Dr. Dianne Valenzuela
Southern Medical Program Class of 2015
PG-Y2 Resident, Division of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, UBC

Tell about your current training.
As part of my training to become an otolaryngologist/head and neck surgeon, I spend time doing surgery in the operating room, taking care of patients in the surgical wards, seeing patients in various ENT subspecialty clinics, and addressing any ENT issues for the hospitals in the city while on call.

What attracted you to a career in medicine?
I enjoy the fast paced lifestyle of medicine, and how it can make a big impact on people’s lives.

Today in healthcare it’s important to…
Listen to your patient! With all the technological advances it’s easy to get caught up in fancy tests and gadgets without actually connecting with the patient in front of you.

What is the best professional advice you received?
Learn from your mistakes and strive to do better each day. An advantage of residency (and medical school) is you can learn from your mentor’s mistakes.

What is your favourite memory at the Faculty of Medicine?
Moving to Kelowna with a bunch of strangers as the first class of the SMP. There was a lot of uncertainty initially but it turned out to be a great 4 years! My classmates and mentors then ended up becoming my lifelong friends.

What advice do you have for current medical students?
Work hard but don’t forget to enjoy the journey and create lasting friendships along the way.

Bucket list item?
Travel to Bora Bora.

The UBC Faculty of Medicine is hosting an evening information session for local high school students. Learn about the admission requirements, application process, and how the program is training the next generation of physicians for our province.

The event will be held on Tuesday, April 4th from 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm in the Reichwald Health Sciences Centre, room RHS 260, at UBC’s Okanagan campus.

Presenters include Dr. Bruce Fleming, Associate Dean, MD Admissions, current Southern Medical Program students, and a UBC Student Recruiter and Advisor.

Click here to register. If you don’t already have an account with UBC Okanagan, simply create one prior to registering for the event.

For more information, contact Warren Brock, Communications Manager, Southern Medical Program at warren.brock@ubc.ca or 250.807.8601.

Dr. Jesse Ory
Southern Medical Program Class of 2015
PGY-2 Urology Resident, Dalhousie University, Halifax

Tell us what you do at your workplace.
As a second year resident, my year is broken up into rotations including Urology, Gen Surg and ICU. Most of my time is on surgical rotations where I’m in the OR most days of the week, taking care of inpatients, or doing clinic.

What attracted you to a career in medicine?
Initially, I got into medicine because I had done lifeguarding, lifeguarding competitions, and was teaching first aid classes. That, in combination with my biopsychology degree in undergrad, made medicine a good goal to shoot for. After starting clinical electives in third year of medical school, specializing in something surgical became obvious after loving my time in the OR. And after checking out several specialties, Urology became the obvious choice for me.

Today in healthcare it’s important to…
Have systems in place so that patients leaving the hospital have a full understanding of their problem and what to expect going forward. I find that patients who know what to expect going forward after leaving the hospital have much better quality of life and lower stress when seen in follow up. With more information, patients are able to take ownership and feel in control of their disease, instead of feeling powerless to a myriad of symptoms that they didn’t expect.

What is the best professional advice you received?
Be the first one there in the morning and the last to leave at night. Establish yourself as reliable, hard working and trustworthy and opportunities for success in life will inevitably find you.

What is your favourite memory at the Faculty of Medicine?
My favorite memory is wrapped up in my first year at the Southern Medical Program in Kelowna. Being the first class there, meeting new friends, and getting to be a part of the excitement surrounding a new satellite program of UBC was wonderful. As students, we were able to shape how the program evolved and could do this collaboratively with the doctors and staff getting the program off the ground. I wouldn’t have spent medical school any other way.

What advice to you have for current medical students?
(1) If you’re unsure of what to do in medicine, first try and figure out: medicine or surgery. After that, find a mentor you look up to; someone who loves their job, and research that specialty. Certain personalities do tend to gravitate towards specific specialties, and you want to find a career where the people around you enrich your life.

