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Welcome to Pathology's Bi-Weekly Bulletin | October 7, 2022

Departmental Town Hall Meeting

We invite you to a town hall meeting on October 28th from noon to 1 pm via Zoom Join Zoom Meeting .
Meeting ID: 614 9139 2803 | Passcode: 990620.

  • to discuss our department’s emerging strategic direction. Developing a five-year strategic plan is one of my initial priorities and I am delighted to see the progress that has been made over the past few months. My conversations with faculty, students and staff earlier in the year have helped to clarify the opportunities and issues, as have discussions during our regular rounds such as those led by Dr Cheryl Wellington on Research Priorities and Dr Mike Nimmo on Education Priorities. To help me think through and document our strategy, a broadly representative Strategic Planning Steering Committee has been formed and has already been hard at work!
  • Together, we have created a planning process that allows us to seek guidance, discussion and feedback from department members over the next six-eight months. The intention during the October 28 townhall is to share some early ideas with respect to the future direction of the Department. Your comments both during the session as well as through a questionnaire distributed following the session, will help sharpen the development of the draft strategy and Department priorities by the Steering Committee.
  • The more detailed action steps will be identified over the winter under the leadership of five sub-committees: Research, Education, External Collaboration/Partnerships, Department Engagement and Equity, and Organizational Effectiveness. Our goal is to have a draft strategic plan for your review by April 2023.
  • We will continue to keep you informed of our progress through the department meetings (held on the 4th Friday of the month in our weekly rounds timeslot from noon to 1 pm), our biweekly bulletins and our winter newsletter. There will also be opportunities during the winter to provide more specific input, working with these five sub-committees.
  • Schedules are busy and hectic and we thank you, members of our Strategic Planning Steering Committee, as well as Heleena Mistry who coordinates all of the activities needed to bring people together – in advance for your time, ideas and suggestions. We look forward to connecting over the next several months as we co-create the Department’s future.

Pathology Province-Wide Rounds

Book off 12-1 pm for every Friday for the Pathology Province-Wide Rounds | Location: https://ubc.zoom.us (the same URL for all rounds) . For Zoom information or any questions, please email Heleena Mistry. Rounds are recorded and available here.

Friday, October 7, 2022 from 12pm-1pm: *RESEARCH*

Speaker: Dr. Michael Chen, Co-Chair, BC COVID-19 Biobank Network and Head, Medical Biochemistry, Island Health

Topic: “BC COVID-19 Biobank Network (BCCBN): Promoting Access and Enabling Research”

Objectives:

  • introduce BCCBN as a province-wide platform for biobanking;
  • describe BCCBN developments and subsequent benefits;
  • discuss specimen access and future directions.

Friday, October 14, 2022 from 12pm-1pm: *CLINICAL*

Speaker: Peter Lansdorp, Distinguished Scientist, Terry Fox Laboratory, BC Cancer; Professor, Medical Genetics, University of British Columbia

Topic: “Telomerase and Cell Renewal in the Context of Evolution Biology”

Objectives:

  • recognize clinical features of telomere biology disorders ;
  • appreciate telomere shortening as a powerful tumor suppressor mechanism that limits cell renewal in the hematopoietic, immune and cardiovascular system;
  • consider a novel model to explain why females have longer telomeres and live longer than males.

Funding Received - Congratulations!

Success Stories

  • The Wellington lab is honoured to have leadership roles in the International Initiative on Traumatic Brain Injury Research, The Canadian Traumatic Brain Injury Research Consortium, and the Canadian Concussion Network. Through these international and national efforts, our research program on blood biomarkers for TBI across the lifespan is expected to contribute to new global efforts to reduce the economic and social costs of TBI and improve access to care for all patients, regardless of their geographical location. Read more
  • Andrew Churg was appointed as an Associate Editor for Frontiers in Medicine.

Awards and Recognition

  • Each year, the Faculty of Medicine recognizes faculty and staff members for excellence in teaching, research, administration, innovation and public service.

    Our department was extremely successful in the Faculty of Medicine awards this year, congratulations to:
    David Goldfarb (Clinical Faculty Award for Excellence in Research),
    Tracy Tucker (Killam Teaching Prize),
    Aly Karsan (Killam Research Prize),
    Jayachandran Kizhakkedathu (Distinguished Achievement Awards),
    Cheryl Wellington (Excellence in Clinical or Applied Research),
    Cornelia Laule (Overall Excellence — Mid-Career)
  • Congratulations to Jennifer Xenakis on winning The Richard Hare Award. The Richard Hare Award is given to the worker safety advocate who has taken on a longstanding leadership role in the university’s health and safety community.

Highlighted Events

  • UBC Postdoctoral Association - 3 Minute Postdoc Slam
    We are organizing our annual 3 Minute Postdoc Slam, a communication and professional development event on October 20 ! All postdocs from your department and unit are welcome to enter to compete in the Slam competition. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Dr. Mehwish Anwer , Executive member - UBC Postdoctoral Association. More Info
  • Free Statistical Consultation: 2022/23
    The Statistics Department offers several types of free statistical consultation, via STAT 551, SOS and STAT 450/550. Read More