Bloorview Research Institute

News: Making Research a Priority for Kids with Disabilities

Dr. Darcy Fehlings: Chair in Developmental Paediatrics

Dr. Darcy Fehlings has built a reputation as an innovator, leader and eminent scientist at Bloorview Kids Rehab.

Now, she can add inaugural holder of Bloorview Childrens Hospital Foundation Chair in Developmental Paediatrics to her accolades.

Darcy, a senior scientist with the Bloorview Research Institute, has an international reputation of excellence in the field of pediatric rehabilitation. As an associate professor in the department of paediatrics at the University of Toronto, Darcy teaches and presents her research at universities across Canada and the United States.

Teaching in Canada's largest fellowship program for developmental pediatricians, Darcy attracts top students with her innovative approaches to treatment. For example, she was among the pioneers in the North American use and evaluation of Botulinum toxin to treat children with limited movements caused by stiff muscles.

In addition, Darcy has developed a virtual-reality game that elicits repetitive movements in children with one-sided weakness, making therapy fun. Ultimately, Darcy is focused on studying motor treatments in children with neuromuscular disorders. She wants to give them the opportunity to relax their muscles, move more naturally and become more independent.

Perhaps the root of Darcy’s success comes from the fact that she spends a lot of her time in a clinical setting, while also committing a portion of her week to research and teaching. This combination of pursuits is something that adds depth and meaning to Darcy’s research objectives. “Clinicians can ask great questions that reflect the needs of the children and families they see, and scientists are trained to answer those questions,” she says.

Thanks to the generosity of Bloorview Childrens Hospital Foundation for endowing two of Bloorview’s three research chairs, Darcy is planning to use her chair to advance the field of developmental pediatrics through discovering possibilities in treatments for children with disabilities.

“My goal is to grow the clinical research program at Bloorview, ensuring treatments for children with developmental disabilities are evidence-informed; training the next generation of developmental pediatricians and allied health professionals; and bringing clinicians and scientists together to generate new knowledge that’s relevant to the everyday needs of families,” Darcy says.

More on Dr. Darcy Fehlings

Contact:

If you’d like more information on Bloorview’s new Research Chairs, please contact Louise Kinross, Communications Manager at
416-424-3866 or lkinross (at) hollandbloorview (dot) ca*(see Note below)

*Note: Copy the above e-mail address(es) into the To field of your e-mail message and reconstruct the e-mail address(es) by removing the spaces and replacing the “at” and “dot” with the proper symbols (@ and .) respectively.

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