(2) Work harder than you’re used to. Make yourself useful to the residents and staff you work with. Be there early, and stay late. When CaRMS comes around, the residents and staff care more about who was a hard worker than who got that one challenging question right during the OR. You’ll be working with these people for 2-5 years in residency: they want someone they can trust and rely on, not a lazy brainiac (not that those two things are mutually exclusive!)

Bucket list item?
Go to Cape Canaveral and get front row seats for a SpaceX rocket launch. Watch the first stage land again after takeoff. Give Elon Musk a high five after. Drive away in my Tesla. Getting to do any one of those would be just fine as well.

Our final look at the Southern Medical Program Class of 2020. Check out our new student Q&As with Rebecca, Chase, James, and Leah:

Rebecca Comeau
Hometown: Burns Lake, BC

What attracted you to the field of medicine?
Have you ever heard of a Rube Goldberg machine? If you haven’t, look them up – you’re in for a treat! What motivated me to enter the medical field is a bit like that: complex, complementary, and interconnected with a common goal. Together, a passion for empowerment through communication, understanding, and knowledge, wonder at the human capacity to heal, a love of applied science, and growing up in remote areas struggling to meet healthcare challenges inspired the humble hope that I might be able to help.

What are you most excited about beginning your studies with the Southern Medical Program?
The Southern Medical Program realizes everything I could have hoped for in my medical education and more. Our smaller cohort allows for amazing one-to-one time with passionate, dedicated staff, tutors, laboratory and clinical instructors, and researchers as well as great opportunities for hands-on clinical practice. On top of being a stimulating learning environment, I feel that in the SMP I’m surrounded by a community of people truly invested in my success. We’re like a kind of family, and I think that might be my favourite part!

What do you like to do in your spare time to relax and have fun?
Mostly, I like to spend time with my friends, my family, my dog — and enjoy the fresh air with some low-key distance running. I also like to play around with artistic things, like tinkering in music composition, creative writing, and drawing. Lately, I’ve been enjoying lunchtime yoga and fitness with my friends and classmates.

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
When I was growing up, my parents put their belief in renewable energy and environmental stewardship into action. Our family home was powered by solar panels and a wind turbine (and a propane generator — just in case). We lived off-grid until I was seventeen!

Chase Crisfield
Hometown: Rossland, BC

What attracted you to the field of medicine?
I have always been a curious person, and I think that one of the most puzzling and interesting things to study is the human body. I think I was drawn to the idea of learning about the complexities of how we work and what can go wrong. It’s just so interesting! I’m also drawn to the fact that medicine offers so many different and unique career choices and the lifelong learning experience that it entails.

What are you most excited about beginning your studies with the Southern Medical Program?
I am really excited to have a smaller class size and to be able to get to know all of my classmates on a more personal level. I really haven’t spent much time in the Okanagan, so I’m also looking forward to doing some exploring and checking out all of the surrounding lakes rivers and mountains!

What do you like to do in your spare time to relax and have fun?
I like doing pretty much anything outdoors, but I’m particularly interested in whitewater kayaking, mountain biking, climbing and skiing. I also enjoy woodworking, cooking new foods and making beer.

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
My life dream is to travel across Mongolia via hot air balloon. I really haven’t looked into the practicalities of it, nor do I know how to fly a hot air balloon, but I believe that where there’s a will there’s a way!

James Matthews
Hometown: Kamloops, BC

What attracted you to the field of medicine?
Medicine is something my educational and professional interests have been building towards for some time now. In school, I always found that I was interested in biology and health sciences. I completed a B.Sc. in Cellular, Molecular, and Microbial Biology and then entered into the Respiratory Therapy Program at Thompson Rivers University. After graduating, I was fortunate enough to work at BC Children’s and Women’s Hospital in the Pediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care Units. I loved working with children and their families, but I quickly felt that I wanted to learn and do more. I was inspired by the amazing physicians I worked with. I saw the extraordinary relationships they had with patients and their families, as well as the care, compassion, and skill they brought to every encounter. I knew that medicine was where I wanted to be and I feel incredibly lucky to be here!

