Chair's Blog

As we kick off the public Influenza Vaccine campaign this week, I wanted to take a moment to highlight the importance of getting vaccinated. Vaccines have been a vital tool in protecting public health for centuries, and they continue to play a crucial role in keeping us safe from infectious diseases.

As healthcare workers, vaccinations not only protect ourselves from contracting diseases as most of us work in “hotspots” for virus transmission, but also help prevent the spread of those diseases to our vulnerable patients. Furthermore, it sets an important example for patients and the community, encouraging them to follow suit. This not only protects more people but also fosters trust in the healthcare system.

This flu season, remember to book your COVID-19 booster at the same time and remind your patients. A recent review by Dr. van Diepen and Dr. McAlister in Critical Care Medicine
highlighted the role of COVID-19 vaccination in reducing ICU resource utilization and booster dosing increased survivability.

As our own Dr. Lynora Saxinger discussed last month in the media, the new XBB vaccine will offer protection against current circulating EG.5 variant.

The roving flu vaccine carts within AHS and CSB will not be providing the COVID-19 booster. However, you can book the COVID-19 booster and/or both shots at your nearest pharmacy.

Check out our #FluShot post, and I look forward to seeing yours!

Dr. Narmin Kassam, Professor and Chair
Department of Medicine

Dr. Narmin Kassam, Chair of the Department of Medicine, Dr. Brenda Hemmelgarn, Dean of College of Health Sciences, Dr. Tom Stelfox, Deputy Dean, and Dr. Lawrence Richer, Vice Dean Research, lead by example, getting their flu shots. Let's protect ourselves and others! 

Week 1 Flu Campaign Stats: 2,495 immunizations

• Up by 672 compared to same time last year
• Many staff continue to take the Rapid Test kits when offered

Rexall pharmacy launches their flu campaign:

• UA Hospital (UAH) Rexall

  They are offering Flu, COVID Moderna XBB 1.5, and pneumovax (over 65); all public funded. No need to book online. Stop by the booth (M-F 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.) or pharmacy (M-F 8 a.m.-7 p.m. and Sat 8 a.m.-1 p.m.)

• Kaye Edmonton Clinic (KEC) Rexall
  They have Flu, COVID Moderna XBB, and Pneumovax. They have the option to give RSV for patients who have coverage. You can drop in. (M-F 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.)

The Health of Us All...A Dedication to Community Health

In 2022, our community was still reeling from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the need for effective measures at a population health level was great. Many practitioners and organizations stepped up and met the challenge...including the Division of Preventive Medicine with a pioneering idea that changed how we look at human waste. 

Read more in our 2022 Annual Report.

Please join us in welcoming the following new staff:

• Dr. Ellina Lytvyak, Assistant Professor, Division of Preventive Medicine

Research: 

Grants

• New Frontiers in Research Fund - Transformation
  Notice of Intent (NOI) RSO internal deadline: Oct 17
  NOI Sponsor Deadline: Oct 24

• CRVI: Dr. Margaret "Marmie" Perkins Hess 
  RSO deadline: Nov 8

• CRVI: Cote Biomedical Research Studentship
  RSO deadline: Nov 8

• University Hospital Foundation: Kaye Competition
  Pre-Application (LOI) Sponsor Deadline: Nov 17

• Alberta Innovates: Enabling Better Health through Artificial Intelligence (AI-Better Health) - Intake. Sponsor deadline: Nov 24

• New Frontiers in Research Fund - Exploration
  RSO deadline: Dec 5

• China Scholarship Council (CSC) Scholarship for PhD and Visiting PhD students & Postdoctoral Fellows
  Sponsor deadline: Mar 31, 2024

Many more grants are listed on the Research News and Funding web page.  

Members' Recent Publications

• Subcutaneous immunoglobulin for patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies: a real-world single centre experience
  Ma Z, Johnson D, Gniadecki R, Ritchie B, Keeling S, Cohen Tervaert JW, Osman M.  (2023).  Rheumatology (2023): kead521.

• Improving Documentation of Impulse Control Disorders at a Movement Disorder Program During the COVID-19 Pandemic

  Putko BN, Miyasaki JM. Neurology: Clinical Practice 13, no. 6 (2023).
   

• Asynchronous online focus groups for research with people living with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and family caregivers: usefulness, acceptability and lessons learned Genuis SK, Luth W, Weber G, Bubela T, Johnston WS. BMC Medical Research Methodology 23, no. 1 (2023): 1-18.

See DoM Publications for a complete list of journal publications.

Dr. Lynora Saxinger (Professor, Division of Infectious Diseases): The new vaccines are more than just another booster. They're a real upgrade from what we had previously. (Calgary Herald)

Mark Your Calendar

Friday, Oct 27 - Wenzel Shebaniuk Founders Lecture: Dr. Michael Camelleri, Professor of Medicine, Mayo Clinic Rochester, MN. "10 Reasons Gastroenterologists and Hepatologists Should Be Treating Obesity”

Friday, Nov 3 - Henry Pabst Lectureship in Clinical Immunology: Dr. Stuart Turvey, Professor of Pediatrics, UBC. "The power of partnerships: Discovery of new genetic causes of severe human allergic disease"

If you missed a previous session, visit our MGR Library to watch the recordings.

• TGIF hosted by Dean Brenda Hemmelgarn (Oct 20, 4 - 7 p.m., Katz Atrium) - As an added bonus, you get to meet FoMD Deputy Dean, Dr. Tom Stelfox, fresh from a long and intens(ive) engagement in Calgary.

• Subscribe to the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry Research Bulletin for information on research updates & resources, funding opportunities, clinical research updates, trainee updates, research awards, and more.

• Upcoming Faculty Development Workshops - visit the FoMD calendar.

• Budget Model 2.0 Townhall (Nov 15) - It's time for a university-wide discussion on the updated budget model, Budget Model 2.0. Discover the reasons behind its development, the core principles that have shaped it, and the driving forces that guided its design. This new model carries significant implications for our institution and you're invited to take part.
   

• Supports available for the U of A community. Recent violence in the Middle East has been felt deeply by members of the University of Alberta community on campus and abroad. If you have been affected, wellness resources are available to support you.

Enhanced masking in AHS acute care facilities, a message from Mauro Chies, AHS President & CEO.

Support Resources: 

• Menopause: What your Mother Couldn’t Tell You (Oct 18, 6 - 8 p.m.) - Menopausal symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats and other symptoms you may not even be aware of, are not trivial, short-lived or something for women to “endure”. 
   
• Helping, Identifying, & Referring Students in Distress (Oct 23, 2 - 3:30 p.m.) - 

  Do you think a student might be struggling? Not sure what to say or do? Learn about common indicators of distress and what you can do to help.

• Addressing Anxious Thoughts (Nov 2, 2 - 3:30 p.m.) - Learn how to address the mind's responses to anxiety by identifying and challenging anxious thinking.

• The Burden of Care: Let’s Talk about Moral Distress (Nov 2, 6:30 - 9 p.m.) - Moral distress is the ethical crisis that occurs when you believe you know the right thing to do, but can’t act accordingly because of circumstances beyond your control. 
   
• Get It Done - Adaptive Skills for Managing ADHD and Related Issues: Part I - Managing Attention and Improving Focus (Nov 9, 2 - 3:30 p.m.) - Keeping focused and managing time effectively may be a universal issue but it is especially challenging for individuals with ADHD.