Newsletter

Dear colleagues,

We are pleased to announce that Dr. Tom Schweizer, founding director of the Neuroscience Research Program, will be taking on the role of interim Director of the Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science, effective today.

 The Research Leadership Committee serves an advisory role to Unity Health Toronto’s Vice President, Research and Innovation on strategic and operational issues pertaining to research. The terms of the Committee have been updated and now include the following voting members: executive director, Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute; director, Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science; two directors of KRCBS or LKSKI Research Programs/Centres; senior director, Research Operations; and the director, Strategy & Commercialization. As such, the updated Research Leadership Committee’s voting members are:

This year marked the tenth anniversary of the H. Patrick Higgins Memorial Scholarship Award of Merit. This award, which is given to the resident with the best research project at the event, consists of a $2,000 prize and a plaque. The selection committee included the section chairs, this year Dharini Mahendira, Julie Gilmour and Amol Verma, as well Drs. Brian and Kevin Higgins.  Three ad hoc members were added to the selection committee this year:  Gloria Lim, Geraldine Ong and Samir Gupta. The committee chose the winners from the 33 resident projects presented.

I am pleased to announce that Dr. Najma Ahmed has agreed to accept the position of Interim Surgeon-In-Chief at St. Michael’s Hospital effective May 1, 2019.   Dr. Ahmed is an Associate Professor at the University of Toronto where she also serves as Vice-Chair of Education.  She has been a member of the Department of Surgery at St. Michael’s since 2001 when she was recruited to the Division of General Surgery. Her clinical focus is in the areas of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery. Please join me in welcoming Dr. Ahmed to this position and I ask that you give her your full support during this transition period.

Faculty members in the Department of Medicine are invited to participate in a study:  “Understanding how physicians experience unintended bad outcomes”

Dr. Christine Brezden-Masley will be leaving St. Michael's effective June 28, 2019 to take on a new position at the Sinai Health System.  We wish Christine all the best in this next chapter of her career and we look forward to celebrating her at our Department's annual dinner in June.  Thank you, Christine, for all of your work to build the Division.

Continuing our series on our faculty members who have been recently promoted, Howard Leong-Poi was promoted to Professor as of July 1, 2018. Congratulations, Howard!