Digital Health Canada SK24 Conference

Dr. Mendez is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and the American College of Surgeons. As a Clinician/Scientist, Dr. Mendez’ research focus is on functional neurosurgery, brain repair, virtual care, and remote presence robotics. His laboratory research has been supported by peer-reviewed funding from several sources including the Canada National Centers of Excellence, Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Canada Foundation for Innovation and Parkinson’s Disease Foundation of USA. He is recognized internationally as an expert in his field, having over 400 international and national presentations as well as over 200 scientific publications. For the past decade he has worked in the use of remote-presence robots for medical care in neurosurgery and primary care. In 2002, Dr. Mendez and his team performed the first long distance telementoring neurosurgery in the world and in 2013, he reported the first experience in remote programming for neuromodulation devices. Dr. Mendez is the Director of the Virtual Health Hub, a specialized facility designed to house virtual healthcare services currently being built at the Whitecap Dakota First Nation in Saskatchewan.

Dr. Mendez has focused on, and significantly advanced, the use of remote-presence robots for primary health care in remote populations. In 2010, his team established the first remote presence robotic program in the Canadian North to provide access to primary and specialized medical care to underserviced First Nations communities. Since 2013, he has been working with First Nation communities in Saskatchewan using advanced robotic technology for healthcare delivery. In 2019, Dr. Mendez’ team deployed a novel telerobotic ultrasonography system to three northern Saskatchewan communities. This technology was crucial in providing prenatal sonography to indigenous communities during the COVID pandemic.

For his innovative work in the use of remote presence devices to deliver health care to underserviced populations, Dr. Mendez received the 2011 Health Canada Award for Contribution to the Improvement of the Health of Canadians. In 2022, he was appointed an Officer of Canada for his pioneering work in the use of remote telemedicine and robotics to revolutionize the delivery of health and patient care in Canada and worldwide.