As announced by the Faculty of Medicine this morning, the proposal submitted earlier this year by the UBC Department of Psychiatry, in partnership with the Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health (DMCBH) and BC Children’s Hospital Research Institute (BCCHRI), is among the six proposals selected for funding in the second round of the 2022 FoM Academic Renewal Program, intended to support junior faculty recruitment.
Our successful proposal focuses on translational psychiatric research in high-complexity psychiatric youth with depression, which was recognized to be an important area of research in clear alignment with the strategic priorities of both the Department and the Faculty of Medicine, and which will signify strengthened research collaborations with our partners. In a highly competitive process, our proposal was selected by the adjudication panel not only on the merits of the research, educational and mentorship plan, but also on the basis of the world-class facilities and infrastructure the Department, DMCBH and BCCHRI have in place to support a new junior faculty position.
As such, this funding will contribute to the salary and benefits for a new academic tenure-track position in the Department, and the search and recruitment process for the position will commence in the near future. I look forward to providing you with further news and updates as we move ahead with our recruitment process.
Sincerely,
Dr. Lakshmi N Yatham Professor and Head, Department of Psychiatry Director, Institute of Mental Health University of British Columbia
I am pleased to share that the UBC Department of Psychiatry has recently made important progress in meeting two key objectives outlined in the UBC Psychiatry Strategic Plan 2020-2025. Since early 2021, the Department has been actively pursuing opportunities to establish an academic presence beyond the Vancouver epicentre, and build much-needed research capacity within our distributed sites across BC. As well, the Department remains committed to addressing the many inequities and challenges, such as the lack of adequate access to mental health care, experienced by Indigenous communities throughout the province. Working in collaboration with the Regional Department Heads of the Health Authorities and the Regional Associate Deans of the Distributed Medical Programs, we are making meaningful steps with regard to these dual objectives.
To this end, the Department, in partnership with the NMP, has initiated the recruitment for a full-time tenure-stream academic faculty position at the rank of Assistant or Associate Professor to be based in Prince George, BC. This position will play an integral role in the development of a mental health and addictions research program focused on access to care, early intervention, and population health in rural and remote areas and Indigenous communities, with the long-term goal of further advancing Northern-based mental health research and promoting sustainable care for mental illness and addictions in our province’s most underserved regions.
The job posting is currently advertised on local, national, and international job boards, and the applicant review and selection process will begin on February 1, 2022. Please visit our Department website Career Opportunities web page if you wish to view the job posting in full. Should you have any questions regarding this faculty career opportunity, please kindly direct them to Vicky Yau, Director, Administration, at vicky.yau@ubc.ca.
I look forward to sharing further news and updates with you in the New Year as we move forward with this recruitment. In the meantime, I encourage you to share this faculty career opportunity widely across your networks and channels.
Sincerely,
Dr. Lakshmi N. Yatham, MBBS, FRCPC, MRCPsych (UK), MBA (Exec) Professor and Head, UBC Department of Psychiatry Director, Institute of Mental Health, UBC Regional Head and Program Medical Director, VCH/PHC
Dear Department Members,I am delighted to share the exciting news that the UBC Department of Psychiatry, in partnership with the Interior Health and the PGME at UBC, has secured funding to establish a new residency track in the Interior Health region. As such, this new track will be included in the CaRMS match process this coming year, with two new residency positions commencing in the Interior Health region in July 2023.
Additionally, I am pleased to announce that we have obtained funding for two re-entry positions for 2023. As of now, their specific track allocation is to be determined, but I anticipate sharing further news and updates regarding these positions soon.These developments are a very positive outcome arising from extensive discussions and negotiations over the last several months between the UBC Department of Psychiatry, the Associate Dean, Postgraduate Education, Health Authorities’ Regional Heads and the Ministry of Health.
With the success of this recent endeavour, I believe we are making meaningful steps toward accomplishing some of the major goals we have set forth in our Strategic Plan.As stated, the Department is committed to leveraging our partnerships to enhance residency training capacity across all health authorities and in underserved communities, address the anticipated shortfall of psychiatrists in our province, and transform care for people with mental illness and addictions.
