By Philip Fine
If reactions at a Faculty Town Hall meeting held September 17 are any indicator, the Centre for Medical Education may soon be called the Institute of Health Sciences Education. Among its reasons for transforming into an institute would be to both offer graduate degrees in health sciences education (HSE) and to appoint academics conducting scholarly work in the field.
Source: Cell Metabolism
New research suggests that higher-level brain functions have a major role in losing weight. In a study among 24 participants at a weight-loss clinic, those who achieved greatest success in terms of weight loss demonstrated more activity in the brain regions of the lateral prefrontal cortex associated with self-control. The results of the study were published in Cell Metabolism on October 18.
Source: Association of American Medical Colleges
Drs. Sylvia and Richard Cruess have been selected as the 2018 recipients of the Abraham Flexner Award for Distinguished Service to Medical Education, given by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). The award, the AAMC’s most prestigious honour, was established in 1958 to recognize extraordinary individual contributions to medical schools and to the medical education community as a whole. The duo will be honoured during a ceremony to be held in Austin, Texas during the AAMC’s annual meeting in early November.
Researchers discover additional targets for existing drugs used to treat a specific melanoma
A set of targeted cancer drugs, known as BRAF and MEK inhibitors, have proven to be beneficial for some metastatic melanoma patients whose tumours include a specific mutation in the BRAF gene, known as V600E. A recent study conducted in the lab of Dr. Peter Siegel at McGill University’s Goodman Cancer Research Centre suggests that these same drugs may prove beneficial for a broader range of cancer patients.
By Christina Kozakiewicz, Ingram School of Nursing
The Ingram School of Nursing (ISoN) is pleased to announce a major partnership grant involving the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), and additional partners’ joint investment of over $2 million in a groundbreaking research project entitled Transforming Nurses’ Work Environments Through a Strength-Based Leadership and Management Training Program, led by ISoN Professor Laurie Gottlieb, RN, PhD.
As a result of the water infiltration and recovery efforts related to McIntyre Medical Building fire incident in July, the Osler Library continues to be closed until further notice. The Osler recovery team has been focusing their efforts on securing the contents of the Osler Library of the History of Medicine. All books, rare books, art, and artefacts from the Osler have been wrapped, packed, and removed so that a complete inspection of the Osler section of the building can begin.
To all members of the Faculty of Medicine,
Further to last week’s update on the McIntyre Medical Sciences Building, during which we confirmed the opening of the 5th and 6th floor amphitheatres and 2nd floor classrooms, we are pleased to report that the following additional areas will be opened as follows:
By Diane Weidner, Steinberg Centre for Simulation and Interactive Learning
It’s not every day that an astronaut visits our Centre! On December 20, 2018, Canadian Space Agency astronaut David Saint-Jacques will fly to the International Space Station on his first mission. During his assignment, he will conduct a series of scientific experiments, robotics tasks and test new technologies.
To all members of the Faculty of Medicine,
With the new academic year set to begin in earnest, I am pleased to report a great deal of progress has been made with respect to remediation efforts at the McIntyre Building following the July 13 fire. I take this opportunity to thank the University’s Project Review team who have taken over the reins from the Emergency Operations Committee and who continue their meticulous work to minimize disruptions to our community.
Please take note of the following updates:
Building Access:
To all members of the Faculty of Medicine,
To all members of the Faculty of Medicine,
Following weeks of remediation efforts we continue to make steady progress on the road to returning the McIntyre Building to normal operations. Roughly half of the building has re-opened, with occupants of the 7th floor and up returning to the building. A great deal of work remains however, in particular with respect to the lower floors. While the goal is to be able to re-open the 1st to 6th floors as quickly as possible, portions of these lower floors are expected to remain closed for several months.
To all members of the Faculty of Medicine,
As previously communicated, as of last Friday McIntyre Floors 7 and higher were reopened for all faculty and staff members and students, accessible via the 6th floor Pine entrance. With three of the four ventilation systems servicing this area of the building returning to operation, temperatures on these floors continued to drop over the weekend and are now within their normal range, with the exception of small pockets of warmer areas that are serviced by the one HVAC system that remains to be cleaned.
To members of the Faculty of Medicine,
To all members of the Faculty of Medicine,
PHILADELPHIA — The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) is pleased to announce the appointments of Raymond N. DuBois, MD, PhD, and Michael N. Pollak, MD, as editors-in-chief of Cancer Prevention Research, one of eight highly esteemed journals published by the AACR. DuBois and Pollak began their tenures as editors-in-chief July 1, 2018.
