Hi everyone,
Summer is quickly coming to an end, and the energy on campus has that familiar and energizing buzz of new students arriving and returning students preparing for another challenging academic year. I trust everyone had a fantastic summer and enjoyed the great stretch of weather we had in July and August.
Dean’s Welcome Ceremony
On August 25th, we held our annual Dean’s Welcome Ceremony in Halifax and on September 6th we held the First Light ceremony in Saint John to welcome our first-year med students to Dalhousie Medical School and to the practice of medicine.
At the Dean’s Welcome Ceremony, we were welcomed by Chief Andrea Paul and Elder Debbie Eisan before students collectively read their code of conduct, listened to the Hippocratic Oath, and enjoyed musical performances by members of our humanities program. At both events it was wonderful to meet many of our incoming students and their families.
I would also like to welcome our new post-graduate students in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island. It’s especially exciting to see our 25 new residency positions open on July 1, 2019. Best of luck with your studies.
North Nova Welcome
In July, we were proud to officially open our new North Nova Family Medicine Teaching site in Truro and welcome six new family medicine residents to begin their training. They were greeted with a lunch at Colchester East Hants Health Centre followed by remarks from Dalhousie Medical School representatives, Nova Scotia Health Authority representatives, and Nova Scotia’s Minister of Health and Wellness, the Honourable Randy Delorey.
Based out of the North Nova training site, two residents will work in Truro, two in New Glasgow and two in Amherst. Our existing Cape Breton training site also welcomed two additional residents. Finally, two more family medicine residents will gain more clinical experience in areas that will improve services in the community – women’s health and community hospitalist medicine.
This is an exciting addition to our postgraduate medical education programs, as these residents will follow a non-traditional “longitudinal curriculum”, spending two years in a family practice where they will follow a group of patients, gaining skills and experience in areas like maternal care, mental health and senior care. Read more…
Nova Scotia Announces Funding for 16 Additional Undergraduate Medical Education Seats
In August, we welcomed the Premier of Nova Scotia, the Honourable Stephen McNeil, to campus to announce 16 additional undergraduate medical education seats will be added to Dalhousie Medical School.
Four of the 16 students will be beginning their studies in the 2019/20 academic year, with the remaining twelve joining the medical school the following year. The investment comes at a time when access to family physicians is top of mind for many Nova Scotians, and the addition of 16 undergraduate medical school seats over the next year is a big step in addressing those needs.
This is a significant investment by the province, and the support and confidence shown in Dalhousie Medical School to train the physicians of today and tomorrow for our region, is a testament to the excellent physicians that we have already produced. Read more…
Cape Breton Longitudinal Integrated Curriculum Site Opens
On August 26th, four third-year medical students began their Longitudinal Integrated Curriculum (LIC) clerkships in North Sydney and New Waterford. Lead by LIC co-directors Dr. Joan Salah and Dr. Jennifer Lange, the LIC provides excellent family medicine based educational experiences for our learners and attracts them to work in community practices following the completion of their residencies.
Exposing medical students to variety of hands-on learning opportunities that family medicine has to offer is a priority of the medical school.
Appointments
Dr. Darrell White Reappointed Senior Associate Dean, Faculty of Medicine
Dr. Darrell White has been reappointed as Senior Associate Dean for a second five-year term effective July 1, 2019. As Senior Associate Dean, Dr. White contributes to the direction, focus and operations of the Faculty of Medicine to ensure alignment with its strategic mission and vision.
Dr. White is a graduate of Dalhousie Medical School, trained in Internal Medicine at the University of Western Ontario and in Hematology at Dalhousie. He completed a fellowship at the Myeloma and Transplantation Research Center at the University of Arkansas. He has completed graduate studies in Community Health and Epidemiology.
As Senior Associate Dean, Dr. White has been instrumental in the development of the Nova Scotia Longitudinal Integrated Clerkship in the undergraduate medical education program, as well as the preparation for the external accreditation review of the undergraduate medical education program in 2017 and subsequent status report submitted in 2018. Dr. White is also the Executive Lead for the Serving and Engaging Pillar of our faculty’s strategic plan #DalMedForward.
Congratulations, Dr. White.
Dr. John Sapp Appointed Assistant Dean, Clinical Research
Dr. John Sapp has been appointed Assistant Dean, Clinical Research for a five-year term, August 1, 2019.
As Assistant Dean, Clinical Research, Dr. Sapp will work closely with department heads and the Medical Research Development Office to increase research productivity and involvement in clinical research performed by physicians and scientists in clinical departments.