Sincerely,
Dr. Lakshmi N. Yatham, MBBS, FRCPC, MRCPsych (UK), MBA (Exec) Professor and Head, UBC Department of Psychiatry Director, Institute of Mental Health, UBC Regional Head and Program Medical Director, VCH/PHC
I am pleased to announce that the UBC Department of Psychiatry, in partnership with the UBC Institute of Mental Health (UBC IMH) and BC Children’s Hospital, has launched the Stimulus Grants Initiative, which aims to increase research capacity and support for clinicians at any stage and for junior academics who wish to undertake:
(a) Small, self-contained studies without other funding
(b) Pilot studies towards the pursuit of more comprehensive initiatives and/or grant applications
The Stimulus Grant Initiative comprises three streams: The Stimulus-Clinician Grant, the Stimulus-Junior Academic Grant, and the Stimulus-Child & Youth Mental Health Grant.
Applications to each stream will be assessed separately based on criteria that embrace equity, diversity and inclusion, in addition to scientific merit. The Stimulus-Child & Youth Mental Health Grant is sponsored by the BC Children’s Hospital Chair in Pediatric Mental Health, and proposed projects should focus on topics relevant for child and youth mental health.
For those of you who are interested in learning more about the Stimulus Grants, your eligibility to apply, and other important considerations, I will be hosting a Zoom Information Session on Wednesday August 10 at 11:00am. Please feel free to join in on this date at the meeting link below:
If you are unable attend the Information Session, you can find further details about the Stimulus Grants, including application and proposal forms with instructions, on the UBC Psychiatry website at: https://psychiatry.ubc.ca/research/stimulus-grants-initiative/
Please note that principal applicants must submit their complete application packages to Margaret Koshi at margaret.koshi@ubc.ca by the deadline of October 1, 2022 (5:00pm PST). Should you have any specific questions about the Stimulus Grants, please feel free to contact me at sophia.frangou@ubc.ca.
Sincerely,
Dr. Sophia Frangou, MD, PhD, FRCPsych Professor, Department of Psychiatry President’s Excellence Chair in Brain Health University of British Columbia
Lene Marie Fossen’s self portraits will break your heart. Beautifully composed and artfully presented, they are nevertheless photographs of a young woman in the throes of a long and drawn-out process of self-starvation. An overly anxious child, Lene Marie stopped eating at the age of ten; she was diagnosed with anorexia soon after and hospitalized off and on for years. Now 28, Lene Marie has never gone through puberty. Her pain is ever-present, but she has discovered a passion (and a great talent) for photography. When her work is lauded by Norway’s best-known photographer—resulting in an exhibition at a preeminent photography festival—an international breakthrough seems imminent. But a car accident leaves her unable to use her camera, and Lene Marie falls into a crushing depression. In October 2019, at only 33, Lene Marie passed away. She watched the finished film before she died and, together with her parents, wished for it to be released into the world.
“Self Portrait is the kind of movie that hits you hard from the beginning and stays with you … A perfect example of real-life cinema, boasting both authenticity and aesthetic vision. Relevant, brave, and emotional, it is a powerful documentary about illness and art, where photography can change our vision of life.” — Jihane Bougrine, FIPRESCI
“As a window into the grip of anorexia—with all its shame, dependency, and cruel, consuming finality—this is powerful stuff.” — Wendy Ide, Screen International
Post-screening Discussion:
Post-screening discussion with Dr. Seena Grewal. Moderated by Dr. Harry Karlinsky, Clinical Professor, Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia
About the Panel:
Dr. Seena Grewal is a child and adolescent psychiatrist and the senior psychiatric director of the Provincial Eating Disorder program at BC Children’s Hospital. Her clinical work has focused on eating disorders in children and adolescents as well as acute care/crisis interventions for youth.
Dr. Harry Karlinsky, the Series Director of Frames of Mind and a Clinical Professor in the UBC Department of Psychiatry, has a longstanding commitment to professional and public education. He has presented nationally and internationally on topics ranging from Alzheimer’s disease to information technology to narrative medicine to PTSD and to the use of films in health care education.
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!
** Sent on behalf of the UBC Psychiatry Postgraduate Education Team **
Dear Faculty,
We welcome you to join the celebration with the Class of 2023 Psychiatry graduates. Please see details below and RSVP via the link below by Tuesday, May 16, 2023.
Date: Friday, June 23, 2023 Time: 5:30 PM Venue: Shaughnessy Restaurant, 5251 Oak Street, Vancouver Ticket Prices:
Grads – Free
Grad’s Guests – $120
Faculty, Allied Staff, Other Guests – $150
Residents – $60
Children age 6 -12 – $35
Children age 5 or under – Free
Department Head, PD, APD’s, MC’s, Grad Committee – Free
Payment Methods: Payment instructions will be provided at a later time. Please stay tuned for further details.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Best,
Linda
Linda Chang (She, Her, Hers) Manager, PGME Programs Faculty of Medicine | Department of Psychiatry The University of British Columbia | Diamond Health Care Centre | Musqueam, Squamish & Tsleil-Waututh Traditional Territory Room 11169, 2775 Laurel Street | Vancouver BC | V5Z1M9 Canada Phone 604 875 4111 Ext. 68102 | Fax 604 875 5438 linda.chang@ubc.ca http://www.psychiatry.ubc.ca
I humbly acknowledge, with gratitude, that I live, work, and play as an uninvited guest on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xwməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil- Waututh) Nations.
