Portrait of Dan Poenaru

Dan Poenaru

Associate Academic Member
dan.poenaru@mcgill.ca
Professor, McGill University, Department of Pediatric Surgery
Research Topics
AI and Healthcare
AI in Health
Medical Machine Learning

Biography

Dan Poenaru is a professor of pediatric surgery at McGill University and a senior scientist at the research institute of the McGill University Health Centre. He has a master’s degrees in health professions education and international development, and a doctorate in health strategy and management. Poenaru is a Fonds de recherche du Québec - Santé (FRQS) and a Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)-funded investigator in patient-centered surgical care, head of the McGill CommiSur Lab, director of the Jean-Martin Laberge Fellowship in Global Pediatric Surgery, and a founding member of the Global Initiative for Children’s Surgery (GICS).

His current areas of academic interest are technology-assisted surgical communication and medical education, including AI, VR and digital health devices, patient-centred surgical care, and developing global surgical research capacity.

Current Students

Mohsen Amoei
PhD - McGill University
Carmel Daskalo
Master's Research - McGill University
Aylin Erman
PhD - McGill University
Principal supervisor :
Jackie Cheung
Hakima Laribi
PhD - Université de Sherbrooke
Co-supervisor :
Martin Vallières
Website
Github
Olivier Lefebvre
PhD - Université de Sherbrooke
Co-supervisor :
Martin Vallières
Github
Eve Wang
Master's Research - McGill University
Github