What are you most excited about beginning your studies with the Southern Medical Program?
I am really excited to be a part of a smaller, more cohesive community of students. I think that is really what the SMP represents to me. I see the entire program as being more connected, and the interactions I have with faculty, tutors, preceptors, and my fellow students will always feel more authentic and personal. In the first few weeks of being at the SMP, I have already built better, closer relationships than in all of my time in Vancouver.

What do you like to do in your spare time to relax and have fun?
I have two beautiful dogs that love to walk and I find I spend most of my spare time helping them pursue their interests. Seriously though, it’s an excellent way to get out there, explore, and clear your head. I also love skiing, cooking, hiking, and occasionally a game or two of paintball.

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
I think it might come as a surprise that I’ve been to Peru twice in the past 4 years. More surprising, though, is the fact that I’ve still never been anywhere near Machu Picchu. I’m thinking I need to go for a third time at some point so I can finally cross that off my list!

Leah Trippell
Hometown: Parksville, BC

What attracted you to the field of medicine?
For as long as I can remember, my favourite question has always been “why?” A career in medicine allows me to combine my love for question asking and problem solving with my love for people. I have always felt a deep connection to other people and I love the idea that medicine puts me in position where I get to creatively use my brain while enjoying the privilege of being allowed into an individual’s personal and private journey and helping them to create the path forward. I’m also thrilled about the variety of opportunities to explore medicine at home and all over the globe!

What are you most excited about beginning your studies with the Southern Medical Program?
Definitely the amazing people in our little class! Because we’re small, we benefit by having more face time with the wonderful faculty, tutors, and preceptors, and most importantly-with each other! SMP is full of brilliant, accomplished, incredible people and we really have the opportunity to get to know each other, learn from each other, and support each other through this most challenging yet fantastic time in our lives. Also, I’m thrilled to be in beautiful Kelowna – I can’t wait to see what the summer has to offer!

What do you like to do in your spare time to relax and have fun?
I really love reading and getting outdoors! I’m also excited to check out the wine and food scene in town this summer. But probably my favourite thing to do is enjoy some quality time with my friends and my fiancé just laughing and enjoying the precious moments we have together! The fast pace of medicine sure makes you appreciate the chances to live in the moment!

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
In my life before medicine, I studied some anthropology and completed an archaeological field school on the beautiful Sunshine Coast! We spent our days digging for artifacts and bones in seaside shell middens and then I spent my evenings camping and enjoying rides along the incredible coastline on the back of my partner’s motorcycle. It was a great summer!

Dr. Jim Huang
Southern Medical Program Class of 2015

Current Job Title: 
Rural Family Medicine Resident Year 2, Kelowna

Tell us what you do at your workplace:
I model rural family doctors by taking care of hospital patients, managing the emergency department, and see patients in the family doctor’s clinic.  The family doctors take care of the towns where there are no specialists.

What attracted you to a career in medicine?
Being able to make direct and meaningful impact on people’s lives every day.

Today in healthcare it’s important to…
Treat patients as people, not as diagnoses.

What is the best professional advice you received?
Never stop listening to that feeling that something doesn’t seem quite right.

What is your favourite memory at the Faculty of Medicine?
Being able to graduate with me peers while helping to shape the SMP in it’s infancy.

What advice to you have for current medical students?
Always leave time for yourself and the ones closest to you.  The medicine will always be there.

Bucket list item?
Compete in a triathlon.

The Southern Medical Program invites you to join health professional students, faculty, and staff for the 2017 UBC Okanagan Interdisciplinary Health Conference.

Thursday, March 16, 2017 | Doors open at 6:00 pm | Presentations start @ 6:20 pm
UBC Faculty of Medicine, Clinical Academic Campus, 2312 Pandosy Street, Kelowna

Featuring poster presentations from Southern Medical Program and UBC Okanagan Health Sciences students and special guest speaker Dr. Deanna Gibson, Associate Professor, Biology at UBC Okanagan. Join us as students share their research and public health experiences with the local health professional community.

No cost to attend. For more info, contact Carolyn Roque at carolyn.roque@ubc.ca or 250-807-9827.

