Call for Self-Nominations – Necia Laura May Elvin Memorial Prize in Schizophrenia Research – Deadline May 9, 2025
** Sent on behalf of Dr. Sophia Frangou and the Research Day Organizing Committee **
Dear colleagues,
We are pleased to invite self-nominations for the Necia Laura May Elvin Memorial Prize in Schizophrenia Research. The award will be presented to the successful applicant at the Annual Departmental Research Day on June 5th, 2025.
This annual award recognizes a Doctoral trainee or Postdoctoral Fellow who has published an outstanding peer-reviewed paper relevant to schizophrenia. To be eligible, the paper must have been published or accepted for publication between June 2024 and May 2025 in a peer-reviewed journal. Please note that preprints and conference abstracts are not eligible for consideration.
If you meet the criteria and would like to be considered, please complete the self-nomination form and submit together with a pdf copy of your paper to Margaret Koshi (margaret.koshi@ubc.ca) by May 9th, 2025.
Sincerely,
Dr. Sophia Frangou
On behalf of the Organizing Committee
UBC’s campuses and learning sites are situated within the traditional territories of the xwməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil- Waututh) Nations and in the traditional, ancestral, unceded territory of the Syilx Okanagan Nation and their peoples.
INVITING NOMINATIONS! | Upcoming Award Opportunities
Dear Department members,
In the next few months, there will be numerous opportunities for the Department to submit nominations for internal awards that recognize meritorious contributions. As such, the Department Awards & Recognition Committee is extending a department-wide call inviting you to nominate yourself or your colleagues for the following award opportunities:
Faculty of Medicine Awards (Deadline June 13, 2025)
- FoM Applegarth Staff Service Award
- FoM Dean’s Staff Award
- FoM Award for Excellence in Mentoring Early Faculty
- FoM Clinical Faculty for Excellence in Clinical Teaching
- FoM Clinical Faculty Award for Excellence in Leadership/Service
- FoM Clinical Faculty Award for Excellence in Mentorship
- FoM Clinical Faculty Award for Excellence in Research
- FoM Clinical Faculty Award for Excellence in Advancing Equity, Diversity and Inclusiveness
- FoM Bill and Marilyn Webber Lifetime Achievement Award
- UBC Innovation in CME-CPD Award
UBC Directory of Award Opportunities
If you wish to explore an extended list of awards, the UBC Office of Research Prizes and Awards (ORPA) has a directory of external research prize and award opportunities available to researchers, spanning all disciplines. View UBC’s Directory of Award Opportunities:
Nomination & Adjudication Process
If you are interested in self-nomination or nominating a colleague, please submit your nomination to Margaret Koshi, Director, Administration (margaret.koshi@ubc.ca) by April 30, 2025. The Committee’s adjudication process has three stages:
- Submit self-nominations and peer- nominations along with a brief rationale and a CV of the nominee.
- Nominees’ CV and other relevant documents will be adjudicated by the Committee based on the respective award criteria, relevant contributions, and meritorious achievements of each candidate to ensure the suitability of candidates for specific award.
- For those selected to be put forward for FoM nomination, all required materials will be obtained/prepared by Department Administration and submitted per the respective award procedures.
Sincerely,
Department of Psychiatry Awards & Recognition Committee
Dr. Joseph Tham, Clinical Faculty Representative
Dr. Clare Beasley, Academic Faculty Representative
Dr. Ashok Krishnamoorthy, Division Head, Geriatric Psychiatry
Dr. Emlene Murphy, Division Head, Forensic Psychiatry
Dr. Timothy Murphy, Division Head, Neuroscience & Translational Psychiatry
Dr. Roberto Sassi, Division Head, Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
Dr. Christian Schütz, Division Head, Substance Use & Concurrent Disorders
Dr. Randall White, Division Head, Adult Psychiatry & Mental Health Services
Ms. Margaret Koshi, Administrator
Committee Mandate
The Department of Psychiatry Awards & Recognition Committee was established to proactively nominate deserving faculty members of the Department for notable meritorious awards and honours within the Faculty of Medicine and the University, and for significant external awards.