Dr. John Sapp’s research efforts have centred primarily on life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias, and includes investigating causes of sudden death, studies of novel methods to approach treatment-refractory ventricular tachycardia, clinical trials of the role of catheter ablation for ischemic ventricular tachycardia, and novel methods to identify and treat sources of cardiac arrhythmias.
Dr. Sapp completed his undergraduate degree at University of Toronto, his medical degree at Dalhousie, and completed residencies in Internal Medicine and Cardiology at Dalhousie before completing a two-year fellowship in Cardiac Electrophysiology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. He has served as director of the Heart Rhythm Service and Heart Rhythm laboratory since 2004 and was interim head of the Division of Cardiology from December 2016 to September 2017.
Dr. Sapp is replacing Dr. Sultan Darvesh, our previous Assistant Dean for Clinical Research and Dr. Michael West, our previous Assistant Dean for Clinical Trials Research. Thanks to Dr. Darvesh and Dr. West for their many contributions to research in the Faculty of Medicine.
Congratulations, Dr. Sapp.
Studentships
Each year, the Faculty of Medicine and Dalhousie Medical Research Foundation award graduate studentships to students who show exceptional potential. The competitions this year were strong, and I am delighted to congratulate the following students on their accomplishments.
Dalhousie Faculty of Medicine 2019 Graduate Studentship
- Griffin Beach – $10,000 for one year
- Eildh MacDonald – $10,000 for one year
- Laura Pimer – $10,000 for one year
- Selena Maxwell – $10,000 for one year
- Shubham Banga – $10,000 for one year
- Adrian Herod – $10,000 for one year
- Jonathan Tjong – $10,000 for one year
Dalhousie Medical Research Foundation CIBC Graduate Studentship in Cancer Immunotherapies
Kim Youra- $20,000 for one year- Daniel Medina-Luna- $20,000 for one year
- Sarah Schwartz- $20,000 for one year
Accreditation
I am very pleased to announce that our Masters, Doctoral and Certificate programs in Medical Physics, under the direction of Dr. James Robar, have received reaccreditation by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Physics Education Programs (CAMPEP) through December 2024.
DMNB Thesis Defense
On behalf of the Faculty of Medicine, I am proud to congratulate Dr. Kenneth D’Souza for successfully defending his thesis, entitled “Autotaxin is Nutritionally Regulated and Alters Mitochondrial Function in Obesity-Induced Insulin Resistance”. Dr. D’Souza is the first ever DMNB PhD thesis defence and we are all extremely proud.
Congratulations, Dr. D’Souza.
Research Funding Updates
Over the past few months, several Faculty of Medicine members have received federal financial support for their research projects. This funding is a testament to the world-class research happening within the Faculty of Medicine, and an acknowledgement of the importance of their research. Below is a snapshot of some of the research projects / researchers that received funding.
CIHR Scientific Director – Dr. Christine Chambers, Department of Paediatrics:
Dr. Christine Chambers, Canada Research Chair in Children’s Pain and a Killam Professor in Dal’s Departments of Pediatrics and Psychology & Neuroscience, has been appointed as the scientific director for the CIHR Institute of Human Development, Child and Youth Health (IHDCYH). This will be the second CIHR Institute hosted at Dalhousie. The University of Calgary is the only other university in the country to host two Institutes. Read more…
Canada Foundation for Innovation’s (CFI) John R. Evans Leaders Fund (JELF)
On Monday, August 12, The Honourable Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science and Sport, announced that eight Dalhousie researchers, including four from the Faculty of Medicine are receiving new funding to acquire the cutting-edge tools needed to conduct world-class research.
These investments, provided through the Canada Foundation for Innovation’s (CFI) John R. Evans Leaders Fund (JELF), help universities attract and retain top talent from around the globe — particularly early-career researchers — with equipment that will give them a competitive advantage in their field. Read more…
Research Nova Scotia
Congratulations to all the Faculty of Medicine members who were successful in their Research Nova Scotia (formerly Nova Scotia Health Research Foundation) funding applications to the Establishment and Discovery/Innovation Grant programs. You can see the full list of successful applicants here.
Dal Med 151 Gala
Planning for the 151 Dal Med Gala Weekend is already underway, and I hope you all can join us the November 1st and 2nd for a weekend filled with faculty and alumni celebrations, continuing medical education sessions, family fun and our signature event – the Med 151 Gala dinner and dance on Saturday, November 2, 2019. Last year’s event was a sell out, so everyone is encouraged to purchase tickets while they are still available.
This year, we are also raising funds for the newly established Dalhousie Medical Student Bursary – enabling qualified students to better manage the financial burden of attending medical school. This bursary has been developed with the support of the Dalhousie Medical Alumni Association.
Thank you all for reading, and I am looking forward to another productive and meaningful academic year with the Faculty of Medicine.