Morris Freedman

I am a clinician investigator with a focus on dementia. I am Head of Neurology and Medical Director, Cognition and Behaviour at Baycrest Health Sciences, a scientist at the Rotman Research Institute of Baycrest Centre, and a Professor in the Department of Medicine (Neurology), University of Toronto. In addition to an active clinical practice with a strong emphasis on virtual care in related to cognitive decline, my research is aimed at understanding mechanisms underlying cognitive impairment due to degenerative dementias. My work involves an innovative methodology involving experimental paradigms adapted from animal models to study dementia in humans, an approach termed comparative neuropsychology. My work also focuses on development of cognitive assessment tools. Over the past three years, with the support of a three million dollar grant from Brain Canada (Co-PI), I have taken a leading role in the development of a city-wide database through the Toronto Dementia Research Alliance (TDRA) that will facilitate clinical research embedded in care while simultaneously contributing to more efficient patient care. In addition, my colleagues and I are planning to leverage this database to advance cognitive assessment, triage, diagnosis, and management of patients with cognitive impairment through artificial intelligence and machine learning.