Seminars & Academic Program

In addition to the patient care experience which occurs under the guidance of faculty preceptors, there are a number of formal educational events.  Grand Rounds are held in each institution weekly as are Subspecialty Rounds.  A Clinical Pathological Conference occurs weekly at the Foothills Hospital (FMC) and is video conferenced to the Peter Lougheed Centre: the emphasis is on the active discussion of recent cases.  Faculty representing a broad spectrum of backgrounds in Internal Medicine and Pathology attend.  Most subspecialty divisions hold inter hospital rounds weekly as well as journal clubs on a regular basis.  The MTU's also organize Case of the Week Rounds.

An Academic Seminar Series for first year residents is held every Thursday and addresses issues such as critical appraisal, evidence based medicine, quality improvement, communication skills, emergencies in Internal Medicine, bio ethics, and journal club. 

A weekly "academic half-day" (Thursday afternoons) is offered on all rotations.  The academic half-day is designed to be quite flexible in order to accommodate the interests and needs of each individual resident. It may be employed to undertake:

• a research project (patient or laboratory based, chart reviews, etc.)

• a medical audit

• a project in medical writing (case reports, review of the literature, etc.)

• critical appraisal of specific topics or a formal university course (in bio statistics, epidemiology, medical education, etc.)

• quality assurance

• medical education, etc.

The Program Director, Associate Director, and research are responsible for guiding trainees with respect to their use of the half-day and in identifying faculty preceptors or mentors.

Academic 1/2 Day

Academic half day runs from Thursday at noon until 5:00 p.m.  All residents (excluding family practice) must be freed from clinical duties at the time.  The academic half day is structured during the PGY1 year.  During the PGY2 and 3 years it is left largely unstructured in order to allow for resident research.
Dr. Marcy Mintz phone: 403-220-8892, email: mjmintz@ucalgary.ca is the coordinator of the academic seminars.

Academic Seminars during PG1 year

The academic half day is structured during the first year and covers broad areas including: medical knowledge, communication, evidence based medicine, quality improvement, and physical skills.

The broad outline of the academic half day includes:

1. Emergency topics in medicine: this series runs during the summer months and reviews the management and diagnosis of medical emergencies.  The series is designed to "refresh" the memory of the new residents as they start the MTU.

2. Communication and ethics: Several small group sessions are given on difficult "communication" ant-ethics situations including:
   • Breaking bad new
   • Discussion of the medical error
   • Dealing with the difficult patient and families
   • Informed consent
   • Communicating with translators

3. Quality Improvement (QI): The principles of QI are reviewed over 3 to 4 academic half days.  PGY1 residents are expected to work on a QI project (as a group) throughout the year.

4. EBM: Dr. Bill Ghali leads six academic half-day sessions on EBM. During this series the residents work their way through Sackett’s text on EBM.

5. Physical Exam Skills: Throughout the year, residents go to the bedside with a faculty to review by physical exam findings. During these sessions, the resident also reviews the rationale physical examination series.

6. There is a mandatory ethics day in November.