No. 3, November 2018

Remembering Dean Richard Fedorak

Recently, we lost our dean and leader Dr. Richard Fedorak. He was very proud of our education and training programs, our award-winning teachers, and especially our learners. The photo that we share here shows his joy, working with people in innovation and enterprise. This newsletter features many events and activities that were a part of his mandate―recognizing excellence in teaching and learning, international collaboration and engagement across the education continuum. We hope to continue his legacy, striving for exceptional learning experiences, building and strengthening our relationships, and being accountable to the communities that we serve. 

Dr. Shirley Schipper, Vice-Dean, Education

The University of Alberta and the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry will hold a celebration of Dr. Fedorak's life and contributions on December 11, 2018 at 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the Bernard Snell Hall Theatre, Walter C. Mackenzie Health Sciences Centre.
Please RSVP here.   

FoMD Welcomes International Visitors

In October, the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry was honoured to host 31 faculty members from the Norman Bethune Health Sciences Centre/Jilin University, China. This four-day visit to our Faculty was an opportunity to share highlights of our undergraduate medical education curriculum and how we provide faculty development to our clinical educators. This visit was the first of many to occur over the next three years, and was developed after Jilin University indicated they wanted to learn more about our medical education system.

The organizers of this event (Mia Lang and Renny Khan) would like to thank the many students, residents, faculty and administrative staff who welcomed our guests and worked hard to make this event happen.

In 2019, two more cohorts of Jilin faculty will be here to again learn about our UME program, and another cohort to learn more about our PGME programs.

If you are interested in being involved in the upcoming visits, please connect with  Mia Lang or Renny Khan for more information.

FoMD 51st Annual Summer Students' Research Day

The 51st Annual Summer Students' Research Day was held on Friday, October 12, 2018. The FoMD is proud of this event which enables undergraduate students to showcase their summer research projects. This year saw 169 abstracts submitted with 156 posters presented. The overall quality of the posters and presentations and the breadth of research conducted by researchers in the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry was impressive. 

Thank you to the students and their supervisors who were involved with the FoMD summer students' research program and we look forward to your participation in summer 2019. 

To see a list of this year's winners, click here. 

Campus Alberta Quality Council - Quality Assurance Reviews of the MD Program and MLS Program

Thank you to everyone who was involved in the Quality Assurance Review of the MD Program that took place on October 16, 2018. A special thank you to those faculty and staff who took time out of their busy schedules to attend the review meetings and share their ideas and thoughts about the MD Program. Throughout the day, the review team met with the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry and MD Program leadership teams, faculty members, staff, and students. The meetings were positive and productive and, as the review team reminded us, focused on continuous quality improvement. We are looking forward to receiving the review team’s report, which will be shared widely with faculty and students through the Office of the Provost when it is complete. The results of this review will be valuable as we move towards our next full CACMS accreditation in 2022. For more information, please contact Dr. Hollis Lai.

As well, the MLS program completed their Quality Assurance Review on October 31, 2018. A big thank you to everyone who helped in the preparation of the self study and who took time out of their busy schedules to be interviewed by the review team. The external reviewers came from the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (the only other BSc in MLS program in Canada) and the MLS program at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester New York. The review team met with FoMD leadership, MLS faculty, students, alumni, AHS instructors and the MLS external advisory committee. This review will be valuable for the next EQual Canada accreditation cycle starting in 2020. For further information, please contact Lisa Purdy.

Coming soon from the Office of Advocacy & Wellbeing (OAW) for all first-year graduate students will be an invitation to a "Wellness Break."  This is an opportunity to informally meet with me and other first-year grad students to network, create community and discuss common stressors. 

David Cook Award 2018

The MD Program's Curricular Innovation Team was awarded the David Cook Award at the Faculty's Celebration of Teaching and Learning, an award presented annually to an individual or group from the FoMD who have successfully planned and implemented a significant curricular innovation.

Pictured above (l-r) are Sherry Sweeney, Cody Surgin, Dr. Hollis Lai, Mikus Lorencs, Gregory Chao, Jennifer Kam, and Dr. Tracey Hillier. 

Another congratulations goes to Sherry Sweeney, Assessment Specialist in the MD Program, who received the 2018 Excellence in Learning Support Award for her significant and ongoing contribution to the enhancement of the student learning experience. 

Contact us at fomdvde@ualberta.ca

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