Our Team
Dr. Indra Narang leads a diverse team of post-doctoral fellows, clinicians, graduate students and undergraduate students.
Research Team
Jun Chun Ting Au
Research Fellow
PhD, RPSGT
Jun, a dedicated researcher, joined Dr Narang's lab in 2022. He earned his PhD in Medical Sciences at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) in 2019 and immediately began his academic career as a faculty member in the Department of Paediatrics, CUHK, in the same year. His research has primarily focused on sleep-disordered breathing and sleep patterns in children and adolescents, exploring various aspects that include the cardiovascular and neurocognitive complications and the treatment responses, the natural history of OSA from childhood to adulthood, the familial aggregation and heritability of childhood OSA, anatomical markers, novel screening tools, and epidemiology. His ongoing work includes developing alternative diagnostic tools for OSA using facial photogrammetry, exploring ways to define OSA better using new biomarkers such as hypoxic burden and heart rate responses to respiratory events during sleep study, and the long-term effects of surgical intervention in children with OSA.
In addition to his research, Jun has also been a registered sleep technologist (RPSGT) since 2008. Over the years, he has been training new technologists and sleep physicians on scoring and interpreting paediatric sleep studies.
E-mail: jun.au@sickkids.ca
Aditi Garg
Clinical Research Project Manager
MHEcon & Policy, BSc
Aditi joined Dr. Narang's lab in 2025 as a Clinical Research Project Manager. With over a decade of experience in clinical trials and research operations, she has led the operational management of multi-centre trials across Canada. Her diverse portfolio spans cardiac electrophysiology, medical devices, chronic disease prevention, neuromuscular diseases, and now pediatric sleep medicine.
Returning to her original passion for pediatric health, Aditi is eager to apply her clinical operations expertise to drive meaningful research in pediatric sleep medicine and improve child health outcomes. She is dedicated to fostering collaboration and supporting clinical trials that run efficiently, ethically, and with compassion.
Within Dr. Narang's lab, she leads the CHOSA trial, a national randomized controlled trial evaluating home-based therapies for pediatric obstructive sleep apnea.
Aditi holds a Master of Science in Health Economics and Policy from the University of Lucerne and an Honours Bachelor of Science in Health Sciences from the University of Waterloo. Her work spans clinical trials and international health policy, including a first-author publication on disability and rehabilitation legislation across five countries. She also enjoys guest lecturing on healthcare leadership and clinical trial management and has been featured on the PH Spot podcast to discuss mentorship and supporting early-career researchers.
She is committed to growing as a leader in clinical research and operations, with a focus on building compassionate, high-performing teams that drive meaningful change in healthcare.
E-mail: aditi.garg@sickkids.ca
Deevya Grover
Clinical Research Project Assistant
Deevya is a Clinical Research Project Assistant in the Narang Lab at SickKids, where she works on studies focused on pediatric obstructive sleep apnea. Her work includes supporting research using facial photogrammetry to develop accessible, scalable screening tools, as well as the Virtual Care Study examining barriers to telehealth access across Ontario.
She graduated from the University of Waterloo with an Honours Bachelor of Science in Psychology in 2025. Her interest in clinical and translational research developed through diverse experiences across hospital and academic environments, including UHN, Mt. Sinai Hospital, and multiple research labs across the University of Waterloo and York University. Deevya is interested in applying data and technology to improve diagnostic accuracy and access to care in pediatric populations. She hopes to pursue a career in medicine where she can integrate research with patient care to improve health outcomes.
E-mail: deevya.grover@sickkids.ca
Sumenjit Waraich
Clinical Research Project Assistant
Sumenjit is a dedicated clinical researcher and global health advocate who is honoured to join Dr. Indra Narang's esteemed research team at SickKids. Sumen's passion for health advocacy began during her career as a personal support worker and child and youth counsellor. Being a part of the patient care cycle gave her a glimpse into the everyday reality of children in complex care systems constantly pushing barriers to accessibility and equitable care. This experience deepened her understanding of various levels of community care and the importance of strong healthcare teams.
