February 2019 Newsletter
Dr. Stewart Harris reappointed as the Canadian Diabetes Association Chair in Diabetes Management
Dr. Stewart Harris has been reappointed to his third term as the Canadian Diabetes Association Chair in Diabetes Management at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University effective January 1, 2019 to December 31, 2023.
Chair's Message – Opioid Use Disorder and Hepatitis C
Whenever a gap in clinical services is identified, it is often family physicians who come forward to fill that gap. Two treatment areas that are currently receiving increasing attention from Family Medicine are Opioid Use Disorder and Chronic Hepatitis C management. There is no doubt we are in the midst of an opioid use epidemic with increasing morbidity and mortality. Outpatient treatment of Opioid Use Disorder with Buprenorphine is becoming more common in family medicine and with good reason.
Postgraduate Program Report
There are numerous updates for the Spring 2019 Family Medicine Certification Examination, including, the length of the SAMP examination has been reduced from six hours to four hours, and therefore there are fewer questions compared to previous years, a new self-scheduling procedure allows candidates to select a preferred examination location and time, enhanced security features and check-in procedure, and more exam locations provide greater convenience for exam candidates.
Community News
The Family Medicine Interest Group is excited to announce the annual Family Medicine Clinical Skills Day will be held Saturday, March 23 at the Western Centre for Public Health & Family Medicine. The day runs from 10:00 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. and involves clinical skills sessions, a free lunch during which first and second year medical students can mingle and chat with family physicians, and a keynote speaker following lunch. If you are interested in facilitating a workshop please email us at westernfmig@gmail.com.
Celebrating our achievements
Congratulations to Dr. Jamie Wickett on receiving a 2019 Canadian Association for Medical Education (CAME) Certificate of Merit Award for Western University.
Media Release: London’s vulnerable populations live near primary care, but language remains a challenge
Led by Western professor Jason Gilliland, a team of researchers looked at accessibility to a primary-care provider – either a family doctor or nurse practitioner – based on distribution and geographical proximity in London.
PGME Accreditation
Canada has one of the best systems for residency training in the world.A critical part of its success is its embrace of a continuous quality improvement strategy, and accreditation is a big piece of that strategy. In November 2019, all of Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry’s residency and area-of-focused-competence programs will participate in an accreditation site visit.
Undergraduate Curriculum Development
The new curriculum for our Doctor of Medicine program supports an active learning model, engaging students through early clinical experiences and case-based activities. Learn what this renewal means to you by downloading an informational one-pager.
New Grant Funding
Several Centre for Studies in Family Medicine faculty have been awarded new research grant funding. Faculty include Maria Mathews, PhD, Shannon Sibbald, PhD, Bridget Ryan, PhD, and Judith Belle Brown, PhD.
Dr. Ian McWhinney Lecture Series speaker announced
Mark your calendars for the fifth annual Dr. Ian McWhinney lecture on September 18. We are pleased to announce Dr. David Loxterkamp, physician and author, Associate Clinical Professor in Family Medicine, Tufts University School of Medicine, as the 2019 Dr. Ian McWhinney Lecture Series speaker.
Opioid prescribing changes in London
To help address the opioid crisis in our region, changes to how these drugs are prescribed will be effective February 19 for our London and region hospital network. These changes have been unanimously endorsed by all city-wide Chiefs and the Joint Medical Advisory Committee. It is our hope that by turning the opioid prescribing tap down we can effect an immediate and meaningful reduction in the opioid problem in our city and region.
4th Diabetes Clinical Trial Update – London ON
On January 12, Dr. Stewart Harris successfully chaired the 4th Diabetes Clinical Trials Update (CTU) in London, as speakers from Canada and the United States met to present findings and developments on emergent therapies in diabetes. This event confirmed the importance of research conducted here at Western in advancing the development of safer cardiovascular protectors and efficacious medications to control diabetes.
2019 Awards of Excellence: Nominate a deserving individual today
Recognize the outstanding contributions of Schulich Medicine & Dentistry faculty and staff. Nominate a deserving individual today for an Award of Excellence today. Nominations are due by February 25, 2019.
Baby Sleep Day – March 1
On March 1, the Pediatric Sleep Council (PSC), a team of international pediatric sleep experts will celebrate Baby Sleep Day. For the third consecutive year, families will be able to ask members of the PSC questions about their young child's sleep. The question and answer event will take place via Facebook. Graham Reid, PhD, will answer questions from 11:15 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Trillium Primary Health Care Research Day
The Call for Abstracts has opened with a deadline for submission of May 1, 2019. If you are interested in presenting your research at Trillium Primary Health Care Research Day, we want to hear from you. Please visit our site to see submission guidelines and to submit an abstract.
Department Spotlight: Dr. Rochelle Dworkin
Thirty-two years ago, Dr. Rochelle Dworkin arrived in Hanover with plans to do a six-month locum. Although now retired, her passion for medical education and rural medicine continues.
February 2019 Research and Publications
The Department of Family Medicine 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.
Events
Join us for Family Medicine Faculty Development – Researcher Series – Ethics Submissions: What you need to know to submit your next application, held at a new date and time, February 27, 2019 at 11:30 a.m., immediately following the Family Medicine Departmental meeting.
Top stories from our January newsletter
Missed the December e-newsletter? Take a moment to read the top stories: Chair's Message, Celebrating our achievements, Resident Spotlight: Dr. Dema Kadri.