Publications

The use of extended reality in anesthesiology education: a scoping review
Gianluca Bertolizio
Yu Tong Huang
Marta Garbin
Elena Guadagno
Dan Poenaru
2025-02-26
Canadian Journal of Anaesthesia-journal Canadien D Anesthesie (published)
doi.org
Overcoming Political Upheaval to Deliver Pediatric Surgical Care in Afghanistan: A Prospective Analysis of the First 1000 Procedures.
Dunya Moghul
Phillip J Hsu
Emma Bryce
Yalda Obaidy
Zane Hellman
Ajmal Sherzad
Dan Poenaru
Maija Cheung
BACKGROUND Pediatric surgical care is limited in Afghanistan. Few details are known about the state of pediatric surgery in Afghanistan. We … (see more)explore the impact of a newly installed pediatric operating room by a children's charity on the provision of pediatric surgery in Afghanistan. STUDY DESIGN Following the opening in March 2023 of the new KidsOR operating room at Ataturk Hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan, perioperative clinical data was prospectively collected until December 2023. All children (age 14 years) undergoing surgical procedures were included in a REDCap database, and descriptive analyses were performed. RESULTS 1,014 opera
2025-02-10
Journal of the American College of Surgeons (published)
doi.org
Improving Patient Safety Culture in Conflict-Affected Zones: A Cross-Sectional Survey of North Kivu Surgical Personnel in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Jacques Fadhili Bake
Claude Kasereka Masumbuko
Zacharie Tsongo Kibendelwa
Georges Bushu Lubuto
Jean‐Claude Mafuta Kyembwa
Esaie Kasereka Nzala
Papy Waleyirwe Kakule
Clovis Bwami Akumbi
Jean Zanga Kitutu
Tresor Basubi Wakilongo
Theophile Kubuya Hangi
Wilson Katembo Kwiraviwe
Benjamin Musemakweli
Beate Tshikudju Bahati
Steve Kisembo Bakabona
Dan Poenaru
BACKGROUND Patient safety culture significantly impacts outcomes in surgery, where preventable errors can occur. This study assessed patient… (see more) safety culture and its determinants in operating rooms across North Kivu, a conflict-affected province in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). METHODS A descriptive multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted from July to September 2024 in five urban and six rural hospitals. The French version of the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture (HSOPSC) questionnaire was administered to 328 operating room healthcare professionals. RESULTS The response rate was 78% (256 completed surveys). Urban hospitals accounted for 55.5% of respondents, who were 73.4% male and 62.5% under the age of 40. The overall composite score for patient safety culture was 63.2%. Teamwork (81.1%) and management support for patient safety (77.7%) received the highest positive responses, whereas error reporting (39.9%) and patient safety event reporting (50%) scored lower. Half (49.6%) of the respondents rated patient safety as excellent or very good. There were no significant differences in overall mean composite scores between urban and rural hospitals (p = 0.677) and between medical and paramedical staff (p = 0.694). CONCLUSIONS The patient safety culture rating in North Kivu falls below international standards, highlighting an urgent need for improvement, particularly in error response and event reporting. Developing a tailored patient safety bundle for the region is essential to enhance overall health outcomes.
2025-02-07
World Journal of Surgery (published)
doi.org
Adapting Perioperative Care for Neurodivergent Children - A Scoping Review
Spandana Veeravalli
Maia Michaud
Judy Colton
Brenda Bourdeau
Samantha Sacks
Lindsay Hales
Elena Guadagno
Dan Poenaru
2025-02-01
Journal of Pediatric Surgery (published)
doi.org
Advocacy for Children With Surgical Diseases in Nigeria: National Policy Status, Gaps, and Solutions
Justina O. Seyi-Olajide
Ayla Gerk
Elena Guadagno
Adesoji Ademuyiwa
Emmanuel A. Ameh
Dan Poenaru
2025-01-01
Journal of Pediatric Surgery (published)
doi.org
Child- and Proxy-Reported Differences in Patient-Reported Outcome and Experience Measures in Pediatric Surgery: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Zanib Nafees
Siena O’Neill
Alexandra Dimmer
Elena Guadagno
Julia Ferreira
Nancy Mayo
Dan Poenaru
2025-01-01
Journal of Pediatric Surgery (published)
doi.org
Child- and Proxy-reported Differences in Patient-reported Outcome and Experience Measures in Pediatric Surgery: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
Zanib Nafees
Siena O'Neill
Alexandra Dimmer
Elena Guadagno
Julia Ferreira
Nancy Mayo
Dan Poenaru
2025-01-01
Journal of Pediatric Surgery (published)
doi.org
Investigating the Effect of Providing Required Training to Mothers of Children with Surgery and Its Effect on Mothers' Anxiety
Julia Ferreira
Nadia Safa
Fabio Botelho
Robin Petroze
Hussein Wissanji
Dan Poenaru
Pramod Puligandla
Kenneth Shaw
Maeve Trudeau
Elena Guadagno
Jean-Martin Laberge
Sherif Emil
2025-01-01
Journal of Integrative Nursing and Palliative Care (published)
doi.org
Investigating the Effect of Providing Required Training to Mothers of Children with Surgery and Its Effect on Mothers' Anxiety
Julia Ferreira
Nadia Safa
Fabio Botelho
Robin Petroze
Hussein Wissanji
Dan Poenaru
Pramod Puligandla
Kenneth Shaw
Maeve Trudeau
Elena Guadagno
Jean Martin Laberge
Sherif Emil
2025-01-01
Journal of Integrative Nursing and Palliative Care (published)
doi.org
Machine-learning-assisted Preoperative Prediction of Pediatric Appendicitis Severity.
Aylin Erman
Julia Ferreira
Waseem Abu Ashour
Elena Guadagno
Etienne St-Louis
Sherif Emil
Jackie Cheung
Dan Poenaru
2025-01-01
Journal of Pediatric Surgery (published)
doi.org
Machine-learning-assisted preoperative prediction of pediatric appendicitis severity
Aylin Erman
Julia Ferreira
Waseem Abu Ashour
Elena Guadagno
Etienne St-Louis
Sherif Emil
Jackie Cheung
Dan Poenaru
2025-01-01
Journal of Pediatric Surgery (published)
doi.org
Delays in Care for Children With Low Anorectal Malformations in Southwestern Uganda.
Felix Oyania
Caroline Q. Stephens
Sarah Ullrich
Meera Kotagal
Daniel Kisitu
Francis Bajunirwe
Doruk Ozgediz
Dan Poenaru
2024-12-18
Journal of Surgical Research (published)
doi.org