Québec’s chief scientist Mr. Rémi Quirion welcomes the appointment of Dr. Renaldo Battista as scientific director and a member of the board of directors of the Fonds de recherche du Québec – Santé (FRQS).
Dr. Battista has been a professor in the Department of Health Administration at Université de Montréal since 2004 and held the Canada Research Chair in Health Technology Assessment since 2005. In 2008, he was appointed senior scientific advisor to the Health Technology Assessment Unit (UETMIS) of the Centre hospitalier universitaire (CHU) Sainte-Justine and made a member of its research centre.
Dr. Battista earned his medical degree from Université de Montréal. He then completed a master’s in public health and a doctorate in health policy and management from Harvard University.
From 1982 to 2003, Dr. Battista was on staff in the departments of Epidemiology and Biostatistics and Medicine at McGill University. He was also president of the Québec Council for Health Technology Assessment (CETS) from 1994 to 2000 and president and CEO of the Québec Health Services and Technology Assessment Agency (AETMIS) from 2000 to 2004.
Dr. Battista served as a member of the board of directors of the Canadian Coordinating Office for Health Technology Assessment (CCOHTA) from 1994 to 2000 and was a very active member of the International Society of Technology Assessment in Health Care (ISTAHC), which he chaired from 1995 to 1997. He collaborated with several colleagues to create the International Network of Agencies of Health Technology Assessment in Health Care (INAHTA) in 1993 and played an advisory role in the development of health technology assessment in several countries, including France, Spain and Italy. In 2001, he cofounded the International Masters Program in Health Technology Assessment and Management (the ULYSSES program). In 2006, Dr. Battista was elected as a member of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences.
His most significant scientific contributions are driven by three themes: the integration of preventative services into clinical practice, the development and implementation of guidelines for clinical practice and health technologies assessment.
“Dr. Battista’s extensive expertise constitutes an undeniable asset to the development of Québec’s health research sector,” affirmed Mr. Quirion. Dr. Battista’s appointment is effective July 3, 2012.
For more information, visit www.frqs.gouv.qc.ca.
February 24, 2012