The fourth annual Dr Fred Bryans Faculty Forum took place the morning of February 6, 2014 at the Medical Student & Alumni Centre. It attracted 30 participants (clinicians, researchers and trainees) from across our and affiliated departments. In this intimate setting we were able to learn from each other and a diverse group of expert speakers.
We were very fortunate to have Dr Howard Feldman, Executive Associate Dean, Research in the Faculty of Medicine, open the Forum. Dr Feldman, a very successful researcher in his own right, described some of his lab’s early foundational work, which was completely unfunded and arduous. Ultimately this early work led to a publication in the journal “Nature” and an abundance of grant funding, reminding us of the importance of perseverance and a good data set in achieving your research goals.
We launched the event with members of each division (Chantal Mayer, Jessica McAlpine, Julie van Schalkwyk, Neeraj Mehra and Mohamed Bedaiwy) sharing their own research experiences. Their stories inspired and encouraged; prompting us to take advantage of the supports provided by our colleagues, mentors and the local research community.
Elizabeth Cheu, Manager, Research Grants, Faculty of Medicine, shared her tools and expertise for crafting potentially fundable research proposals. David Huntsman, Co-Founder & Director, OVCARE, Professor, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, advised us on building around deficiencies and managing capacity to improve research productivity. Lori Brotto, Associate Professor, Head, Division of Gynaecologic Specialties, Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, provided tips on how to survive peer review and successfully publish. Amy Metcalfe, PhD, Post-Doctoral Fellow, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, gave us practical tools and recommendations for making the most of our clinical data for research. Finally, Dawn McArthur provided useful guidelines and suggestions for thinking through knowledge translation processes and matching them to our research goals.
We would like to sincerely thank our panel members, our workshop leaders, and Mrs. Jane Bryans for their role and contribution to another successful forum. The attendees themselves were a significant contributor the success of the event. We appreciated the enthusiasm and engagement of our participants who, by also sharing their own experiences, enriched learning for all.
Submitted by Ariadna Fernandez, Chair, Faculty Forum Planning Committee