In 2021, Sumen graduated from McMaster University with an Honours Bachelor of Science. During her studies, she developed and implemented an integrated comprehensive care study focused on integrated care systems on a global scale. While pursuing her Master's in Global Health at the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry at Western University, Sumen participated in various clinical research projects. Her experiences include involvement in international research initiatives in East Africa and a research internship at the Joint Clinical Research Centre in Uganda. Drawing on her background as a personal support worker, she adopted a trauma-informed and non-judgmental approach in her interactions with clinic patients and actively contributed to discussions among diverse healthcare teams.
Since graduating in 2022, Sumenjit has engaged in multiple research projects, furthering her commitment to advancing public health. With a keen interest in paediatric medicine, she is excited to explore the prevalence of sleep disorders in children and contribute to the science surrounding diagnostic models for sleep apnea.
Email: sumenjit.waraich@sickkids.ca
Mystica Terrance
MSc. Candidate - University of Toronto
HBSc. Health and Disease - University of Toronto
Mystica graduated with an Honours Bachelor of Science in Health and Disease from the University of Toronto in 2021. Her interest in sleep medicine began during her final year, when she conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis on sleep duration and its impact on chronic medical conditions in children. This sparked her passion for sleep medicine research, particularly in the context of chronic condition interventions.
Mystica is currently pursuing a Master of Science at the University of Toronto. Her current thesis project investigates the efficacy of oral dexamethasone as a treatment for moderate to severe OSA in children. This study bridges clinical research with basic science, as Mystica also works with nasal epithelial cell culture to explore the cellular characteristics underlying sleep disorders. She aspires to pursue a career in clinical research management.
E-mail: mystica.terrance@sickkids.ca
Rianna Sarbajna
MSc. Candidate - University of Toronto
HBSc. - University of Toronto
Rianna
Sarbajna holds an Honour's Bachelor of Science from the University of Toronto
and is currently pursuing her Master of Science from the Institute of Medical
Sciences at the University of Toronto.
Rianna
joined the Narang Lab in 2022 as an undergraduate research student, where her
work primarily focused on studying the association between insomnia and PAP
adherence in children and the utilization of mindfulness-based strategies to
increase PAP adherence in adolescents. Transitioning to a graduate researcher,
her current work focuses on pediatric health equity. Rianna's current thesis
investigates the association between the social determinants of health and
asthma outcomes in children. She is also involved in additional projects at the
Office of Health Equity and Inclusion, that are focused on improving equitable
access to care here at the Hospital for Sick Children. Rianna has also spent
time as an undergraduate student researcher at the Centre for Addiction and
Mental Health where she with worked on projects focused on improving access to
mental health resources for autistic youth.
Moving
forward, under the supervision of Dr. Indra Narang, Rianna is committed to
advancing equity-informed research aimed at improving health outcomes for the
marginalized populations SickKids strives to serve.
E-mail: rianna.sarbajna@sickkids.ca
Natalia Escobar
Clinical Fellow
Dr. Natalia Escobar obtained her MD from the National University of Rosario, Argentina, and completed her training in Pediatrics, Pediatric Respirology, and Sleep Medicine in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 2017.
In 2023, Dr. Escobar joined SickKids as a Clinical Fellow in Respiratory Medicine. She is now in her second year of fellowship and currently the Chief Fellow.
In 2024, she joined Dr. Narang's research lab, where her ongoing projects focus on narcolepsy.
E-mail: natalia.escobar@sickkids.ca
David Benzon, RN
Clinical Research Project Assistant
B.Sc.(H) Kinesiology - McMaster University
BScN - University of Toronto
David Benzon is a Clinical Research Project Assistant in the Narang Sleep Lab. He currently functions as the Lead Facilitator of a peer support group tailored to promote CPAP adherence in children with OSA. Aside from his research role, David practices clinically as a Registered Nurse in adult emergency medicine.David is a co-author on several publications. His project, Evaluation of Sleep-Disordered Breathing in Pediatric Patients with Probable Rapid-Onset Obesity with Hypothalamic Dysfunction, Hypoventilation and Autonomic Dysregulation (ROHHAD) Syndrome was featured at the World Sleep Congress 2019 in Vancouver.
E-mail: david.benzon@sickkids.ca
Marilou Alforque
Administrative Coordinator
Marilou joined The Hospital for Sick Children's Respiratory Medicine Department as an Administrative Assistant in 2024. She has experience from a healthcare communications agency in project coordination of online courses, webinars, conferences, as well various marketing campaigns. She handled reconciling and managing budgets, reviewing proposals, and managing reporting tools. Marilou coordinated accreditation and updates to content for a Certified Respiratory Educator (CRE) certificate preparation course and a curriculum alignment project for mathematics and science between high school and colleges.
