Mechanical Ventilation Course 2026
April 28 - 30, 2026 / hybrid meeting
UHN BMO Education & Conference Centre, Toronto
Mechanical Ventilation course 2026
From Physiology to Clinical Practice
Presented by: The Interdepartmental Division of Critical Care Medicine, University of Toronto
organized by
30Speakers
24Sessions
9Hands-On Sessions
4Case Discussions
3Days
CME Accreditation
CCCS Accreditation –
In-Person Event:
This event is an Accredited Group Learning Activity (Section 1) as defined by the Maintenance of Certification Program of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and approved by Canadian Critical Care Society. You may claim a maximum of 17.5 hours for in-person attendance and 13 hours for virtual attendance (credits are automatically calculated).
CSRT Accreditation –
Canadian Society of Respiratory Therapists (CSRT)
This activity has been approved for 17.5 CPD credits by the Canadian Society of Respiratory Therapists for in-person attendance and 13 CPD credits for virtual attendance. The Critical Care Canada Forum Mechanical Ventilation Symposium maintains all responsibility for this offering and its content.
Target Audience
All members of the ICU interprofessional team involved in the care of mechanically ventilated patients.
Interested professionals will include physicians, respiratory therapists, nurses, physiotherapists.
Experienced professionals and professionals-in-training will find this course relevant and very helpful in their clinical practice.
Goals
- Enhance ICU clinicians’ understanding of the physiological principles informing assessment and management of mechanical ventilation and strengthen their skills in assessing patient-ventilator interaction.
- Increase awareness of the many relevant aspects of conventional and novel invasive and non-invasive mechanical ventilation techniques.
- Enhance ICU clinicians’ knowledge of the management of specific clinical problems in mechanically ventilated patients: acute respiratory distress syndrome, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbations, and difficult weaning from mechanical ventilation.
What you will learn
By the end of the course, participants will be able to…
Explain and assess basic physiological aspects of patient-ventilator interaction: respiratory mechanics, respiratory muscle action, patient-ventilator synchrony, and ventilator-induced lung and respiratory muscle injury.
Determine why and when mechanical ventilation can be a treatment, a supportive therapy or a source of complications.
Describe the optimal approach to liberating patients from mechanical ventilation and conduct a comprehensive clinical assessment to and treat causes of difficult ventilator weaning.
Deliver evidence-based management of acute respiratory failure using both non-invasive and invasive ventilatory techniques for the following conditions: acute respiratory distress syndrome, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and weaning from mechanical ventilation.
Course Directors
Laurent Brochard MD, HDR
St. Michael’s Hospital, Unity Health Toronto
Niall Ferguson MD, MSc
University Health Network & Sinai Health System
Ewan Goligher MD, PhD
Toronto General Hospital & Sinai Health System
Ricardo Teijeiro Paradis MD, Msc
University Health Network & Sinai Health System
Irene Telias PhD, MD
University Health Network & Sinai Health System
Faculty Members
Glasiele Alcala
University Health Network
Thiago Bassi
University Health Network
Catherine Bellissimo
University Health Network
Roberto Brito
St. Michael's Hospital
Ben Cantan
University Health Network
Lorenzo Del Sorbo MD
Toronto General Hospital
Jose Dianti MD
Interdepartmental Division of Critical Care Medicine
Mattia Docci
St. Michael's Hospital
Laura Dragoi
Toronto General Hospital
Eddy Fan MD, PhD
Toronto General Hospital
Richard Greendyk
University Health Network / Toronto General Hospita
Matthew Ko BSc., RRT
St. Michael's Hospital
Matias Madorno MD
Buenos Aires Institute of Technology
Glauco Marinho Plens MD, PhD
University Health Network
Luca Menga
St. Michael's Hospital
Thomas Piraino RRT
St. Michael’s Hospital
Peter Reardon MD
Scarborough Health Network
Luciana Rodriguez Guerineau Dr
University of Toronto
Georgie Roman-Sarita BPHE, RRT, CHT
University Health Network
Annia Schreiber MD
St. Michael's Hospital
Shaurya Taran
University of Toronto
Martin Urner MD
Toronto General Hospital
Nattapat Wongtirawit
St. Michael's Hospital
Course Schedule
This event will be taking place in EST (Eastern Standard Time).