CBD Psychiatry Workshop for PGY4 Supervisors | PGY4s in Core Stage
This is reminder to join us for an online webinar titled “CBD Psychiatry Workshop for PGY4 Supervisors – PGY4’s in the Core Stage”. The webinar’s goal is to help you prepare for and describe what you need to know for the Core Stage of training in CBD for the incoming PGY4 cohort.
This webinar is for all faculty, but particularly for those who will be supervising the incoming PGY4 residents. Note that this workshop is eligible for up to 2 MOC Section 1 credits for all attending faculty.
CBD Psychiatry Workshop for PGY4 Supervisors – PGY4’s in Core Stage Date: Wednesday, May 10, 2023 Time: 2:00pm – 4:00pm Location: Zoom(details to be sent out to faculty who RSVP’d)
Workshop Theme: This workshop focuses on the PGY4 Core stage of residency training. Discussion will include:
Core Stage Entrustable Professional Activities (EPA’s)
Competencies and Training Experiences required for PGY4 residents in the new model
Dr. Charles Ho, FRCPC, CBD Faculty Lead, Psychiatry, Chair and Member of the Scientific Planning Committee, Postgraduate Education Program, UBC Department of Psychiatry
Second Iteration CaRMS Match Results
We have received the results from the CaRMS Second Iteration Selections process and I am very pleased to announce that we have now matched all 7 positions in several of our tracks that had gone unmatched in the First Iteration.
We are thrilled to welcome these excellent successful applicants to the program to the UBC family.
Best regards,
Dr. Irfan Khanbhai MD, FRCPC, Program Director, UBC Psychiatry Postgraduate Education Program
Update on PGME Clinical Teaching w/ Patient Care and EAPs Payment Process
This is to follow up on the email on March 7, 2023 regarding the automatization of the Clinical Teaching with Patient Care process for the Department PGME Programs (General Psychiatry and Subspeciality Programs) and the process for submitting Psychotherapy supervision (for MD supervisors and non-MD supervisors) and Research supervision billing for April 1, 2022 to March 31, 2023.
Please note the further clarification below regarding processing of payments:
2022/2023 Clinical Teaching with Patient Care: Payments cover the period April 1, 2022 to March 31, 2023, and are being prepared and will be processed in the next few weeks.
2022/2023 EPA (Entrustable Professional Activities): Payments cover the period April 1, 2022 to March 31, 2023, and are being prepared and will be processed in the next few weeks.
Please feel free to share this email update with your colleagues.
If you have any questions, please contact Vicky Yau at vicky.yau@ubc.ca.
Sincerely,
Dr. Jordan Cohen, Associate Head, PGE & CPD Dr. Anson Koo, Associate Head, Clinical Affairs & Partnerships Dr. Joe Tham, Clinical Faculty Representative Ms. Vicky Yau, Director, Administration
It is with profound sadness that I share the news that Professor Emeritus Dr. Juhn Wada passed away at his home on Saturday April 22, 2023 at the age of 99. To his many colleagues at UBC and beyond, Dr. Wada was a visionary in the neurological sciences whose decades of seminal research in epilepsy established pioneering diagnostic approaches that have transformed the field. I myself recall learning of Dr. Wada’s contributions, including the “Wada Test,” as a medical student and later as a psychiatry resident, which speaks to the renown he had attained internationally. I join his many friends and peers around the world who are receiving this news with a deep sense of loss, and it goes without saying that we will all miss him tremendously.
Born in Tokyo in 1924, Dr. Wada embarked on his long and exemplary career at the Hokkaido Imperial University (HIU) in Sapporo, Japan, where he graduated with a degree in medicine in 1946 and completed postgraduate training in clinical neurophysiology in 1951. In 1953, he was appointed as an Assistant Professor of Neurology and Psychiatry at NIU, and during this period he established a brain surgical unit for which he served as Chief for several years. Following two research fellowships at the University of Minnesota and the Montreal Neurological Institute, Dr. Wada was recruited to join the academic faculty of the UBC Department of Psychiatry in 1961 and in the same year, he became a citizen of Canada.
