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As part of our efforts to showcase the great work at our teaching sites, this month, we are proud to celebrate the Primrose Family Health Team with an update from the Unit Medical Director, Dr. Sohil Rangwala.

Primrose is an academic family health team, with 8 providers and 16 residents. It is one of two sites within the Bruyère Academic Family Health Team, located in the Bruyère hospital.

Within this multidisciplinary clinic, the Primrose team works collaboratively with RN’s, social workers, pharmacists, dieticians and a shared mental health team. It provides inner city health care and refugee health care, primarily to a Syrian and Burmese population. The team provides resident and medical student education, well baby clinics, prenatal clinic and procedure clinics for patients that are staffed by both providers and residents. These specialized primary care focused clinics are very well received.

(L-R) Marie-Claire Coulombe (RN), Mehdi Hegagi (Resident), Lucy Shum Sin (Resident), Heather Cameron (Lead Clerk), Stephanie Leonard (Front Staff Clerk), Tyller Trottier (Front Staff Clerk), Hannah Kis (Resident) 

(L-R) Daniel Pau (Primrose Chief Resident), Dr. Jolanda Turley (Staff Physician, Unit PG Director), Stephen McCarthy (Resident) and Ankita (Resident)

Over the last year, in-person events have resumed, from graduation, to RIO day, to journal clubs and welcome BBQ’s, which have been very positive for team cohesion and wellness.

2022 was a productive year for Primrose. They look forward to further successes in patient care, resident education and scholarly work in the year ahead. 

Faculty Award in Education Winners

This year’s Faculty of Medicine Awards in Education recognized the outstanding academic achievements of faculty learners and teachers in 2022. Winners were announced on December 1^st at an awards ceremony which took place at the Ottawa Conference and Event Centre. The following Department of Family Medicine faculty members were among this year’s award winners, across a number of award categories: 

Continuing Professional Development Teaching Skills Attainment Award (TSAA)

• Dr. Parisa Rezaiefar, Award of Excellence
• Dr. Michelle Anawati,Teaching Skills Attainment Award with Merit (Level II)

Postgraduate Medical Education

•  Dr. Ellias Horner, Award in Education for Communicator Competency

Undergraduate Medical Education

• Dr. Gaelle Bekolo-Evina, Health Advocate Competency Award
• Dr. Marie-Eve Bérubé, Collaborator Competency Award
• Dr. Mélissa Guindon, Person Competency Award

DFM Staffing Update

We are pleased to announce some new staff who have recently joined us at 600 Peter Morand.

Within the Education team, we welcome:

• Melissa Sardinha as the Program Officer. She will be working alongside Kim Beaubien in evaluations, residents in remediation as well as being responsible for the International Medical Graduate (IMG) stream. Melissa comes to us from the Civic FHT. She can be reached at msardinh@uottawa.ca.

• Taylor Widenmaier as the new PGY3/Community Coordinator. Taylor comes to us from the Diagnostic Radiology Residency Program where he was the Program Administrator since 2018. For PGY3-related items, he can be reached at: efspdfm@uottawa.ca; and for community related items, communitydfm@uottawa.ca. 

• Alicia Campagna as the UG/PG Coordinator. Alicia comes to us from the Palliative Care Program. She will be working closely with Donna Williams and the rest of the team to help support the educational program. We will provide her email address in our next communications.

Within the Departmental Affairs and Communications Team, we welcome:

• Fadima Diallo as the new Communications and Special Projects Coordinator. She completed an Honours Degree in Communications and a Minor in Law at the University of Ottawa. As a co-op student, she gained valuable experience within four different government departments, most recently, in Employment and Social Development Canada as a Communications Officer. She can be reached at commsdfm@uottawa.ca.

• Jordan Choy, who has joined as a Communications Assistant co-op student. He is currently pursuing a master's in Public Administration at the University of Ottawa. He brings a strong interest in writing and communications from years of experience in public service that began with an internship for Speaker Nancy Pelosi in 2016. He can be reached at jchoy@uottawa.ca.