She graduated in engineering from Concordia University. She also had a role as a Research Assistant which included literature searches, interviews for participants in a research study, administering and data collection of surveys.
E-mail: marilou.alforque@sickkids.ca
Key Collaborators
Dr. Lena Xiao, MD, MSc, FRCPC
Dr. Lena Xiao is a Pediatric Respirologist and Sleep Physician at British Columbia Children's Hospital (BCCH). She received her Canadian Royal College certification in Pediatric Respiratory Medicine in 2021 and completed clinical fellowships in Pediatric Sleep Medicine and Long-Term Ventilation at The Hospital for Sick Children in June 2023. Dr. Xiao also completed a Master of Science in Clinical Epidemiology and Health Care Research at the University of Toronto in March 2024 under the supervision of Dr. Indra Narang. She was recently awarded the 2024 American Thoracic Society Carole L. Marcus Outstanding Achievement Award which recognizes a new investigator for their accomplishments in pediatric sleep and respiratory neurobiology.
Dr. Xiao joined Dr. Narang's research lab in 2019 and they continue to closely collaborate on research that focuses on phenotyping obstructive sleep apnea as well as evaluating alternative therapies for its treatment using a broad range of methodologies including clinical trials, qualitative studies, and observational designs.
Dr. Evan Jon Propst, MD, MSc, FRCSC
Dr. Propst is a Pediatric Otolaryngologist - Head and Neck Surgeon at The Hospital for Sick Children and Associate Professor at the University of Toronto. He has authored over 120 peer-reviewed publications, numerous book chapters and books (https://www.pluralpublishing.com/publications/airway-reconstruction-surgical-dissection-manual), lectures internationally, and is on the executive board of several international medical societies.
Dr. Propst co-created the Disorders RElating to the Airway and Mouth in Sleep (DREAMS) clinic to treat complex sleep disordered breathing in children with persistent severe obstructive sleep apnea following tonsillectomy, adenoidectomy and positive airway pressure (PAP) therapy. He has a vast experience creating educational material and programs, having served as the Residency Site Director and Fellowship Director at The Hospital for Sick Children, organizing annual Continuing Medical Education Airway courses (ORLPed.com), and developing synthetic models for surgical training (www.AweSimMedical.com). Dr. Propst is also a Physician Builder (Programmer) for the electronic medical record system EPIC.
Dr. Nikolaus Wolter MD, MSc, FRCSC
Dr. Wolter is a Pediatric Otolaryngologist - Head and Neck Surgeon at The Hospital for Sick Children and Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto. He completed a Fellowship in Pediatric Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery at Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard University. His clinical practice and laboratory research are focused on surgery of the head and neck, airway reconstruction, and diseases of the sinuses and skull base. Dr Wolter established the Head and Neck Basic Science laboratory at Sick Kids. He has authored numerous academic publications and book chapters in the field of pediatric Otolaryngology. He currently serves as the residency site director at Sick Kids.
Dr. Sara Ahola Kohut, Ph.D., C.Psych.
Clinically, Dr. Sara
works exclusively with individuals living with chronic disease and their
families. Her program of research focuses on building resilience in
youth with chronic disease and covers two main foci: 1. building
meaningful peer and social supports and 2. mindfulness-based approaches
to living with chronic disease (exploring both mechanisms and
interventions).
Dr. Sara's research capitalizes on the internet to improve access to interventions and freely available resources.
Research Students
Rachel Castellarin
Research Student
BSc Physiology – McGill University
Rachel Castellarin is an undergraduate student pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Physiology at McGill University. Rachel joined the Narang Lab in the summer of 2024 as a Research Volunteer, supporting a retrospective study assessing the efficacy and adherence of Auto-CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) therapy in children. She also developed educational materials to improve CPAP acclimatization and tolerance among children and adolescents. Currently, Rachel is a Research Student and will support multiple studies focused on insomnia and PAP adherence in children with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), home-based therapy approaches for pediatric OSA, and barriers to accessing virtual ambulatory care at SickKids. Her interest in pediatrics and translational research developed through diverse experiences across hospital, rehabilitation, and community settings, including volunteering at SickKids (Child Life Program), Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital, and ErinoakKids Centre for Treatment and Development. Rachel is passionate about contributing to meaningful, patient-centred research and continuing to grow her clinical and research skill set. She aspires to pursue a career in pediatric nursing, integrating research and compassionate care to improve the health and wellbeing of children and families.
