ANNOUNCEMENTS
IN MEMORIAM
The Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery was
deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Mrs. Peggy
Lindsay on February 6th, 2012. Mrs. Lindsay was the
"First Lady" of Plastic Surgery during the time her husband,
Dr. W. K. Lindsay was the Chair of the Division
of Plastic Surgery at the University of Toronto (1965 to
1989 - an unprecedented 24 years!). During this era,
she was an impressive and wonderful support for "WK"
and represented the epitome of grace and gentle charm.
She took great interest in the trainees in the program
and hosted an annual Christmas and tree-cutting Party
for the house staff. Following Dr. Lindsay’s passing
in 2008, Mrs. Lindsay established the W. K. Lindsay
Award in Plastic Surgery Research at the Hospital for
Sick Children. This is an annual award given to the best
research paper in Pediatric Plastic Surgery presented by
a trainee. At this time, the division would like to extend
its deepest sympathies to the Lindsay family and recognize
the importance that she had on the fabric of our
program during the "Lindsay years".
Christopher Forrest
Tait McPhedran
|
Tait McPhedran passed away
In Calgary, AB on March
13, 2012 in his 88th year.
Dr. McPhedran held a faculty
appointment in General
Surgery, Toronto General
Hospital, Department of
Surgery, University of Toronto
from 1957 to 1969. He then
went to the new University of
Calgary Medical School and was appointed Professor and
Head of the Department of Surgery and Chief of Surgery at
Foothills Hospital until his retirement in 1991.
James Rutka
Dr. Thomas Patterson Morley
(Neurosurgery) passed away
peacefully at home on Sunday,
April 29th, 2012 in his 93rd
year. Dr. Morley graduated in
medicine from the University
of Oxford. He served in the
Medical Branch of the Royal
Air Force during WWII. After
the war, he did his neurosurgical
training in Manchester with Sir Geoffrey Jefferson. He then
came to Toronto and was on staff at Sunnybrook Hospital.
Dr. Morley succeeded Dr. Botterell as Head of the Division
of Neurosurgery at the Toronto General Hospital in 1962,
and in 1964 he was named Chairman of Neurosurgery at
the University of Toronto. One of Dr. Morley’s accomplishments
as Chairman was expanding the training program to
include more residents trained each year, and to develop
neurosurgery at other major Toronto Hospitals such as the
Sunnybrook Medical Centre and the Wellesley Hospital.
Following his retirement from active neurosurgical practice
in 1986, the Morley Neurosurgical Prize was established
for the best research paper given by a neurosurgical
resident at the annual Keith Lectureship. Dr. Morley
was very interested in and wrote about the history of
Canadian Neurosurgery. For 14 years, he was editor for
the series Canadian Medical Lives, and in 2004, he published
a biography of Dr. Kenneth G. McKenzie.
Catharine Whiteside
Sydney Katz
|
Sydney Katz passed away
on September 23rd, 2011 at
the age of 78. Syd was born
in Winnipeg, Manitoba
and graduated from the
University of Manitoba
Medical School in 1957. He
did post graduate training
in the University of Toronto
urology program. He joined
the Department of Surgery in the Division of Urology
at Saint Joseph’s Hospital in Toronto and following that
post he was the main urologist at the Humber Memorial
Hospital until his retirement. Dr. Katz was a beloved
teacher and practitioner who did good work all his life.
He will be sadly missed by his family and friends!
NEW APPOINTMENTS
APPOINTMENT OF PROFESSOR DIMITRI ANASTAKIS AS VICE DEAN, CONTINUING EDUCATION & PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Dimitri Anastakis
|
The Academic Board has approved the appointment
of Professor Dimitri Anastakis as Vice-Dean of
Continuing Education and Professional Development
for a five-year term commencing July 1, 2012.
Dr. Anastakis is a Professor
in the Department of Surgery
and holds a cross appointment
in the Lawrence S. Bloomberg
Faculty of Nursing. He has
recently served as the Chair
of the Division of Plastic
& Reconstructive Surgery
(September 1, 2006 to July 1,
2011). Since May 2010 he has
held the position of Executive
Director of SIM-one, the interprofessional healthcare
simulation network that links simulation facilities,
resources and services across the Province of Ontario.