• Joel Richard, who has joined our team as the new Faculty Affairs Coordinator and will be supporting the Chair, Dr. Liddy, with faculty appointment requests, among other administrative responsibilities. He comes to us from the Ottawa Civic Hospital Anesthesia Associates working within the partnerships group. He can be reached at jricha29@uottawa.ca.

December 9th Staff Holiday Celebration

On December 9^th, many members of the DFM staff gathered to celebrate the holidays and the end of 2022 at the Bridge Public House, pictured here.

Visiting Professor with the DFM

Update from the Project Management Office- Veteran's Health

As the DFM looks to evolve its portfolio of socially accountable primary care eLearning materials, the development of a new project has begun: Veterans’ Health. The two eLearning modules and series of podcasts are jointly developed by the PMO team, Queen’s University, and the City of Ottawa’s Veterans Task Force, and will be made available as continuing professional education for practicing family physicians, military medical officers, and medical residents.

The Veterans' Health eLearning Modules will include two foundational, interactive modules titled "My Patient is a Veteran”. The foundations of veteran health and well-being as well as engaging with this patient population, will be explored. The project aims to:

• Identify appropriate healthcare services available for Canadian Armed Forces and RCMP Members, including Veterans.
• List common occupational health concerns for Veteran populations.
• Describe the prevalence of chronic health conditions among Veterans for better provision of primary care and referrals.
• Take the first steps to engage with Veteran patients using the Veterans Affairs Canada Well-Being Construct.
• Develop cultural competence in addressing Veteran health and wellness needs in their transition from military to Veteran life.
• Utilize strategies in practice to build a respectful rapport with Veteran patients and their families.

The Veterans' Health podcast episodes will be made available for streaming on YouTube, among other streaming services, and will feature interviews with subject matter experts on the following topics: Organizations Supporting Family Physicians in Treating Veterans, the Transition of Military to Civilian Life, Veteran Comorbidity Physical-Mental Health Injuries, and Women’s Issues in Veterans’ Health.

Additional information on how to access this material will be communicated upon its release. For any questions or comments on the development process, please contact the Project Manager, Marisa Duval, mduval2@uottawa.ca.

For further information on the PMO initiatives, please view the Ignite Talk, which was presented at our Departmental Assembly last month (select presentation mode to hear the message from the PMO).

Recruitment for Study

Immersive VR for the Self-Management of Post-Traumatic Stress Injuries in First Responders and Emergency Health Care Workers



Are you interested in participating in a VR experience? We are looking for first responders and emergency healthcare workers to participate in a research project (up to 150 participants, first come first served). Spend 1-hour exploring the VR scuba seascape and learn about post-traumatic stress injuries (PTSI). Recruitment is open now until May 2023.

Learn more about participating in the VR experience that will be leveraged to better understand post-traumatic stress injuries, tools, and coping strategies. More information can be found on the Innovation Projects page of the DFM website, or by emailing Dr. Maddie Venables at Maddie.Venables@uottawa.ca.

Immersive Virtual Reality for Self-Management of Stress & Anxiety



In partnership with Queen's University, the DFM created a virtual reality (VR) experience that simulates three scuba diving environments to teach users about stress and anxiety. Based on user feedback, we have updated and improved the VR experience. We are looking for faculty members and learners (medical students and residents) to test the new and improved VR scuba experience! For more information, please contact Dr. Maddie Venables: Maddie.Venables@uottawa.ca. Read more

Updates from Research

Call for Projects – 2023 Medical Student Summer Research Program (MSSRP) – Deadline: February 1, 2023

The Faculty of Medicine’s Medical Student Summer Research Program (MSSRP) is offering bursaries of $5,500 and provides medical students the opportunity to gain first-hand training in research methodologies and skills while working with a faculty supervisor/mentor. This competitive program supports projects from across the medical research continuum, from fundamental research on the mechanisms of disease and drug discovery to evidence-based medical education and practice-changing clinical research.

