Haifa Mtaweh

Haifa Mtaweh graduated from University of Balamand in Lebanon with distinction. She moved to the United States where she completed a paediatric residency at Georgetown University then a pediatric critical fellowship at the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. She was the chief fellow during her last year of training in Pittsburgh, then moved to Toronto where she started a degree in Clinical Epidemiology at University of Toronto while finishing a research fellowship at SickKids.

Mtaweh has won the Restracomp award and the CIHR-Canadian Graduate Scholarship to support her research work in understanding the metabolic demands and estimating energy expenditure of critically ill children.

In 2017 Mtaweh joined the PICU physician group in the Department of Critical Care Medicine at SickKids.

Research

• Estimating energy expenditure factors in critically ill children 
• Nutrition and metabolism of critically ill children
• Safety of enteral nutrition in patients on non-invasive ventilation 
• Measuring Muscle Mass with Ultrasound in Critically Ill Children (3 MUSIC)

Education

• 2002: Bachelor of Science, Biology. American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon  
• 2006: Doctor of Medicine. University of Balamand, Koura, Lebanon
• 2010: Pediatric Residency. Georgetown University Hospital, Washington DC USA
• 2014: Pediatric Critical Care Fellowship. Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
• 2017: Clinical Research Fellowship. The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON 

Experience

• 2008–2010: Residency Research, Neuropeptide Y, IGF-1 and Ewing’s Sarcoma, Georgetown University, Washington, DC
• 2011–2014: Transport Command Physician, Critical Care Transport Services, Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC, Pittsburgh, PA
• 2011–2014: Telemedicine Physician, Critical Care Telemedicine Program, Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC, Pittsburgh, PA
• 2013–2014: Chief Fellow, Pediatric Critical Care Co-Fellowship Director, Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC, Pittsburgh, PA
• 2014–2016: Clinical Research Fellow, Division of Paediatric Critical Care, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON
• 2017–present: Staff Physician, Division of Paediatric Critical Care, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON
• 2017–present: Assistant Professor, Department of Paediatrics, University of Toronto, ON
• 2018–present: Project Investigator, Child Health Evaluative Sciences Program, SickKids Research Institute, Toronto, ON 

1. Systematic review of factors associated with energy expenditure in the critically ill. Mtaweh H, Soto Aguero MJ, Campbell M, Allard JP, Pencharz P, Pullenayegum E, Parshuram CS. Clin Nutr ESPEN. 2019 Oct;33:111-124. doi: 10.1016/j.clnesp.2019.06.009. Epub 2019 Jul 11. PMID: 31451246
2. An Exploratory Retrospective Study of Factors Affecting Energy Expenditure in Critically Ill Children. Mtaweh H, Garros C, Ashkin A, Tuira L, Allard JP, Pencharz P, Pullenayegum E, Joffe A, Parshuram CS. JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr. 2020 Mar;44(3):507-515. doi: 10.1002/jpen.1673. Epub 2019 Jul 2. PMID: 31267545
3. Indirect Calorimetry: History, Technology, and Application. Mtaweh H, Tuira L, Floh AA, Parshuram CS. Front Pediatr. 2018 Sep 19;6:257. doi: 10.3389/fped.2018.00257. eCollection 2018. PMID: 30283765
4. Management of the Pediatric Neurocritical Care Patient. Horvat CM, Mtaweh H, Bell MJ. Semin Neurol. 2016 Dec;36(6):492-501. doi: 10.1055/s-0036-1592107. Epub 2016 Dec 1. PMID: 27907953
5. Can Vco2-Based Estimates of Resting Energy Expenditure Replace the Need for Indirect Calorimetry in Critically Ill Children? Mouzaki M, Schwartz SM, Mtaweh H, La Rotta G, Mah K, Herridge J, Van Arsdell G, Parshuram CS, Floh AA. JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr. 2017 May;41(4):619-624. doi: 10.1177/0148607115627143. Epub 2016 Feb 10. PMID: 26950946

View a full list of Haifa Mtaweh's publications

Funding

• 2020 American Gastroenterology Association Research Scholar Award ($300,000 USD over 3 years)
  Title: Precise nutritional therapy for critically ill children: providing a pragmatic and rational basis for therapy