Elevator Pitch Competition
The Elevator Pitch Competition (EPC) is an annual event SRSA has been hosting since 2019. This is an opportunity for trainees at St. Michael’s Hospital to present their research to a general audience. This competition is intended to provide trainees with the opportunity to develop scientific communication skills while honing their elevator pitch. This competition encourages researchers and trainees alike to discuss their research and creates networking opportunities for future collaborations. The ability to communicate your research to a general audience is very valuable, and we encourage all trainees to participate in this competition as either a competitor or an attendee.
During the competition, participants are given three minutes to present a compelling oration of their thesis topic and its significance, followed by two minutes of questioning. Their ability to communicate the importance of their research and articulate their findings to a general audience is then evaluated by an esteemed judging panel of SMH scientists. The winners are then awarded a monetary prize. Following the competition, a networking session takes place with the judges as an opportunity for students, researchers, and staff alike to network and learn about the research in St. Michael’s Hospital.
SRSA provides a training prep session hosted by Dr. Erica Conte for all interested competitors to help them prepare for competition, learn what the judges are looking for, and give some tips/tricks to honing your pitch.
The 2025 Elevator Pitch Competition took place on February 19th from 1-4pm in LKSKI 240/241! We had many amazing presenters come out to compete in the competition, and deliver amazing pitches. We are proud to announce this year's winners!
1st Place Wet Bench: Neetu Rambharack - Racing to Heal: How Inflammation Accelerates Skin Repair
Audience Choice Wet Bench: Amin Ektesabi -Overcoming Sepsis: A Revolutionary New Treatment
1st Place Dry Bench: Hamzah Khan - Assessing Aspirin Resistance in Patients with Atherosclerotic Disease Using Platelet Works and Light Transmission Aggregometry
Audience Choice Dry Bench: Francis Fernandes - Choroid Plexus Volume in Pathologically Confirmed Alzheimer’s Disease
And a special shoutout to all our competitors:
Wet Bench:
Jonathan Monteiro - Building better models of neurodegenerative disease
Dry Bench:
Chris Lozano - Surgical versus conservative management of geriatric type II odontoid fractures: a cost-utility analysis
Thais Baena Moura - Network Feasibility Study for Remote Robotic-assisted Neurovascular Procedures
Ria Khan - The DialySnake: Non-Invasive Restoration of Peritoneal Dialysis Catheters Obstructed with Intraluminal Fibrin Plugs and Eliminating the Need for Surgical Revision
