The second annual UBC Okanagan Interdisciplinary Student Health Conference was held at the Clinical Academic Campus on March 12, 2015. This year’s event featured presentations from students with the Southern Medical Program, Faculty of Health and Social Development, Irving K. Barber School of Arts and Sciences, and interns from the BC Cancer Agency.

Thanks to all faculty, staff, students, and adjudicators for making this year’s event another great success. Congratulations to this year’s winners and honourable mentions:

Research & Science Category:
Top Honours: Stephanie Schindler
Honourable Mention: Drew Phillips

Public Health Category:
Top Honours: Henry Gerelle, Aaron Sobkowicz, and Timothy Walters
Honourable Mention: Vivian Ma

(L-R) Vernon Integrated Community Clerkship Director Dr. Carmen Larsen, Vernon Family Physician Dr. George Borchert, MLA Eric Foster, and UBC medical students Julia Hassler and Erin Charman help official open new UBC space at Vernon Jubilee Hospital

Students in the University of British Columbia’s (UBC)Southern Medical Program officially have a new place to call home at Vernon Jubilee Hospital(VJH).

Vernon-Monashee MLA Eric Foster joined UBC’s Regional Associate Dean for the Interior Dr. Allan Jones and Vernon Jubilee Hospital physician Dr. George Borchert, along with medical school students, physicians and administrators from the Southern Medical Program and Interior Health to celebrate the opening of the recently renovated medical school space, located on the fifth floor of the Polson Tower.

“We’re very pleased to see this project complete and to have this space available to medical students and other health professionals in our community,” said Foster. “This space will provide an enhanced and more comfortable learning environment for our future care providers and is an investment that supports the community in which we hope they will stay and practice and one day call home.”

The new academic space features centralized education areas, a clinical skills room and two video conferencing rooms providing an enhanced learning and training environment. It also offers a great venue for specialists, family physicians and allied health professionals to participate in continuing professional development programs and events.

“The new facilities will better support our program’s ability to deliver medical education and training both at Vernon Jubilee Hospital and within the Vernon community,”said Dr. Jones. “We are most appreciative of our partnerships with government and Interior Health in developing these exceptional learning spaces for our students, faculty and staff.”

The space also has an on-call sleep area, lounge and lockers for medical students completing their clinical training at Vernon Jubilee Hospital,as well as those training in community clinics.

“This new medical school space is another great example of the strong partnership that exists between the province, the Southern Medical Program and Interior Health,” said Interior Health Board Chair Erwin Malzer. “We’re proud to be a part of the program and we look forward to continuing our work to ensure the program continues to be successful.”

Students are expected to begin occupying the new space immediately with medical education programs ongoing. Construction and equipment for the UBC space on the fifth floor totaled approximately $983,000 and was funded by the Ministry of Health.

The third annual Southern Medical Program Welcome Reception was held at the historic Laurel Packinghouse in downtown Kelowna on the evening of January 30, 2015. The event serves as a formal welcome to the newest cohort of medical students to the SMP and the BC Interior medical community. It also provides a chance to acknowledge the hard work and contributions of the SMP’s faculty, staff, and program partners. Student emcees Olivia Guerra and Chris Stuart did a great job kicking off the event and provided some words of wisdom to the newest group of students.

Thanks to the faculty, staff, students, alumni, and special guests who were able to attend. A special thanks to event sponsors Scotiabank, Meyers Norris Penny, Doctors of BC, Canadian Medical Association, MD Management, Faculty of Medicine Alumni, and Drs. Allan and Charlotte Jones for supporting the event. The net proceeds from the reception will help create a new bursary award for the Class of SMP 2018.

Dr. Olusegun (Segun) Oyedele is the new Southern Medical Program (SMP) Course Director, Foundations of Medicine (FMED).  Dr. Oyedele serves as Anatomy Instructor for the SMP and is recognized as an exceptional educator for first and second year students in gross anatomy, histology, and neuroanatomy.  He holds numerous educational leadership positions, including Faculty Development Lead for new FMED Problem-Based Learning (PBL) tutors, member of the SMP Curriculum Transition Team, and member of the Faculty of Medicine Portfolio Development Working Group.

