senior scientist at Sunnybrook Research Institute, and a professor in the Department of Medical Biophysics at the University of Toronto. Dr. Wright was appointed the Canada Research Chair in Imaging for Cardiovascular Therapeutics in 2010 (renewed in 2017). He also recently served as President of the International MR Angiography Club and Chair of the Interventional Study Group of the International Society of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.
Trisha Roy, MD, PhD
Research and Development Advisor and Director
Dr. Roy strives to transform the way we plan and perform endovascular procedures with novel imaging techniques. She is a resident vascular surgeon-scientist at the University of Toronto. She completed her Materials Engineering degree, doctor of medicine (MD) and PhD in vascular imaging at the University of Toronto. Under the supervision of Dr. Graham Wright and Dr. Dueck, she has developed a new method to image occlusive peripheral arterial disease using MRI. Her research focuses on developing advanced imaging techniques to improve prognostication, guide appropriate endovascular wire/device selection, and propose novel therapies for peripheral arterial disease.