It was here at UBC that his research flourished, and for over half a century, Dr. Wada led a dynamic and leading-edge program in epilepsy research, integrating animal investigations and clinical research approaches to unravel the mechanisms of human epilepsy, with the aim of developing more effective treatment modalities for this condition. His many academic contributions include over 300 peer-reviewed papers in the areas of neurology and epilepsy, the publication of 11 medical books, and countless hours dedicated to the training and supervision of medical students, residents and fellows. Notably, the neuroimaging/neuropsychological evaluation tool he developed for assessing cerebral hemispheric dominance of language function, known as the “Wada Test” I had referred to earlier, continues to be the gold standard for establishing cerebral dominance and is conducted worldwide prior to epilepsy surgery.
In addition to his academic pursuits, Dr. Wada was an attending neurologist at VGH and UBC Hospital for over two decades, also establishing UBC Hospital’s first EEG and Seizure Investigation Unit, for which he served as Director for nearly 15 years, as well as its Epilepsy Surgical program. Further to these activities, his service to his profession included prominent roles such as founding President of the Canadian League Against Epilepsy, President of the American Clinical Neurophysiology Society and President of the American Epilepsy Society. His career highlights also included a long list of prestigious awards, including the Herbert Jasper Award, the William G. Lennox Award and Lifetime Achievement Awards from the International League Against Epilepsy and the International Bureau for Epilepsy. As well, in apt recognition of his life’s work and distinguished achievements, Dr. Wada was the recipient of the highest honours of both Canada and Japan, namely induction as an Officer of the Order of Canada (OC) in 1992, conferral to the Order of the Sacred Treasure from the Emperor and Empress of Japan in 1996, and the awarding of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012.
While Dr. Wada “retired” from his academic and clinical activities in 1994, at this time he was far from ready to wind down his activities or bid farewell to academia. He remained active in the Department as a post-retirement appointee, and with an ongoing drive and passion for his work, he continued to publish research and engage in scholarly discourse up until very recently. For many who had the pleasure of his friendship and collegiality over the years, Dr. Wada will be remembered not only as a brilliant scientist but also a man of genuine kindness, integrity and humility. While we celebrate his very long and remarkable life, we recognize the passing of Dr. Wada to be an immense loss to the Department, UBC and our broader psychiatry and neurology communities.
On behalf of the UBC Department of Psychiatry, I send my heartfelt condolences to the Wada family, and to our colleague Dr. Brenda Kosaka, alongside whom he worked very closely for over four decades.
Sincerely,
Dr. Lakshmi N. Yatham, MBBS, FRCPC, MRCPsych (UK), MBA (Exec) Professor and Head, UBC Department of Psychiatry Director, Institute of Mental Health, UBC Regional Head and Program Medical Director, VCH/PHC
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).
I am very pleased to share that, on my recent visit to India, I had the opportunity to meet with Dr. Pratima Murthy, Director of the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) in Bangalore, in order to renew the existing Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between NIMHANS and the UBC Department of Psychiatry for a further five-year period.
The previous agreement, signed in August 2017 by Dr. Dermot Kelleher, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, established an understanding of a mutual desire to strengthen collaboration and cooperation between UBC and NIMHANS. This partnership has been extremely fruitful with research collaboration resulting in high impact publications and exchange of several fellows between our institutions. With the renewal of the agreement, we will continue to strengthen these collaborations with NIMHANS in regards to research projects, exchange of visiting faculty and trainees between institutions, joint organization of symposia, seminars and CPD events, and other related activities.
The Department is very fortunate to maintain a formal and ongoing partnership with NIMHANS, one of India’s premier centres for research, clinical services and training in mental health, neurosciences and allied fields. In renewing our pact with a fellow leader in mental health, the Department is fulfilling a key strategic priority outlined in the 2020-2025 UBC Psychiatry Strategic Plan, which is to build and leverage our partnerships around the world in order to expand our research capacity, welcome talented researchers and trainees from outside of Canada, foster knowledge exchange, and enhance the global presence and profile of the Department.
As we pursue new and exciting collaborative opportunities with NIMHANS, I look forward to sharing these updates with you in the near future.
Sincerely,
Dr. Lakshmi N. Yatham, MBBS, FRCPC, MRCPsych (UK), MBA (Exec) Professor and Head, UBC Department of Psychiatry Director, Institute of Mental Health, UBC Regional Head and Program Medical Director, VCH/PHC
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).