Prior to his work with the SMP, Dr. Oyedele was a Senior Lecturer at the University of the Witwatersrand’s Centre for Health Science Education in Johannesburg, South Africa.  For over 15 years, he taught basic and clinical human anatomy at the university level in South Africa and Nigeria garnering significant experience with course coordination, student evaluation, and faculty development programs.

Dr. Oyedele will transition into his new role, effective March 1, 2015. In addition to his instructional duties, he will be responsible for the planning and organization of the FMED course within the SMP in its current state and evolution as part of the curriculum renewal process.

Dr. Marjorie Docherty has joined the Southern Medical Program as the new Clerkship Site Leader, Rural Family Practice (RFP). Dr. Docherty is a family physician in Kelowna and Clinical Professor with the UBC Department of Family Practice. For the past 27 years, she has worked as a family physician at Kelowna General Hospital (KGH) and has a full service family practice in the community.

Dr. Docherty is a member of the Executive of The College of Family Physicians, BC and has held numerous positions with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC including serving as President from 2011-2013. Over the past 20 years, she has held numerous educational leadership positions at KGH including Coordinator for UBC Family Practice Pediatrics/Obstetrics Program (1994-2005), Director of Family Practice Pediatric Residency Program (1994-1998), and Executive for the Department of Family Practice Division of Obstetrics (2000-2015). From 2004-2005, she was one of the lead faculty for the expansion of UBC’s Rural Family Practice Program to Kelowna. Dr. Docherty has received numerous awards for her work both as a physician and educator including the Rural Family Practice Teaching Award, Dr. Peter Grantham Award for Post Graduate Teaching Excellence, and the 2011 BC Family Physician of Year Award from the College of Family Physicians of Canada.

Dr. Docherty will be responsible for the ongoing development and implementation of Year 3 RFP rotations in the BC Interior. She will be focused on the recruitment and support of teachers and curriculum development across the region.

Dr. Mark Yudin (right) monitors students Nichole Gill and Matt Mittelstadt as they participate in an airway management exercise.

The fourth annual Southern Medical Program (SMP) Boot Camp and Student Connectivity Event was held at the Clinical Academic Campus on January 27, 2015. Third year students from Kelowna, Kamloops, Vernon, and Trail immersed in a full day of clinical training and building connections with their classmates from across the SMP’s distributed sites.

Using a simulated learning environment, students gained hands-on experience with common ward emergencies, intubating patients, and utilizing handheld ultrasound in patient assessments. Teamwork and communication skills were key themes for the day’s activities as students worked alongside SMP clinical faculty and UBC Okanagan nursing students. SimMan 3G, the high fidelity patient simulator in the Pritchard Simulation Centre, was once again a highlight for the students practicing emergency code scenarios.

The event was led by the Years 3 & 4 Education Team and included clinical faculty in anesthesia, emergency medicine, critical care as well as critical care nurse educators, UBC Okanagan nursing faculty, and several volunteer patients.

Students excelled in a safe learning environment where they worked closely with their peers in an interdisciplinary team approach. As a result of the day, many of the students reported more confidence in participating in code or trauma team scenarios during their clinical training.

Q & As with some of the new students from the class of SMP 2018

Name: Angie Maccan
Year: 2018
Hometown: Chilliwack

What sparked your interest in pursuing a career in medicine?
I had Medicine on my mind since I was a child, so it’s hard to say what exactly it was that drew me to the profession. I think part of it had to do with a Fischer-Price doctors kit I used to carry around everywhere with me. Of course, as I got older, I knew I wanted to do something that involved helping people and I loved learning about biology and physiology, so medicine seemed like a natural fit.

What excites you the most about your site location?
I love that the Southern Medical Program is small. I come from a small university, so one of the things I really wanted to retain in med school was having a small class size and a tight-knit community of peers. I feel like the SMP offers that to me, while still being nearer to home than some of the other distributed sites.

Where do you see yourself in five years?
I’ll probably still be in residency in five years and, to be honest, I’m not sure at this point which residency I hope to be in – maybe internal medicine or paediatrics. I do know that I would love to travel a lot, and if I can find a specialty that opens doors to travel, that’s where I’ll be!

Scrubs or suit? Both? Probably scrubs more though.

Stay in or go out? Stay in.

Mac or PC? Mac

Cook or take out? Take out.

