Dr. Matthew Downer

Dr. Matthew Downer is a medical student at Memorial University of Newfoundland with a longstanding interest in healthy aging and geriatric medicine, with a focus on older adults living with neurological disease. During his BSc(Hons) and pre-clinical medical training at Memorial, Matthew’s research focused on improving rehabilitation and promoting healthy aging in older adults living with Multiple Sclerosis or post-stroke. He recently took a break from his medical studies to complete an MSc and DPhil (PhD) at the University of Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar. His doctorate focused on various outcomes in older adults with cerebrovascular disease. Matthew has also been involved in a range of health policy and advocacy initiatives at the federal and provincial level. At the NIA, Matthew has been involved in several projects, including leading a report outlining how the Opioid Crisis is affecting older Canadians and serving as the lead for data and policy analysis for the NIA’s MyCOVIDVisitRisk Webpage.

Department: Fellows