By ensuring that outstanding faculty members are duly nominated whilst upholding departmental values of EDI, the Committee will strive to promote a culture of broad, inclusive and diverse recognition.
The UBC Department of Psychiatry Administration Office respectfully acknowledges the land on which we live, work and play is the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the Coast Salish Peoples, the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-waututh).
Department of Psychiatry Grand Rounds | April 8 with Dr. Daniel Vigo
All Department members across the province are invited to attend the UBC Department of Psychiatry Grand Rounds. The next session will be held Tuesday, April 8, 2025 at 8:30 am on Zoom. The session, The BC Mental Health Act and its use for people with Substance Use Disorders , is presented by Dr. Daniel Vigo, Chief Scientific Advisor for Psychiatry, Toxic Drugs, and Concurrent Disorders, BC; and Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry, UBC
A single registration link is available for all 2025 Grand Rounds:
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
For additional information regarding the monthly UBC Department of Psychiatry Grand Rounds please contact Kevin Elsaputra at kevin.elsaputra@vch.ca.
Add the 2025 Grand Rounds events to your calendar: Download calendar
- Click the “Download calendar” link above
- For Outlook users: Simply double-click the downloaded file to add the events. *Please note, the events may open as a new calendar -simply drag or copy them to your preferred calendar
- For other calendar apps: Open the file with your preferred calendar application
Previous Grand Rounds are now accessible on Canvas
Department of Psychiatry members with UBC CWL can self-enrol in the Grand Rounds Canvas course to view past recordings:
The VCH/PHC Regional Psychiatry Grand Rounds are now the UBC Department of Psychiatry Grand Rounds and are accessible via Zoom to all Department members across the province. Grand Rounds are held the first Tuesday of every month (unless otherwise stated), from 8:30 am to 9:30 am.
The Grand Rounds are a self-approved group learning activity (Section 1) as defined by the Maintenance of Certification program of The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.
IMH Showcase | January 2025
HEATHER PALIS
Assistant Professor, UBC School of Population & Public Health
Senior Scientist, BC Centre for Disease Control
Meet Dr. Heather Palis, a former Marshall Fellow and Stimulus Grant awardee! Her research at the BC Centre for Disease Control and the UBC School of Population and Public Health focuses on harm reduction and substance use interventions to address the overdose emergency in BC. Dr. Palis’ collaborative efforts include bringing together people with lived experience of stimulant use to tackle knowledge gaps in research.
Can you tell us a little about yourself and your background?
I have an MSc and PhD in Population and Public Health from the School of Population and Public Health at UBC, where my research was focused on treatment for people with opioid use disorder. After my PhD, I completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship in the Department of Psychiatry that was focused on examining overdose risk and access to health and substance use services among people released from provincial correctional centres in BC.
Can you describe your role in your current Department?
Currently I am a Senior Scientist in Harm Reduction and Substance Use Services at the BC Centre for Disease Control, and an Assistant Professor (Partner) in the School of Population and Public Health at UBC. In these roles, I lead research that builds upon my Graduate and Postdoctoral research, focused on examining the intersections of mental health, substance use, and chronic disease to identify opportunities for intervention to reduce overdose risk across the health system.
Can you describe what kind of research you are involved in?
My research uses large administrative health datasets to study harm reduction and substance use treatment interventions. This includes studying individual and system-level outcomes with the overall goal of informing the overdose public health emergency response in BC.
Can you tell us about an interesting project or initiative you are working on?
Alongside collaborators across UBC and the BCCDC, our teams were recently funded by Health Research BC’s Collaborating and Convening Awards to identify priorities for research focused on stimulant use in BC. Stimulants (i.e. cocaine and methamphetamine) are increasingly detected in drug toxicity (i.e. overdose) deaths in BC, however a number of knowledge gaps remain with respect to stimulant use and overdose risk. Our project brings together a group of people with lived and living experience of stimulant use to form a Peer Advisory Group. The group will advise on how provincial data can be used to investigate the intersections of chronic health conditions and overdose risk, with attention to the specific risks faced by people who use stimulants.
