W E L C O M E DEAN’S MESSAGE
Faculty of Medicine Update By Thomas J. Marrie MD Dean, Faculty of Medicine
W
hile every issue of Vox has something that resonates with alumni, this one is special. It is special for many reasons, including reflections on a very successful Gala in October. You really like it, attendance continues to climb, and just read the testimonials. Now get your ticket for the 2014 Gala. Dr. Duncan Webster’01’s personal journey is one that you will not forget. It is fortunate that two of our new researchers at Dalhousie Medicine New Brunswick are doing research in this area. See page 34. Please join me in congratulating Dr. Ed Kinley’56 on his Order of Nova Scotia. Dr. Jock Murray’63 is being inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame on April 24, 2014, at the Rogers Centre in Kingston, Ontario. Please let me know if you wish to join us at Dalhousie’s table on this historic occasion. Many other alumni have received awards during the past year, some of whom are noted in this issue. If we have missed any, please let us know. Class reunions are an important time for you and your classmates, and whenever possible I like to attend and update you on what’s happening at your medical school. Dr. Garth Christie’66 has set the bar for all others—his magic show is so good that we would like to feature it at next year’s gala. I learned one of his secrets in September; now I need to learn the rest. Recently, I had the honour of
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Dean Marrie with Award Recipients
delivering the second Raju lectureship at Dalhousie Medicine New Brunswick. This lectureship was started to recognize the contributions of Dr. Mahesh Raju to medical education in New Brunswick. The title of my talk was: “Medical Education – Have we lost our way?” I discussed the declining focus on teaching history-taking and physical examination skills in many medical programs. Many of you will know that our residency programs are undergoing a shift to competency-based evaluation. When one has achieved a competency, one can move on; thus, some could finish a four year residency in three years and some in five, six, or ? However, what has become apparent is that many residents do not have the competencies they should have. This often translates to an inadequate grounding in fundamental
V O X M E D A L | S P R I N G 2 0 1 3 | medicine.dal.ca
clinical skills teaching in medical school. A repeated complaint that I hear from medical students is the variability of tutors in the clinical skills program. Some tutors are superb and go beyond the curricular requirements, others less so, and when students compare notes some feel “short changed.” There is nothing more inspiring than learning clinical skills from a master clinician, and every medical student should have this opportunity. This is one of the reasons why we have reorganized the clinical skills program. Drs. Purdy, Leddin, and I have been working on an intranet website of clinical signs for medical students. If you have a physical sign that you would like to contribute, email me at t.marrie@dal.ca.
Dean Marrie practicing magic tricks following quick magic lesson from Garth Christie’66