Isabelle Marcoux holds a PhD in community psychology (Université du Québec à Montréal, 2003). She has completed a postdoctoral fellowship in social and preventive medicine at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (The Netherlands), and a second one in humanities and social sciences applied to cancer care at the Université de Nantes (France). During her PhD and postdoctoral studies, she has specialized in euthanasia and ethical issues related to end-of-life decisions. Her current research program focuses on medical assistance in dying as well as palliative and end-of-life care, and is based on an interdisciplinary approach and on partnerships with different organizations(e.g.: Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association, Canadian Medical Association, Canadian Nurses Association, Canadian Cancer Society, Canadian Association of Practicing Healthcare Ethicists, Association québécoise en éthique clinique, Association québécoise en prévention du suicide).
Dr Marcoux conducts studies on attitudes, knowledge and/or experiences on euthanasia and medical assistance in dying among different populations. She also contributes to projects that promote citizen participation to improve knowledge on medical assistance in dying or that look at the effects of public policies on end-of-life care. She is leading the first national survey on medical end-of-life practices with Canadian physicians in order to measure the prevalence of these practices, including medical assistance in dying, and to describe the underlying decision-making process. She provided expertise during parliamentary work on medical assistance in dying in Quebec (Commission mourir dans la dignité, Assemblée nationale du Québec, 2010) and Canada (External Panel on Options for a Legislative Response to Carter v. Canada, 2015). Through her research, Isabelle Marcoux aims to contribute to knowledge development and knowledge translation in order to improve end-of-life care in Canada.