What are your interests and hobbies outside of work?
Outside of work I like to be outside as much as possible. I cycle and play tennis in the spring and summer and do lots of running in the Fall and Winter Vancouver rain. I am learning to swim as an adult which has been something I have been avoiding for many years and has been a rewarding experience!
If you are an IMH member and would like to share more about yourself and your research with the community, please contact Megan Rollerson, Manager, Communications and Partnerships, at megan.rollerson@ubc.ca.
BC Psychosis Program & UBC Schizophrenia Program Educational Rounds
**Shared on behalf of the BC Psychosis Program and UBC Schizophrenia Program**
Dear Department members,
Faculty and trainees are invited to attend the monthly BC Psychosis Program and UBC Schizophrenia Program Educational Rounds, formerly the BC Psychosis Program educational rounds. The rounds are a CPD accredited series occurring on the first Friday of the month from 12:00 to 1:00 pm online. Topics covered will focus on clinical issues and research findings which will be of interest to clinicians and researchers working with individuals with psychosis.
Upcoming Rounds:
- May 2: “Psychostimulant Substitution Therapy for the Treatment of Stimulant Use Disorders in Patients with Schizophrenia or Schizoaffective Disorder: A Systematic Review” presented by Dr. Cynthia Ramasubbu, PharmD, Sukhpreet Poonia PharmD, & Dr. Reza Rafizadeh, BSc Pharm, PhD, Lower Mainland Pharmacy Services. We invite you to join by registering here:
The BC Psychosis and UBC Schizophrenia Program Educational Rounds are a self-approved group learning activity (Section 1) as defined by the Maintenance of Certification Program of The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. To receive your CME certificate, respond to the feedback survey provided after the session.
The rounds are organized by Dr Reza Rafizadeh, Clinical Assistant Professor, and Dr Randall White, Clinical Professor and Head, Division of Adult Psychiatry and Mental Health Services, with the UBC Department of Psychiatry.
We respectfully acknowledge the land on which we live, work and play is the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the Coast Salish Peoples, the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-waututh).
FRAMES OF MIND Mental Health Film Series | “Hospital”, Wednesday, April 23 | The Cinematheque | Co-sponsored by the UBC Psychiatry Adult Psychiatry Division
A monthly film series promoting professional and community education on issues pertaining to mental health and illness. Presented by The Cinematheque and the Institute of Mental Health, UBC Department of Psychiatry. Screenings are generally held on the third Wednesday of each month at The Cinematheque, 1131 Howe St, Vancouver, BC.
Hospital (new restoration)
USA 1969 (84 min. DCP)
Director: Frederick Wiseman
Wednesday, April 23, 2025 @ 7:00pm
The Cinematheque (1131 Howe St)
Film Description
“Wiseman gives us fault lines, derangement, sanctity … [He] knows that there is as much honour as absurdity in the skirmish.” – Matt Morrison, Film Comment
Just two years after his magnum opus Titicut Follies and decades before hospitals became a popular site of procedural and reality television, Wiseman turned his panoramic lens onto one of society’s greatest collective institutions. Set in the bustling Metropolitan Hospital in East Harlem, Hospital documents numerous emergency encounters of patients suffering from a range of medical and psychological ailments, including states of extreme intoxication. A sense of the frenetic setting in which on-call psychiatrists carry out their responsibilities—still present to this day—emerges. So too do their myriad responsibilities, including their advocacy (not always successful) for the social services needed by psychologically vulnerable patients. Seamlessly shifting between wide and close shots, Wiseman employs a unique reportorial style showcasing the intensity of the seemingly mundane—an approach that continues to inform his observational craft, revealing the drama, personalities, and social concerns of life and death scenarios.
This screening is co-sponsored by the UBC Psychiatry Division of Adult Psychiatry. FREE TICKET: The first 10 members of the Division of Adult Psychiatry and Mental Health Services who email Terena Zhao at psychiatry.divisions@ubc.ca to RSVP will obtain a free ticket!
