Mary Pat McAndrews, PhD, CPsych

Dr. McAndrews is a Professor of Psychology at the University of Toronto and the director of the Neuropsychology Clinic at Toronto Western Hospital. She is also a Senior Scientist at the Krembil Research Institute. Dr. McAndrews received her PhD in Psychology from the University of Toronto, and completed her post-doctoral work at the Montreal Neurological Institute. Her current research focuses on how the brain organizes and retrieves memories, and how these processes are disrupted when the brain is damaged from repeated seizures. Seizures often begin in the temporal lobe, an area of the brain that plays an important role in memory. As a result, many people with epilepsy experience memory problems, and Dr. McAndrews is investigating how specific types of memory may be affected. She and her team are currently running a research study that combines functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) – a type of brain scan that shows active brain areas – with electrical recordings of brain activity. These tests can be done when individuals are doing specific language and memory tasks, providing key insights into how memory and language areas are organized within the brain.