E-mail: rachel.castellarin@sickkids.ca
Chaaya Nakra
Research Student
Chaaya Nakra is an undergraduate student pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Life Sciences at Queen's University, alongside a Certificate in Business at the Smith School of Business. Chaaya joined the Narang Lab in the summer of 2025 as a Research Student. Her work supports the study examining factors that influence insomnia and positive airway pressure (PAP) therapy adherence in children. Chaaya's strong interest in pediatric health has driven her involvement in several child-centered research and community initiatives. She gained research experience through the ASPIRE Research Program and has worked with children in clinical, recreational, and therapeutic settings at Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital. Her leadership on Kids4Kids, a club at Queen's University supporting the Child Life department at Kingston General Hospital, further reflects her commitment to supporting wellbeing and improving care experiences. Chaaya is motivated by the goal of contributing to meaningful, evidence-based research and hopes to continue building a broad and adaptable research skill set as she moves forward in her academic career.
E-mail: chaaya.nakra@sickkids.ca
Chesney Sickles-Jarvis
Research Student
Chesney is an Anishinaabe-Onyota'a:ka:- Acadian-St. Kittian woman raised in the Wiiwkwedong, Kikonong and Aazhoodenaang (Kettle and Stony Point First Nations) and Deshkaan Ziibing (London) territories. She is pursuing an Honors Specialization of Indigenous studies degree at University of Western Ontario. Chesney joined the Narang Lab in 2026 as an undergraduate summer research student working on projects focused on Indigenous Health. Her work is rooted in efforts to decolonize and Indigenize health-care policy working closely with the Indigenous health program within the office of Health Equity. Her work contributes to advancing the work of Truth and Reconciliation (TRC) utilizing the frameworks including the United Nation Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the TRC calls to action number 22 with community-based praxis, transformation, and social justice driving her interests and work within health care spaces and places. Outside of her research, herstory inspires and leads the work of EDI and Indigenous Health at the Epilepsy Southwestern Ontario, she advocates for equitable healthcare with the London Health Coalition, and she is an active participant with the Indigenous Students Association serving as the Indigenous Department Representative carrying the student voice.
E-mail: ches.sickles-jarvis@sickkids.ca
Benjamin Sigurdson
Research Student
BScH Life Sciences – Queen's University
Benjamin recently graduated from Queen's University with an Honours Bachelor of Science in Life Sciences. He joined the Narang lab in 2026 as a research student working on projects focused on endotyping positional OSA and evaluating novel alternative treatment approaches for affected individuals, as well as implementing innovative diagnostic approaches for paediatric OSA using facial photogrammetry and predictive modelling. His work contributes to advancing more personalized, accessible, and technology-driven approaches to the diagnosis and management of sleep-disordered breathing. Benjamin is passionate about paediatric health research, health equity, and improving access to care through translational and community-focused initiatives.
Outside of the lab, Benjamin serves as Co-President of the Queen's University Children's Healthcare Association, where he helps lead fundraising and advocacy initiatives supporting SickKids Hospital. He has also contributed to quality improvement initiatives with Newborn Screening Ontario, focused on implementing improved timeliness metrics to support equitable neonatal care delivery. Benjamin was a member of the winning team at the 2024 SciNapse Undergraduate Science Case Competition for developing a CRISPRa-based research protocol aimed at upregulating the production of anticancer metabolites. He is also a recipient of the Nixon Academic Leadership Award at Queen's University, recognizing exceptional achievement in academics, community service, leadership, and fair play in sport, and he serves as a student lead on the Queen's Athletics and Recreation I-EDIAA Committee.