Please visit the following link for more information and submit your research project proposals to the student body by February 1, 2023

Discoverability – Your UNIWEB Profile

Discover the research/teaching/clinical interests of over 4000 members from across 11 Faculties at the University of Ottawa through the UNIWEB Profile – a great tool that facilitates finding potential collaborators across disciplines. For more information or assistance in getting started, access the help section of uniweb.uottawa.ca or contact us at recherchedfm@uottawa.ca.

Publications 2022 – DFM’s Contribution to the Body of Knowledge in Primary Care

DFM Faculty members published over 110 articles in 2022, contributing to the body of knowledge in primary care by doing extensive and innovative research. Visit our Research Publications for 2022 for a complete list. If your publication is missing, send the citation to recherchedfm@uottawa.ca.

DFM Funding Programs – Important Dates

Locum Support Fund: For protected time to conduct research activities or prepare your application for academic promotion. Applications are accepted on an ongoing basis.

Tuition/Education Support Fund: To support Faculty interested in the pursuit of higher learning education in exchange for a return of service. Deadline: March 1, 2023.

Leadership Training Support Fund: To support Faculty members interested in the acquisition of leadership skills through training. Deadline: March 1, 2023.

Scholarly Presentation Support Fund: To support Faculty members in presenting at a provincial, national or international educational conference. It will promote new authors in conducting research and disseminating their results. Deadline: March 1, 2023.

Ad Hoc Research Support Fund: To support Faculty members and staff in responding to unexpected or time-sensitive research related opportunities for which no or insufficient funds are available. Deadline: March 1, 2023.

PRIME Grant: To support faculty members in undertaking a scholarly or research project with access to an experienced research team, including guidance from a research adviser and mentoring from a medical educator. The PRIME grant provides up to $20,000 per project in support of research in primary care or medical education innovation. The deadline for Letters of Intent is September 1, 2023. 

Upcoming Events

Ottawa Practice Enhancement Network (OPEN) Information Session and Workshop

Dr. Simone Dahrouge, Associate Professor, Director of the Ottawa Practice Enhancement Network (OPEN), is hosting two free one-hour information sessions in January 2023, “Invited to the 2023 CPSO QI Program? Get oriented now!” to discuss the CPSO QI Program certification expectations for 2023. Follow the above-noted link for session information.

OPEN, in collaboration with the University of Ottawa’s Office of Continuing Professional Development, has established a 9-hour experiential workshop delivered over 3 months on the essentials of QI, “Essentials for Practice Improvement for Ontario Physicians.” Follow this link to register.

The information sessions in January and the workshop are intended for those who have been selected for the CPSO certification this year. The workshop is helpful for those wanting to gain a basic knowledge of QI to undertake QI in their practice. Those attending are eligible for Mainpro+ credits.

Call for participants for a Virtual Care Patient Experience (VCPE) survey that has been launched to understand patient and caregiver experiences with virtual care. Please access the study, An In-Depth Examination of Primary Care Patients’ Experiences with Virtual Care, for more information.

Matinée du savoir – La recherche et les chaires de l’institut du Savoir Montfort

Offered in French, this free webinar on January 31^st is an opportunity to learn about research chairs’ interests and various research projects. Please access this link for more information.

Smarter Imaging for Family Physicians and Internists is a virtual webinar series to update family physicians on imaging test selection for common clinical problems. Please follow this link for more information and to register. 

Meridith Marks

The 2023 Meridith Marks Day will be held on March 24, 2023, at the Ottawa Conference and Event Centre. The event will showcase local research and innovations in Medical Education, and feature a plenary speaker, Dr. Glenn Regehr. The deadline for abstract submissions of oral and poster presentations is January 22, 2023. Please visit DIME'S website for more information.