We continue our series of new student profiles with the Southern Medical Program Class of 2020. Here are our Q&As with Lebo, Landon, Patrica, and Amy:

Lebohang (Lebo) Kolisang
Hometown: Johannesburg, South Africa (Recently Prince George, BC)

What attracted you to the field of medicine?
Aside from “Scrubs” being one of my favourite TV-shows, I became attracted to medicine for a number of reasons. Fundamentally, the opportunity and privilege to serve people in their time of need and to develop meaningful relationships with them played a huge role in my decision to pursue medicine. There’s something special about the way you can connect to people within the doctor-patient relationship and that’s one of the things about a career in medicine that I’m looking forward to the most. Beyond that there’s so much diversity within medicine and versatility in what you can do with a medical degree; whether its clinical work, research, teaching or public health etc. (Plus the human body is unbelievably incredible and an absolute joy to learn about).

What are you most excited about beginning your studies with the Southern Medical Program?
It’s hard to pinpoint what I’m most excited about, but I’ve got to say that being part of such an amazing cohort of students and joining the SMP family is a huge blessing. Kelowna is such a beautiful place with a great community and I’m extremely excited to explore and get to know the area better.

What do you like to do in your spare time to relax and have fun?
(Wait a minute…what is this concept of “spare time”?)

I’m guilty of playing guitar perhaps more often than I should. I also enjoy showcasing my lack of vocal skills while driving. In terms of physical activity, I’m a big fan of skiing, soccer, squash, and most importantly, Ping-Pong.

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
My “new semester’s resolution” back in August was to become a weekday vegetarian. It actually went quite well initially. (For about a week… since then I’ve failed spectacularly).

Landon MacGillivray
Hometown: Kamloops. BC

What attracted you to the field of medicine?
For a long time, I was interested in becoming a Veterinarian; I have always had a passion for animals. However, while I was completing my undergraduate degree, my sister was going through medical school. My sister and I are very close, and I was fortunate to talk to her extensively as she progressed through medical school. I found myself very interested in what she was learning about, and her passion for medicine was contagious. I began to learn about all the different careers in the medical field and began to realize that as a physician, I could have a big impact on people’s lives. The potential opportunity to contribute to the health and well-being of Canadians became very appealing for me and was a huge motivating factor.

What are you most excited about beginning your studies with the Southern Medical Program?
I am excited to be in our small SMP cohort; we have a great group of people that I am looking forward to going through this program with. We will celebrate our success, experience numerous moments of panic, and together explore and become integrated into the Kelowna community.

What do you like to do in your spare time to relax and have fun?
In Kelowna, I am living with two of my first-year classmates. In our spare time, we have begun playing squash, playing video games and watching “Black Mirrors” on Netflix. Most interestingly, we have begun experimenting with this phenomenon called “cooking.” Our most recent success story involves the words “Panini” and “Fridays,” a thunderous success in the SMP community.

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
I have always been passionate about wildlife, specifically raptors. During my time in Victoria, I met a gentleman that was a falconer. I have always had a passion for raptors, and I was fortunate to complete a falconry apprenticeship under his supervision. For the next year, I worked with a red-tailed hawk named Loki 3-4 times a week, and I learned the essential skills required to be a successful falconer. I love falconry because Loki was not a pet, a strong mutualistic relationship was established. Loki was a wild red-tailed hawk that had the opportunity to fly away thousands of times, but instead recognized the benefits of hunting with a man she trusted. For me, I had the opportunity to appreciate her beauty, intelligence, and witness her breath-taking pursuits, successes and failures of prey. Once I have completed medical school and residency, I am looking forward to getting involved in falconry again.

Patricia Massel
Hometown: Ottawa, ON

What attracted you to the field of medicine?
I became interested in medicine in the last years of my undergrad. Growing up I was sure I wanted to be a research scientist, but I slowly realised that I was passionate about working with and for people. Communication and leadership are two skills I want to keep building, and I know this profession will give me plenty of opportunities to do so. I look forwards to one-on-one patient doctor interactions as well as working with interdisciplinary teams of colleagues. Furthermore, I am attracted to medicine because I can see the diversity of possible careers I could have in the future, such as practice of medicine, research, instruction, policy, or advocacy. I’m excited to be in a field where my job can grow and change with me.