Name: Carson Gill
Year:  2018
Hometown: Kelowna

What sparked your interest in pursuing a career in medicine?
­­­­­I was a late bloomer, and only after starting medical school am I now absolutely sure that there is nothing else I could see myself doing. I love a challenge and the idea of being a lifelong learner, and more importantly the ongoing opportunity to make a real difference in people’s lives.

What excites you the most about your site location?
I grew up in the Okanagan, but moved away to attend university in the US and lower mainland after graduating high school. I am extremely happy to be returning to my hometown to pursue a career in medicine with my family (especially my little nephew!) and a fantastic group of colleagues at my side!

Where do you see yourself in five years?
Hopefully in my first year of residency (perhaps in family medicine) and loving every minute of it!

Scrubs or Suit? Scrubs

Stay in or Go Out? Go out

Mac or PC? PC

Cook or Take Out? Take out

Name: Quinn Harris
Year: 2018
Hometown: Kamloops, BC

What sparked your interest in pursuing a career in medicine?
­­­I never had an “Ah ha” moment where I knew I wanted to pursue medicine, but I believe my passion for health promotion, advocating for others, and working as part of a team has led me down this path. With every clinical visit I know I am where I should be and I couldn’t be more excited for my future career.

What excites you the most about your site location?
Just about everything! Particularly the small class size, supportive staff, beautiful area and short drive to my hometown.

Where do you see yourself in five years?
Hopefully I’ve made it through medical school and am starting a residency program within BC – and finally have my own dog.

Scrubs or Suit? Scrubs

Stay in or Go Out? Go out

Mac or PC? Mac

Cook or Take Out? Cook

The Southern Medical Program invites you to join health professional students, faculty, and staff for the 2^nd annual UBC Okanagan Interdisciplinary Student Health Conference.

Thursday, March 12, 2015

6:45 to 9:00 pm

UBC Faculty of Medicine, Clinical Academic Campus
2312 Pandosy Street, Kelowna, BC V1Y 1T3

Featuring poster presentations from UBCO students sharing 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.

It was all hands on deck for the Southern Medical Program’s (SMP) inaugural Year 4 Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs) held at the Clinical Academic Campus on November 29 and 30, 2014.

The Year 4 OSCEs encompassed 16 different simulated patient cases from an array of medical disciplines from family medicine to neurology to pediatrics. For each clinical exam, a standardized patient (or patient actor) is trained to act out a scenario and simulate real medical conditions. The student examines the patient and presents their findings to an OSCE Examiner, a clinical faculty member. The OSCE Examiner evaluates each student on their communication skills, line of questioning, and findings.

By the numbers, 30 SMP students each participated in 16 examinations divided over two days. 39 standardized patients were utilized with each receiving one to four hours training depending upon the complexities of the case. 22 SMP clinical faculty and 16 staff helped administer the exams with many contributing their time for the entire weekend.

Thank you to everyone for their assistance with this year’s exams. A special thanks to Dr. Katherine Smart, PMP & Year 4 Electives Course Lead and Kyla Shaw, Years 3 & 4 Assessment and Evaluation Coordinator for their efforts in ensuring the operation ran smoothly. The entire event was a great accomplishment and another major milestone for the SMP leading up to the graduation of the first cohort this coming spring.

(L-R) Gladys Fraser, Scotiabank Branch Manager, Drew Philips and Alistair Hart, SMP students, and Adrienne Skinner, Associate Director, UBC Development and Alumni Engagement

It was another great day on the links for the third annual Southern Medical Program (SMP) Student Golf Tournament. The event was held this past September at Sunset Ranch Golf and Country Club in Kelowna. Over 50 students, faculty, staff, and friends enjoyed a picturesque round of golf followed by a relaxed dinner and silent auction in the clubhouse.

This year’s tournament raised over $2000 which, will go towards a new SMP Student Bursary Fund. The total amount raised has been graciously matched by Scotiabank providing over $4,000 in new student bursaries.

Thanks to everyone who was able to attend. A special thanks to second-year students Drew Phillips and Alistair Hart for organizing the event. As well, sponsors Scotiabank and Meyers Norris Penny, and various local companies who donated items for the silent auction. Stay tuned for details on next year’s tournament.