Professor Anastakis has published widely including
articles in peer reviewed journals, book chapters and
abstracts. He has made numerous presentations at
scientific meetings in Canada, the United States and
Europe. Currently, his clinical research focuses on outcomes
following reconstruction of the paralyzed upper
extremity and cortical plasticity following upper extremity
injury, repair and rehabilitation. He is also involved
in medical education research, having studied technical
skills teaching and assessment, visual spatial abilities in
surgical skills acquisition, and cortical plasticity during
motor skills acquisition. He has been the recipient of a
number of grants to support this research, and is actively
involved in the medical education community including
the RCPSC, American College of Surgeons and the
Association for Surgical Education. Professor Anastakis
is an outstanding teacher and highly regarded mentor in
undergraduate and graduate surgical education and has
won numerous awards for teaching and research, including
the Wightman-Berris Academy Award for Individual
Teaching Excellence from the Department of Surgery.
Professor Anastakis graduated from medical school at
the University of Toronto where he also completed his
residency in Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery. He was
an R. Samuel McLaughlin Fellow studying surgery of
the brachial plexus and peripheral nerves at Universite
de Longeraie, Lausanne, Switzerland. Following his fellowship,
Dr. Anastakis joined the University of Toronto’s
Faculty of Medicine in the Department of Surgery.
He also has graduate degrees in Health Professions
Education, from the University of Illinois at Chicago,
and in Healthcare Management from Harvard University.
Please join me in warmly welcoming Dimitri Anastakis
to his new role in the Faculty of Medicine, University of
Toronto.
Catharine Whiteside
Dean, Faculty of Medicine
Vice-Provost, Relations with Health Care Institutions
Thomas Lindsay
|
THOMAS LINDSAY APPOINTED HEAD OF THE DIVISION OF VASCULAR SURGERY AT UHN AND THE R. FRASER ELLIOTT CHAIR IN VASCULAR SURGERY
I am pleased to announce
the appointment of Thomas
Lindsay as Head of the
Division of Vascular Surgery
at UHN and the R. Fraser
Elliott Chair in Vascular
Surgery effective June 1st,
2012.
Dr. Lindsay is Professor
and Chair of the Division
of Vascular Surgery at the
University of Toronto. He received his medical degree
from McGill University and his General Surgery and
Vascular Surgery training at the University of Toronto.
During his surgical training he completed an MSc
degree in the Surgical Scientist Program in Ischemia
- Reperfusion Injury of Skeletal Muscle. Following a
Medical Research Council of Canada Post Doctoral
Fellowship at Harvard Medical School, he returned to
the Division of Vascular Surgery at UHN in 1992. Dr.
Lindsay is a clinician scientist whose research focuses on
understanding the mechanisms of organ dysfunction
following ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm. He has
spearheaded the development of the UHN vascular surgery
program into a centre for advanced interventions to
repair complex aneurysms with EVAR grafts. He also led
the regional reorganization of Vascular Surgical Services
at the University of Toronto, including the establishment
of an alternate funding plan.
Please join me in congratulating Tom on his achievements
and on receiving these two significant honours.
I look forward to working with Tom towards realizing
his vision for the Division of Vascular Surgery at UHN.
Shaf Keshavjee
Surgeon in Chief, UHN
James Wallace McCutcheon Chair in Surgery
MICHAEL TYMIANSKI APPOINTED HEAD OF THE DIVISION OF NEUROSURGERY AT TORONTO WESTERN HOSPITAL
Michael Tymianski
|
I am pleased to announce that
Michael Tymianski was selected
as Head of the Division
of Neurosurgery at Toronto
Western Hospital, effective
June 1, 2012. Michael earned
his MD at the University
of Toronto and his PhD in
neuroscience at the Institute
for Medical Science for his
studies on cerebral neuroprotection.
After completing fellowships in cerebrovascular
and skull-base neurosurgery in Toronto and at the Barrow
Neurological Institute in Phoenix, he joined our Faculty
in 1997 as a CIHR Clinician-Scientist and Director of the
Neuroprotection Laboratory at Toronto Western. Michael
has since held a number of leadership positions at UHN,
including his current role as Medical Director of the
Neurovascular Therapeutics Program and most recently
as our interim Division Head of Neurosurgery at TWH.
He is appointed as a Full Professor in the Department
of Surgery with a cross-appointment as Professor in the
Department of Physiology at the University of Toronto,
and holds a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Translational
Stroke Research.