What are you most excited about beginning your studies with the Southern Medical Program?
I am most excited about my classmates. Having a small 30-person class means we have our own little family. The support and deep friendships that come out of that will get us all through the next few years. The medical community here has also been very welcoming. Since the first day we arrived, the older students, staff and physicians have made us feel very welcome. This backing encourages me to take advantage of learning opportunities, like shadowing or residents rounds, that I was intimidated to pursue in Vancouver.

What do you like to do in your spare time to relax and have fun?
Physical activity has always been a huge part of my life, and keeping active keeps me sane when schoolwork builds up. Lunchtime workouts with my classmates are the highlights of my school days. I’m an avid skier, hiker, and general outdoors enthusiast so I can’t wait to explore the outdoor scene here. We don’t have mountains and nature like this in Ontario! I’ve managed to get out skiing a few weekends, and I’m looking forward to summer break so that I can get out backcountry camping again. Around home I really enjoy painting and cooking to relax.

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
In high school, I was in a Shakespearian acting club!

Amy Plessis
Hometown: Salmon Arm, BC

What attracted you to the field of medicine?
I love how dynamic of a field medicine is, you are constantly learning in order to keep up with new information. Additionally I love the challenge of problem solving in medicine and how you are given the unique privilege to be with people in some of their most trying situations.

What are you most excited about beginning your studies with the Southern Medical Program?
I love Kelowna and having the smaller program is definitely an advantage. I am so excited to get to know everyone and have the opportunity to explore the Okanagan in between studying.

What do you like to do in your spare time to relax and have fun?
I love spending time outdoors, so almost anything that gets me out! In the winter that is normally skiing and in the summer either biking or hiking.

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
I have broken the same arm three times.

(L-R): Shari Slattery, CMHA Kelowna, Southern Medical Program students Liam Matthews, Cameron Oliver, Brandon Evtushevski, Stephen Watson, Stephanie Maguire, MNP and Wayne McNiven, Scotiabank.

Second-year Southern Medical Program (SMP) students Brandon Evtushevski, Liam Matthews, Cameron Oliver, and Stephen Watson wanted to make an impact when organizing the 2016 SMP Student Golf Tournament. They decided to partner with the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) Kelowna to help support mental health initiatives in the community.

“Mental health touches everyone’s life in one capacity or another,” says the SMP tournament organizers. “We were thrilled to partner with CMHA Kelowna to help spread awareness for mental illness and raise funds for the development of the BC Integrated Youth Services Initiative.”

Around 100 golfers attended the tournament and dinner at the Harvest Golf Club last October. With the help of numerous sponsors and the local community, the students were able to raise $11,500 with additional $5,000 matched by Scotiabank.

“It is great to see young people, especially future medical professionals, take an interest in supporting the mental health of children, youth, and families in our community,” says Shari Slattery, Fund Development Coordinator at CMHA Kelowna. “We are incredibly grateful for their support.”

The grand total of $16,500 will be used to support Kelowna youth struggling with mental illness and addiction. The students would like to extend their gratitude to the Kelowna community for generously supporting both the tournament and this worthwhile cause.

The UBC Faculty of Medicine Southern Medical Program is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Diana Fort to Site Leader, Undergraduate Education, Kelowna General Hospital (KGH) effective immediately. Over the past year, Dr. Fort has served alongside Dr. Cheryl Holmes as Co-Site Leader and played a key role in the continued development and sustainability of the third-year clerkship program at KGH. As stated earlier, Dr. Holmes has recently left her post at the SMP to pursue her new role as Interim Assistant Dean, Curriculum for the UBC Faculty of Medicine.

Dr. Fort is an Emergency Medicine physician based in Penticton and Clinical Assistant Professor with the UBC Department of Emergency Medicine. She completed her medical degree at Queen’s University and Emergency Medicine residency training with the University of Southern California and the University of Toronto. Dr. Fort is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons Canada and has served as co-executive director for the Penticton Emergency Physicians Group and member of the IHA and Penticton Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committees.

