Introducing our 2011 Centre Fellows

Our Medical Education Fellowship

One of the many goals of the Centre for Education Research & Innovation is mentoring Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry faculty interested in developing education research programs. In support of this goal, Academic Medical Organization of Southwestern Ontario (AMOSO) approved a grant to support four faculty with funded, protected time to create, refine, and expand medical education research projects. Joining current fellows Dr Chris Watling (Neurology) and Dr Michael Ott (Surgery), our Centre is proud to welcome its two newest fellows:

Dr Laura Diachun (Geriatrics)

Dr Diachun has an abiding interest on the efficacy of geriatric curriculum at changing the knowledge and attitudes of residents and medical students. Both locally and nationally, her research program has examined the lack of interest medical students have in choosing a career in geriatric medicine. Another of her current project is evaluating the ability of a patient and care giver to provide accurate content-related feedback to trainees following a comprehensive geriatric assessment.  

Dr Diachun sits on the Royal College Geriatric Medicine Nucleus committee and Evaluation committee as well as the Undergraduate Geratric education committee of the Canadian geriatric society, which collaboratively developed core competencies in geriatric medicine for all Canadian medical students. In addition to raising three "wickedly busy children", Dr Diachun is also the Geriatrician mentor of the National Medical Student Geriatric Interest Group. 

Dr Wael Haddara (Critical Care/Endocrinology)

Dr Haddara is Medical Director of the University Hospital Medical Surgical Intensive Care Unit. He is also Physician Lead for the University Hospital Critical Care Outreach Team. 

Dr Haddara's two main lines of research inquiry are interdisciplinary, involving cognitive psychology, history, and inter-professional research. First, along with Centre Associate Director Dr Mark Goldszmidt and cognitive psychologist Dr John Paul Minda, Dr Haddara is interested in studying the difference between novice and expert physicians with respect to their use of categories in clinical reasoning. Second, Dr Haddara is interested in studying inter-professional collaboration with an emphasis on collaboration within the ICU. 

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Posted by: Allan