Michael has distinguished himself remarkably on
the clinical and research fronts. In 2009, he performed
what was likely the world’s first aneurysm day surgery at
UHN, and is recognized internationally for his groundbreaking
research on neuroprotection in stroke using
PSD-95 inhibitors. His work has been published in
some of the highest impact journals within and outside
of the neurosciences, including Cell, Science, Nature,
Nature Neuroscience, Proceedings of the National
Academy of Sciences and the New England Journal of
Medicine. His accomplishments have been recognized
by multiple academic awards, including the Gold Medal
in Surgery from the Royal College of Physicians and
Surgeons of Canada, and by consistent funding from the
CIHR, National Institutes of Health, Ontario Ministry
of Research, Heart and Stroke Foundation and Canadian
Stroke Network. His commitment to education is
reflected by the quality of his research trainees and their
achievements under his guidance.
Please join me in congratulating and conveying our
best wishes to Michael on this prestigious appointment
and in supporting him as he leads our Division
at Toronto Western into our next stage of excellence at
national and international levels.
Andres M. Lozano
Professor and Dan Family Chair in Neurosurgery
University of Toronto
ANDREW DUECK APPOINTED VASCULAR DIVISION HEAD AT SUNNYBROOK HEALTH SCIENCES CENTRE
Andrew Dueck
|
Andrew Dueck obtained his
medical degree from Queen’s
University in 1999 and then
trained in General Surgery
at the University of Toronto.
During that time he obtained
a Masters degree in clinical
epidemiology focusing on
treatment of aneurysms in
the province of Ontario. He
completed a Fellowship in
Vascular surgery at the University of Toronto, took additional
training at Arizona Heart Institute in minimally
invasive and image-guided cardiovascular surgery.
Andrew was appointed to the Division of Vascular
Surgery at the University of Toronto in 2007. His clinical
practice focuses on complex vascular care with a focus
on image-guided and endovascular interventions. He has
a particular interest in the endovascular and open repair
of complex aortic pathology. He works closely with
university and hospital level colleagues in the Division
of Cardiac Surgery. He also has a strong interest in the
percutaneous treatment of occlusive disease.
Andrew’s research interests include imaging of the
microvasculature of the peripheral extremities using
MRI techniques. He also has a strong interest in
the evaluation of novel percutaneous or endovascular
devices. He has been active in the evaluation of chronic
cerebrospinal venous insufficiency and its potential role
in multiple sclerosis.
He is the co-director of the vascular laboratory at
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and sits on multiple
committees including the Schulich Heart Executive
Committee. He also sits on a variety of regional and
provincial committees for the planning and delivery of
vascular surgery services in Ontario. He is an associate
scientist at the Sunnybrook Research Institute, an Adjunct
Scientist at the Li Ka Shing Knolwedge Institute and
a member of the executive of the Canadian Society for
Vascular Surgery.
Thomas Lindsay,
Chair, Vascular Surgery, University of Toronto
|
APPOINTMENT OF CARMINE SIMONE AS CHIEF OF SURGERY, TORONTO EAST GENERAL HOSPITAL
Carmine Simone
|
Carmine Simone has been
appointed as Chief of
Surgery at Toronto East
General Hospital replacing
Dr. Laura Tate who has
completed her term. He
is a thoracic surgeon and
is the Medical Director of
Inpatient Surgery, Medical
Director of the ICU and
Head, Division of Critical
Care. He has courtesy privileges at Sunnybrook Health
Sciences Centre and Royal Victoria Hospital in Barrie,
Ontario. He went to medical school at McMaster
University in Hamilton and graduated in 1998. He
completed his thoracic surgery and adult critical care
training at the Toronto General Hospital, University
of Toronto in 2004. His clinical areas of interest are
lung and esophageal cancer, mediastinal tumours and
metastatic cancers to the chest. He is a Lecturer at the
University of Toronto, Division of Thoracic Surgery. He
is involved in various hospital, LHIN and provincial
committees on critical care and surgical standards. He
participates in the Time to Treat Program which has successfully
reduced the wait times for patients with lung
cancer by 71%.