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28TuesdayApr 2026
Physiological Principles.
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29WednesdayApr 2026
Modes of Ventilation
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30ThursdayApr 2026
Diseases, Syndromes, and Clinical Recommendations
- 8:30 am - 9:00 am
Interactive Session I: Foundations of Passive Ventilation, a Review (simulation)
Laurent Brochard
Matthew Ko
Georgie Roman-Sarita
- 9:05 am - 9:40 am
Equation of motion: pressures, volumes, and flow
Laurent Brochard
- 9:45 am - 10:20 am
Breathing: mechanics and monitoring
Ewan Goligher
- 10:20 am - 10:40 am
Break
- 10:40 am - 11:10 am
Determinants of respiratory drive and effort
Irene Telias
- 11:15 am - 11:45 am
Patient-ventilator synchrony
Laurent Brochard
- 11:50 am - 12:15 am
Heart-lung interactions
Luciana Rodriguez Guerineau
- 12:15 pm - 1:15 pm
Lunch
- 1:15 pm - 1:45 pm
Lung- and diaphragm-protective ventilation
Jose Dianti
- 1:50 pm - 2:10 pm
Sedation and curarisation in the ICU
Glauco Marinho Plens
- 2:15 pm - 2:35 pm
Break
- 2:40 pm - 3:10 pm
PEEP and lung recruitment
Luca Menga
- 3:15 pm - 3:40 pm
Prone positioning and inhaled pulmonary vasodilators
Lorenzo Del Sorbo
- 3:40 pm - 4:00 pm
Break
- 4:00 pm - 4:20 pm
Interactive Session II: Managing gas exchange
Laurent Brochard
Nattapat Wongtirawit
- 4:25 pm - 5:00 pm
Case Discussion: Evidence-based management of acute hypoxemic respiratory failure and ARDS
Roberto Brito
Niall Ferguson
Matthew Ko
Irene Telias
Martin Urner
- 8:30 am - 8:55 am
How to optimize pressure support ventilation
Mattia Docci
- 9:00 am - 9:25 am
How to use proportional modes: PAV+ and NAVA
Karen Bosma
- 9:30 am - 9:55 am
Non-invasive strategies – HFNO, NIV, Helmet
Bruno Ferreyro
- 9:55 am - 10:10 am
Break
- 10:10 am - 10:35 am
How I do it: assessing readiness for liberation
Laurent Brochard
- 10:40 am - 11:05 am
How I do it: assessing the difficult-to-liberate patient
Ewan Goligher
- 11:05 am - 11:20 am
Transition to Hands-On Sessions
- 11:20 am - 12:45 pm
Hands-On Sessions I
Monitoring techniques (I): Measuring mechanics and lung recruitment
Matthew Ko
Luca Menga
Monitoring techniques (II): Ultrasound to assess respiratory failure
Catherine Bellissimo
Annia Schreiber
Monitoring techniques (III): Monitoring patient inspiratory effort
Matias Madorno
Irene Telias
Monitoring techniques (IV): Electrical impedance tomography
Glasiele Alcala
Nattapat Wongtirawit
Monitoring techniques (V): Esophageal manometry
Jose Dianti
Glauco Marinho Plens
Simulated case: Diagnosing and managing patient-ventilator dyssynchrony
Mattia Docci
Thomas Piraino
Interventions (I): Inspiratory muscle training
Georgie Roman-Sarita
Interventions (II): Managing mechanical ventilation in patients with obesity
Peter Reardon
Interventions (III): Ventilation during cardiac arrest
Ricardo Cordioli
Arnaud Lesimple
- 12:45 pm - 1:45 pm
Lunch
- 1:45 pm - 4:45 pm
Hands-On Sessions II
Monitoring techniques (I): Measuring mechanics and lung recruitment
Matthew Ko
Luca Menga
Monitoring techniques (II): Ultrasound to assess respiratory failure
Catherine Bellissimo
Annia Schreiber
Monitoring techniques (III): Monitoring patient inspiratory effort
Matias Madorno
Irene Telias
Monitoring techniques (IV): Electrical impedance tomography
Glasiele Alcala
Nattapat Wongtirawit
Monitoring techniques (V): Esophageal manometry
Jose Dianti
Glauco Marinho Plens
Simulated case: Diagnosing and managing patient-ventilator dyssynchrony
Mattia Docci
Thomas Piraino
Interventions (I): Inspiratory muscle training
Georgie Roman-Sarita
