Faculty/Staff Search

OR

Department/Unit Search

  1. Home
  2. About the school
  3. News, events and community
  4. News
  5. 2025
  6. New clerkship program embeds medical students in Sarnia-Lambton

New clerkship program embeds medical students in Sarnia-Lambton

Five third-year medical students are completing their full clerkship training at Bluewater Health in Sarnia this year – the first cohort of clerks in the new Sarnia Clerkship program. (Megan Morris/Schulich Medicine & Dentistry)
Five third-year medical students are completing their full clerkship training at Bluewater Health in Sarnia this year – the first cohort of clerks in the new Sarnia Clerkship program. (Megan Morris/Schulich Medicine & Dentistry)

By Emily Leighton

For Maggie Parkinson, stepping into Bluewater Health this month felt like a homecoming. A member of Aamjiwnaang First Nation, she grew up in the Sarnia area and is now training in the same hospital where her family has long received care.

“It’s really special to be back in my home community,” she said. “I hope to one day have a family practice here, serving Aamjiwnaang and the surrounding area. Being close to community and learning here makes that feel possible.”

Maggie Parkinson

I hope to one day have a family practice here, serving Aamjiwnaang and the surrounding area. Being close to community and learning here makes that feel possible.

Maggie Parkinson

MD Candidate, Class of 2027

Parkinson is one of five third-year medical students beginning their full clerkship training in Sarnia-Lambton this month, working alongside local physicians and health teams in specialties ranging from emergency medicine to psychiatry.

The new Sarnia Clerkship program, which launched yesterday at a special event attended by government officials and health-care and community leaders, builds on a long-standing partnership between Western University’s Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry and Bluewater Health.

This year, the new program welcomed five medical students to complete their full clerkship training. Each subsequent year, another cohort of clerks will follow in their footsteps, establishing an ongoing, steady stream of medical learners to the community.

Strengthened by philanthropic support, the program is designed to give the learners a high-quality, immersive training experience while helping address physician shortages in the region.

"As a university, we’re proud of our close relationship to Southwestern Ontario, and we recognize our accountability to help people access the health care that they need,” said Western’s President Alan Shepard, who joined local political and community leaders in formally launching the program at Bluewater Health. “We’ve been strong partners with Bluewater Health for more than a quarter century, and together we’re addressing a health-care shortage and building a healthier and stronger community.” 

The Sarnia clerks are among the School’s 184 medical clerks who are fanning out across London and Southwestern Ontario this year. Clerkship is a medical student’s first true immersion in clinical practice. After two years of building knowledge and practical skills in the classroom, they step into hospitals and clinics as active members of care teams. Traditionally, students complete this training by rotating through several different communities.

To ensure future physicians are exposed to a range of health-care environments, each of the School’s 740+ medical students receive immersive, community-based medical training throughout the four-year MD program.

 

For Philip Skorzewski, who grew up in Milton, the Sarnia program offers a chance to further explore community-based medicine.

“In smaller centres, you build closer connections with patients and mentors, and you see the full breadth of medicine,” said Skorzewski, a third-year student at the School’s Windsor Campus. “You’re more involved, and that’s exactly what I was looking for.”

That mix of perspectives is precisely what the School and hospital teams envisioned.

“This is a tremendous opportunity for Sarnia-Lambton,” said Dr. Michel Haddad, Chief of Staff at Bluewater Health. “When students train here, they learn the realities of practising in our region – and we know many doctors choose to stay where they train. It’s a direct way to strengthen care close to home and help train and recruit the next generation of health providers to our community.”

Philip Skorzewski

In smaller centres, you build closer connections with patients and mentors, and see the full breadth of medicine.

Philip Skorzewski

MD Candidate, Class of 2027 

The program builds on more than 25 years of collaboration between Schulich Medicine & Dentistry and Bluewater Health. Over that time, thousands of learners have rotated through placements in Sarnia, but never before has a cohort been embedded for their full clerkship training.

“This program reflects the depth of our partnership with Bluewater Health and our shared commitment to communities across Southwestern Ontario,” said Dr. Victor Ng, assistant dean of Distributed Education. “It gives students an unparalleled education while also helping to build capacity in regional health care.”

Approximately 65 local physicians with faculty affiliation – including 16 new clinical faculty members – will work closely with the students to ensure all education objectives are achieved and to provide high-quality mentorship and supervision throughout the year.

For Parkinson, the chance to work close to her roots is deeply meaningful. “My community has supported me throughout my life and education,” she said. “Being here allows me to give back and to imagine a future practice grounded in those same connections and support.”

For Skorzewski, it’s about embracing the unknown. “It’s new for all of us – and that’s what makes it exciting,” he said. “We’re nervous, of course, but mostly we’re ready. The community has been so welcoming, and that makes all the difference.”