March 2015 Newsletter
Chair's Message
An article in the Globe and Mail by Kelly Evans on February 15, 2015 raised concerns that the Ministry of Health in Ontario was backing away from the Family Health Team model of primary care delivery. One has to be concerned about the message this is delivering to medical students and family medicine residents.
Postgraduate Program Update
Congratulations to everyone on a very successful CaRMS match! We are very happy to have filled 70 of our 77 positions. We will be offering interviews for the 2nd iteration on Wednesday, March 18th. There will no doubt be many strong candidates to fill these remaining positions.
Welcome Michele Vanderspank
We are thrilled to announce that Michele Vanderspank has accepted our offer to join the Department as the Undergraduate Coordinator for Family Medicine.
AstraZeneca donates $500,000 to forge health care improvements in Canada’s indigenous communities
To address the mounting diabetes health crisis in First Nations communities, AstraZeneca Canada Inc. has donated $500,000 to Western University in support of the FORGE AHEAD Research Program, led by Dr. Stewart Harris.
Drs. Lisa Fischer and Gillian Kernaghan honoured as Women of Excellence recipients
Congratulations to Drs. Lisa Fischer and Gillian Kernaghan who were announced as two of eight recipients of the 2015 Women of Excellence Awards. The Women of Excellence Awards celebrate exemplary female leaders from all backgrounds, ages and experiences in London, Ontario and the surrounding region.
Dr. Wong to present at the Canadian Conference on Medical Education
Dr. Eric Wong, Fred Ross and Charlie Mehagan will attend the Canadian Conference on Medical Education to introduce their presentation, Assessment behaviours after implementation of an electronic competency-based assessment tool.
Resident Project curriculum transformed
The Department of Family Medicine has designed and implemented a transformed resident project curriculum focusing on research and quality improvement (QI). The initial group of residents enrolled in the new curriculum are set to graduate this year.
Dr. Ted Osmun creates whiteboard animation on the Periodic Health Exam
Dr. Ted Osmun has created a whiteboard animation in partnership with medskl.com. Periodic Health Exam: What You Need To Know with Ted Osmun M.D. is currently available for viewing on YouTube.
From the desk of George Kim: Steady progress continues on the Distributed Education Network Strategic Plan as new stakeholder committees are launched
The Strategic Plan for Distributed Education was released in January 2014. One year later, we have tracked steady progress in achieving the work to support identified goals. Four new committees have been identified and their work will begin in the coming weeks...
Family Medicine most common career choice for Schulich Medicine students
The 2015 CaRMS match results had a strong local connection with 42 per cent of Schulich Medicine students pursuing their postgraduate medical education at Western University. Family Medicine was the most common career choice for Schulich Medicine students with more than 40 per cent choosing the specialty.
Annual Education Day
The Department of Family Medicine invites faculty and staff to our annual Education Day on Friday, March 27, 2015 at The Western Centre for Public Health & Family Medicine. Registration is now open and available online.
Annual Clinical Day in Family Medicine
Save the date! Presented by the Citywide Department of Family Medicine, Annual Clinical Day in Family Medicine is taking place May 13th, 2015 at Four Points by Sheraton, in London, Ontario.
Trillium Primary Health Care Research Day
Trillium Primary Health Care Research Day is being held at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre on Thursday, June 4th, 2015. Abstract submission deadline is Friday, May 1, 2015. Registration is now open.
- March 2015 Research and Publications
The Department of Family Medicine at Western University is at the forefront of research in primary health care. Among the areas of focus for research are patient-centered care, clinical practice guidelines, health promotion, population health, care of the elderly, health services and information technology.