We are truly fortunate to have Dr. Fort increase her role in leading the clerkship program at KGH. Please join me in acknowledging Dr. Fort’s contributions to the ongoing success of our program and our students.

The Southern Medical Program officially welcomed our newest class to their new home at UBC Okanagan. Here’s a quick Q&A with some of our new students.

Breanne Cadham
Hometown: Kelowna, BC

What attracted you to the field of medicine?
When I was young I was always interested in becoming a doctor, mostly because it was one of the five careers I knew existed. As I started post secondary education and volunteering in the healthcare field, though, my interest in the profession grew. The diversity in medicine is what most attracts me. I love that I will get to work with a variety of individuals, both professionals and patients and get to learn about so many different ailments and specialties.

What are you most excited about beginning your studies with the Southern Medical Program?
Our class! Everybody in the SMP class is wonderful, I feel very privileged to be able to share the next four years growing with them. It is also very special to be able to learn in Kelowna, a community I have been connected to my whole life.

What do you like to do in your spare time to relax and have fun?
I love being outside, though in the winter pretty much the only thing I will brave the cold for is cross-country skiing. But in better weather I really enjoy biking and running. I am currently learning how to swim so I can train for a sprint triathlon this summer. Our SMP 2020 class is very active which has helped me try new activities and is a great motivator.

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
I was Kelowna’s Princess in the Lady of the Lake Ambassador Program in 2008/2009. And yes, I wore a tiara.

Gabriella Martine
Hometown: Oliver, BC

What attracted you to the field of medicine?
I decided to go into medicine because I wanted to blend my passion for science and learning (and I hear the learning never stops in the field of medicine!) with my passion for working with other people. During my undergraduate degree, my Biology and Health Science program stimulated my scientific curiosity and my experience working for the residence life program ignited my interest in developing relationships with others in order to support them towards their goals. I think medicine will be a good blend of those things that I will be able to enjoy lifelong.

What are you most excited about beginning your studies with the Southern Medical Program?
I am excited to be part of such a great cohort of amazing people. Being part of a smaller class size, I am excited to get to know my classmates and tutors on a more intimate level which I think will enhance my learning experience. I am also excited to return to the Okanagan and be closer to my family.

What do you like to do in your spare time to relax and have fun?
I enjoy competitive horse-back riding, hiking, running, and yoga. But I also like to relax and watch movies and do some baking (learning some new recipes so I feel more like a self-sufficient adult when I’m in the kitchen).

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
I live with a chronic illness and although this might seem like private information, I feel it’s important for people to know that health is so much more than just being free of diseases or conditions. Being healthy for me means managing my specific needs and optimizing my happiness with my life.

Arlin Munro
Hometown: Nelson, B.C.

What attracted you to the field of medicine?
I’ve always felt a desire to dedicate myself to public service while also being fascinated by science and the human body, medicine seemed like the perfect mix. I love that medicine will always continue to expand and push the limits and that there are so many different avenues that you can pursue as a physician. Also, medicine offers different opportunities for all different kinds of people, personally I can’t wait for the adrenaline-filled times although that might not be for everyone.

What are you most excited about beginning your studies with the Southern Medical Program?
Well now that the whirlwind of the first semester is over, I’m looking forward to finding a good balance between school and exploring the Okanagan with all my great new classmates. I think we are so fortunate to have a small like-minded group of us in a place with as much to offer as the Okanagan does. I can already tell that I’ll look back fondly on my time spent in the SMP.

What do you like to do in your spare time to relax and have fun?
I’ve been a bit of a sports and fitness junkie for many years. You’ll usually find me in the gym or golfing or playing hockey. I’ve been training with the UBC Mighty Docs already to defend last year’s championship in the 2017 Ice Bowl Hockey Tournament!

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
I’m actually a bit of a hippy at heart. I’m sure growing up in Nelson had a little something to do with that but I’m a yoga-loving tree-hugger through and through.