James Rutka
APPOINTMENT OF DR. IAN WITTERICK AS CHAIR, DEPARTMENT OF OTOLARYNGOLOGY - HEAD & NECK SURGERY
The Academic Board has approved the appointment of
Professor Ian Witterick as Chair of the Department of
Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery for a five year
term commencing July 1, 2012.
Dr. Witterick is Professor and Vice-Chair in the
Department of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck
Surgery at the University of Toronto and serves as the
Department’s Director of Postgraduate Education and
Continuing Education. He holds leadership positions
in the Canadian Society of Otolaryngology - Head &
Neck Surgery and the Royal College of Physicians and
Surgeons of Canada.
A highly regarded teacher, Professor Witterick has
received numerous teaching awards including the
Postgraduate Medical Education Program Development
and Innovation Award and the Charles Mickle Fellowship
Award. He has organized more than 40 continuing education
courses or conferences and was recently Program
Chair for the North American Skull Base Society. He is an
associate editor for the Journal of Otolaryngology - Head
& Neck Surgery and the American Journal of Rhinology
& Allergy and has published widely in the fields of head
& neck oncology, rhinology, and skull base surgery.
Dr. Witterick graduated from medical school at
the University of Western Ontario. He completed his
residency training program at the University of Toronto
followed by fellowships in head & neck oncology
and rhinology, and an MSc in Clinical Epidemiology.
His current clinical appointments are at Mount Sinai
Hospital, the University Health Network, and Saint
Joseph’s Health Centre, Toronto.
May I extend sincere thanks to Pat Gullane for
his outstanding leadership of the Department of
Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery since 2002.
Please join me in warmly welcoming Ian Witterick to
his new role in the Faculty of Medicine, University of
Toronto.
Catharine Whiteside
Dean, Faculty of Medicine
Vice-Provost, Relations with Health Care Institutions
IT'S OFFICIAL! THE PRINCESS MARGARET CANCER CENTRE
We are pleased to announce that Her Majesty the Queen
has approved our request to formally change the name
of Princess Margaret Hospital to the Princess Margaret
Cancer Centre. We believe the new name more accurately
reflects the scope of the cancer program which
provides treatment and services to patients at all UHN
sites, and not only at PMH. The "centre" designation
is important because it is the terminology used internationally
by other leading cancer institutions that also
integrate research and services and conduct clinical drug
trials. So Princess Margaret Cancer Centre is a perfect
fit with our vision to achieve global impact as one of
the Top 5 comprehensive cancer programs in the world.
Please note that we will not be using "PMCC" since this
is reserved for the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre. We will
be known as the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre or the
Princess Margaret We are developing a plan to implement
this name change over the next few months and
will update you soon with further details.
Mary Gospodarowicz,
Medical Director, and Marnie Escaf, SVP and
Executive Lead,
Princess Margaret Cancer Program
AB GUHA LECTURE
The first Ab Guha Lecture was introduced at the
Bethune Round Table Meeting on May 25, 2012.
The lecture would be funded in perpetuity and
fully supported by the Division of Neurosurgery
at UHN/TWH. The lecture was fantastic - Mike
Haglund from Duke who has done some amazing
neurosurgical development work in Uganda. Next
year the BRT will be in Vancouver (we’re moving
it around) and I will go to introduce the Ab Guha
lecturer there.
Mark Bernstein
|
BRILLIANCE BALL GALA CELEBRATING FRED GENTILI AND EXCELLENCE IN SKULL BASE SURGERY
Fred Gentili
|
On Nov. 14, 2012, the Brilliance
Ball gala evening will be held at
the Liberty Grand in Toronto
to celebrate Fred Gentili and
excellence in skull base surgery
at the Toronto Western Hospital
and University of Toronto. Many
of you will know Fred as a past
trainee or colleague, or simply by
his reputation as a master neurosurgeon and one of the
pioneers of skull base surgery in Canada. Since joining
our Faculty in 1982, he has not only helped establish a
premiere program in Toronto but also been an international
leader in his discipline as one of the founding members
of the North American Skull Base Society. A Full
Professor at the University, his distinguished career has
been recognized with honorary membership in the Italian
Neurological Society and more recently with the Ontario
College of Physicians and Surgeons Award of Excellence.
Dr. Gentili has taught and been an outstanding mentor to
a generation of neurosurgery residents and fellows and his
work has touched the lives of many.