E-mail: ben.sigurdson@sickkids.ca
Taylor Stoat
Graduate Research Student
B.Sc. Neuroscience- University of Western Ontario
Taylor graduated from the University of Western Ontario in 2022 with a B.Sc. in Neuroscience. Her passion for the field of clinical research is evident through her undergraduate thesis work and her previous role as a Clinical Research Coordinator at SickKids. Currently, she is pursuing a Master's in Medical Science at the University of Toronto, under the co-supervision of Dr. Narang and Dr. Dlamini. Her research focuses on unraveling the mechanistic link between sleep and neurocognition in children who have had a stroke. Specifically, she is investigating the role of vascular health—the glymphatic system and cerebrovascular reactivity—in this pediatric population. Taylor is driven by the goal of translating her findings into improved care and quality of life for children affected by stroke.
Divya Moraes
Research Volunteer
HBSc Biology – McMaster University
Divya Moraes is an undergraduate student pursuing an Honours Bachelor of Science in Biology with a specialization in research at McMaster University. Divya joined the Narang lab in 2026 as a research volunteer, contributing to ongoing projects. She has experience with both data science through volunteering with the CHILD study at SickKids, and grew more interested in helping children through her experience with the Kids Help Phone as a volunteer crisis responder. She is interested in medical research and data science and is driven to advance existing knowledge and improve access to proper care and treatment for children.
E-mail: divya.moraes@sickkids.ca
Luke Russell-Hallinan
PhD Candidate – School of Medicine, University College Dublin
Luke is a current PhD student in the School of Medicine at University College Dublin. He graduated with a BSc in Biomedical and Molecular Diagnostics from Technological University Dublin, where he developed a strong interest in translational research.
Luke's PhD research focuses on the epidemiology and pathophysiology of sleep disorders in the adult population of Ireland. Specifically, his research explores the prevalence and impact of major sleep disorders such as obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA), insomnia, restless legs syndrome (RLS) and comorbid insomnia and sleep apnoea (COMISA). His work also examines sex-specific features and underlying pathophysiological traits among women with OSA and COMISA. Through this research, Luke hopes to contribute to greater awareness and understanding of sleep disorders in Ireland, with the aim of informing more precise, sex-specific approaches to sleep disorder diagnosis and treatment in both clinical and population-based settings.
As part of his research training and ongoing international collaboration, Luke has worked with the research team at SickKids, contributing to projects exploring pathophysiological traits in paediatric OSA populations. This work has expanded his research into paediatric sleep disorders and broadened his knowledge of sleep pathophysiology.
E-mail: luke.russell-hallinan@ucdconnect.ie
Clinical Team
Adele Baker
BSc(H), PGCE, RRT
Adele is a staff Respiratory Therapist at Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children, specializing in the area of Sleep and Respiratory Medicine. She completed her undergraduate degree at Western U, her teaching degree at Lancaster U, and her diploma in Respiratory Therapy at the Michener Institute. She has worked at SickKids for over 20 years. Her practice involves clinical education and adherence support to children prescribed respiratory therapies to treat sleep disordered breathing. She is involved in the development of ongoing clinical educational resources on this topic, has founded a Canadian Sleep RT Network for resource collaboration, and has been an invited speaker at various conferences and symposia on the topics of barriers and adherence to PAP therapy treatment. Adele has co-authored publications with the Dr. Narang Lab team looking at various respiratory therapies to treat obstructive sleep apnea, and has presented her research findings at Canadian and World Sleep conferences.
Colin Massicote
Team Lead, Registered Polysomnographic Technologist
Colin completed his Honours thesis project on sleep mentation and EEG at Brock University under Dr. Robert Ogilvie, and completed his clinical training at Niagara Snoring and Sleep Centre.
He has been a sleep technologist for almost 25 years and is Team Lead of the Sleep Lab at Sickkids hospital. He has a passion for technology and improving processes with positive change, and in his spare time he enjoys running marathons and ultramarathons. His research interests are sleep disorders, EEG and cognition and sleep technology.
Allison Zweerink
Nurse Practitioner
MN, NP
Allison is a Nurse Practitioner (NP) in the Sleep Medicine Program at The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. She completed her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Guelph before receiving her Nursing Degree at the University of Toronto, followed by her Master of Nursing - Nurse Practitioner (Pediatrics) at the same university. She has been working at SickKids for almost 20 years and has been the NP in the Sleep Medicine Program for 14 years. Allison's clinical practice includes diagnosing and managing children with sleep disordered breathing and narcolepsy. She also has an interest in pediatric behavioral sleep medicine.