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“Despite the many undeniably unpleasant sights in the film, Hospital avoids sensationalism … To powerful effect, in its conclusion Hospital returns the cultural and social issues the film raises to the spectator, as Wiseman has frequently done in his work.” – Barry Keith Grant, Library of Congress
Post-screening Discussion:
Post-screening discussion with Dr. Bradley Locke, clinical instructor in the Department of Psychiatry at UBC.
Dr. Locke is a Vancouver-based psychiatrist who works in Emergency and Inpatient care, and also has sub-specialty training in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.
The discussion will be moderated by Dr. Harry Karlinsky, the Series Director of Frames of Mind and a Clinical Professor in the UBC Department of Psychiatry.
Want to be a regular at Frames of Mind screenings on the third Wednesday of every month? Subscribe to the email list and be the first in line for tickets!
PGE Mock OSCE Examiners Required for April 3, 2025, Exams
** Shared on behalf of the UBC Psychiatry Postgraduate Education Team**
MARCH 25, 2025
URGENT! We need two examiners for the afternoon session, 12:30 pm – 4:30 pm held Thursday, April 3, 2025.
If you are interested in being an examiner next Thursday, February 13th, please email Raquel Portillo Henriquez at raquel.portillo@ubc.ca.
MARCH 12, 2025
Dear Faculty Members,
We are seeking Mock OSCE examiners for our April 3rd exams. The Mock OSCEs are an integral part of preparing our residents for their Royal College OSCE exams and we want to ensure the continued success for all of our residents.
We need examiners for the morning session, 8:30 am – 12:15 pm and afternoon session, 12:30 pm – 4:30 pm held Thursday, April 3, 2025. Examiners with full-day availability are preferred, though examiners with morning or afternoon availability will also be considered.
Mock OSCE are conducted virtually through Zoom. You will receive all necessary information prior to the exam. Examiners are eligible for payment at the rate of $106.03 per hour.
If you are interested in being an examiner next Thursday, February 13th, please email Raquel Portillo Henriquez at raquel.portillo@ubc.ca.
Thank you for your help in making Mock OSCEs successful.
Regards,
Raquel Portillo Henriquez
Senior Program Assistant, PGE
UBC Department of Psychiatry
The UBC Department of Psychiatry Administration Office at the UBC Vancouver Campus respectfully acknowledges the land on which we live, work and play is the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the Coast Salish Peoples, the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-waututh).
Congratulations to Psychiatry Faculty awarded King Charles III Coronation Medals
Congratulations to UBC Department of Psychiatry Clinical Professors, Dr. Stacy Elliott and Dr. Biju Mathew, who have both been honoured with King Charles III Coronation Medals in recognition of their outstanding service to Canada and their communities.
MARCH 25, 2025
Dr. Stacy Elliott is Sexual Medicine Physician with Spinal Cord Injury BC and is trained to assess and treat sexual and reproductive problems in persons with illness or injury. Dr. Elliott was recognized with the King Charles III Coronation Medal for her work across BC and Canada in sexual rehabilitation and fertility in persons with spinal cord injury at the Rick Hanson 40th Anniversary celebration on March 20. She also received a Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee medal in 2012.
FEBRUARY 13, 2025
Dr. Biju Mathew is a psychiatrist with the Fraser Health Authority, researcher, and author of the book ‘Super 30 – Changing the World 30 Students at a Time‘. Dr Mathew was involved in the development of the current inpatient Psychiatric unit at Ridge Meadows Hospital. He was one of the early sponsors of Nurse Practitioner’s program in BC. Through advocacy and in print he championed the need for housing for the homeless in BC from 2015. He worked collaboratively with the local cities, Fraser Health and Division of Family Practice for the establishment of Foundry for the communities of Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows. Dr Mathew is the founder of the Ridge Meadows South Asian Cultural Society where he has dedicated his philanthropic efforts to highlighting the outstanding contributions made by South Asian immigrants to Canada and to raising awareness about mental health and its impact on communities.
Dr. Mathew wishes to thank the ‘UBC department of Psychiatry, Fraser Health and the local communities for their ongoing support’.
Congratulations again to Drs. Elliott and Mathew for their well-deserved recognition!