I would like to take this opportunity to personally invite
you to join us on Nov. 14th to celebrate Dr. Gentili’s many
accomplishments throughout his career with what promises
to be a memorable evening of great food, wine and entertainment
as well as a celebrity purse auction and a raffle. Proceeds
from the evening will support the creation of a new $3M
Chair in Skull Base Surgery at Toronto Western Hospital with
Fred as the inaugural Chair. This well-deserved recognition of
his career achievements to date will enable him to continue
to advance his field and to maintain the world class standing
of our Division in this challenging area of neurosurgery and
allow us to continue to lead in the years to come. Tickets are
available for $500 per attendee or $5000 per table and can
be purchased online at www.brillianceball.ca. Should you be
unable to attend but still wish to support the event, or if you
have other questions, please contact me directly or Amber
Bernard at amber.bernard@uhn.ca or 416-340-4800
ext. 6279. Please join me in celebrating Dr. Gentilli’s
outstanding career and in building this endowed chair.
Andres M. Lozano
Dan Family Chair in Neurosurgery, University of Toronto
SEAD PROJECT A SUCCESS!
SEAD 2012
|
In June, a group
of 20 medical students
took part in
the first Surgery
Exploration and
Discovery (SEAD)
program offered at
the University of
Toronto. The curriculum
for the course
was comprised of individual lectures in the different
surgical specialties, hands on courses at the Surgical
Skills Centre and at Li Ka Shing, and opportunities to
go to the operating room. The SEAD program was the
brainchild of Nada Gawad, a 2nd year medical student.
As it was extremely successful this year, we plan to hold
the SEAD program once again next year. Thanks to all
the surgeons, fellows, and residents who participated in
the program, and to Nada and her medical student team
for their enthusiasm in learning more about surgery in
the preclerkship years.
James Rutka
LANDMARK DONATION TO THE DEPARTMENT OF SURGERY AT UHN FROM THE SPROTT FOUNDATION
The Department of Surgery received a $25 Million
gift from the Sprott Foundation. This gift will support
surgical innovation, recruitment and retention
of key faculty, and leading-edge surgical
technologies. The Transplant Organ Repair and
Regeneration Centre (TORRC) will also be greatly
supported by this very generous donation.
James Rutka
|
STEPPING STONES TEACHER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
This accredited program is designed to assist teachers
with their educational and teaching roles. After
completion of the program, the Stepping Stones Teacher
Development Certificate will be awarded.
For more information or to register please visit:
http://www.cfd.med.utoronto.ca/programs/stepping-stones.html
James Rutka
INTERNAL RESEARCH COMPETITION IN GENERAL SURGERY AT SUNNYBROOK
Every year, the impact factors of all publications from the
Trauma and Surgical Oncology programs at Sunnybrook
are added and then divided by the number of members
in those two programs. It appears that once again, the
Trauma program members have soundly beaten the
Surgical Oncologists, in no small part due to the number
of outstanding publications by Homer Tien and Sandro
Rizoli. As is the custom in this friendly competition, the
Surgical Oncologists have admitted defeat, and paid the
bill for dinner. Regardless of which program wins this
competition, the annual rate of publications is increasing
for both Trauma and Surgical Oncology at Sunnybrook.
James Rutka
SURGICAL ROBOT USED TO TREAT LUNCH CANCER FOR FIRST TIME IN CANADA AT TORONTO GENERAL HOSPITAL
For the first time in Canada, surgeons Kazuhiro Yasufuku
and Tom Waddell from Toronto General Hospital have
used a robotic surgical system to treat early-stage lung
cancer by removing the cancer, along with the lobe of the
lung. The surgery was done in October and the patient
remains cancer-free. This less invasive procedure leads
to a reduction in pain, and an earlier discharge from
hospital.
James Rutka
SPEEDY GONZALES!
Heather Baltzer
|
At the beginning of May
Toronto hosted the Toronto
Half Marathon. Heather
Baltzer competed in this
race and finished the half
marathon in an incredible
record time of 1 hour and
36 minutes. She had the
30th fastest female time out
of over 3,000 women. As
well, only 170 out of over
3,000 men beat her time.
A fantastic athletic accomplishment! I could not have
gone that fast on my bike!
Mitchell H. Brown
Program Director, Division of Plastic & Reconstructive
Surgery
University of Toronto
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