Interventions (II): Managing mechanical ventilation in patients with obesity
Peter Reardon
Interventions (III): Ventilation during cardiac arrest
Ricardo Cordioli
Arnaud Lesimple
- 8:30 am - 9:00 am
Interactive Session III: Patient-Ventilator Interactions (simulation)
Thomas Piraino
Irene Telias
- 9:05 am - 9:45 am
Case discussion: managing refractory hypoxemia and extracorporeal life support
Ben Cantan
Lorenzo Del Sorbo
Laura Dragoi
Eddy Fan
Niall Ferguson
Luciana Rodriguez Guerineau
- 9:45 am - 10:05 am
Break
- 10:05 am - 10:35 am
ECLS and ventilation: an update
Richard Greendyk
- 10:40 am - 11:05 am
Case discussion: Protective mechanical ventilation in acute brain injury
Shaurya Taran
- 11:10 am - 11:30 am
Ventilator-associated brain injury
Thiago Bassi
- 11:30 am - 11:40 am
Break
- 11:40 am - 12:15 pm
Case discussion: Challenges during the transition from controlled to assisted ventilation
Jose Dianti
Ewan Goligher
Glauco Marinho Plens
Georgie Roman-Sarita
Irene Telias
- 12:15 pm - 12:35 pm
Diaphragm neurostimulation
Glasiele Alcala
- 12:35 pm - 1:05 pm
Lunch
- 1:05 pm - 1:30 pm
Trials in Mechanical Ventilation: lessons learned and future directions
Niall Ferguson
- 1:35 pm - 2:00 pm
Interactive case: COPD
Laurent Brochard
- 2:05 pm - 2:30 pm
Interactive case: Difficult weaning
Ewan Goligher
- 2:35 pm - 2:50 pm
Final Quiz
- 2:50 pm - 3:00 pm
Wrap Up
Registration
Thank you for your interest in the 2026 Mechanical Ventilation Symposium.
The in-person registration is now sold out! We hope you can still join us virtually by registering below.
If you are residing in a low- or middle-income country, you may qualify for a reduced rate. Please contact us for more information.
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Refund / Cancellation Policy
An administration fee of 10% applies to all cancellations by April 6, 2026. NO REFUND after this date. Replacement delegates are welcome at no additional charge. Please provide the name change to registration@criticalcarecanada.com before event start.
Venue
UHN BMO Education & Conference Centre
60 Leonard Ave,
Krembil Discovery Tower,
Toronto, ON M5T 0S8
The BMO Education & Conference Centre is housed on the Toronto Western Hospital Campus and it is on the first floor of the world-class research centre: the Krembil Discovery Tower.
PARKING
Parking is available at the BMO Education & Conference Centre via two lots off of Nassau Street. The first is located at the corner of Bathurst and Nassau and the second lot entrance is located on Nassau Street just east of Leonard Avenue.
The parking lots remain open, provided they are not at capacity. All standard payment methods are accepted. Parking rates are $10/hr or $45.50/day.
Streetcar
From the subway stations:
- ST. PATRICK: Take 505 and get off at Bathurst Street (about 12 minutes)
- QUEEN’S PARK STATION: Take 506 and get off at Bathurst Street (about 12 minutes)
UHN SHUTTLE
There is a free UHN shuttle service that runs between Toronto Western Hospital and Toronto General Hospital. The shuttle is convenient and easy to use. As Toronto General Hospital is on the Subway line (QUEEN’S PARK STATION), it makes it very easy to access the shuttle and arrive at Toronto Western Hospital (the shuttle is NOT wheelchair accessible).
The shuttle leaves Toronto General Hospital (University Avenue entrance) starting at 6:15am in the morning and runs until 8:15pm. Upon arrival at Toronto Western Hospital, walk north on Leonard Avenue to access the main entrance to the Krembil Discovery Tower where the BMO Education & Conference Centre is located.
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