Oluwadamilola (Damilola) Alashe, MOT'23

Imaan Shivji (she/her) is a recent graduate of the UBC Master of Physical Therapy-North program based in Prince George, BC. She was born and raised in Burnaby, BC and pursued her undergraduate degree in Kinesiology at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. Imaan recently obtained her Canadian Orthopaedic Division Advanced Integrated Musculoskeletal (AIM) Level 1 certification. She loves to stay active by spending time outdoors, going to the gym and swimming.

Outside of her passion for health and fitness, Imaan enjoys connecting with others through creating music, playing guitar and collaborating with artists. In the past few years, she has worked on writing original songs and performing at local coffee houses and fundraisers. Her music can be found on all streaming services.

What drew you to the Master of Physical Therapy-North program at UBC?
Growing up in Burnaby, BC, I grew up with the privilege of easy access to healthcare services. When I travelled to Ontario for my undergraduate degree in Kinesiology, I had the opportunity to partake in volunteer work at a rehabilitation centre for adults with neurological conditions. Through my work at McMaster’s Physical Activity Centre for Excellence (PACE), I fostered connections with many individuals who struggled with their healthcare journey and often lived in remote areas with a lack of access to healthcare services. This experience was an eye opener, because I realized the lasting impact that can result from inaccessibility of healthcare services, such as physiotherapy.

Along with my passion for enhancing the quality of life of others through movement, I fostered a new interest in working with underserved populations and individuals in rural communities. This experience became a stepping stone to joining the Northern cohort of the UBC MPT program. In addition to this, I was really drawn to the idea of exploring the northern parts of the province, and the beautiful nature that BC has to offer.

How has studying in the MPT program made an impact on you?
I will always cherish the lifelong connections I have made with my classmates during my time in the MPT program. I am so fortunate to have been a part of the Northern cohort, which was comprised of a close-knit group of 20 students, and a welcoming, supportive faculty. When moving to a new town without knowing a single person, it can be quite daunting. However, I feel lucky to say that right from my first day in Prince George, I felt at home because I was surrounded by warm smiles and genuine faces. Many of the connections I have made over the past two years have developed into lifelong friendships, and I am grateful to be entering the physiotherapy profession with such kind and intelligent colleagues.

What was something you learned in the MPT program that surprised you?
I found my time spent on clinical placement was extremely valuable and a great way to apply what was learned in the classroom. With the support of some great preceptors, I was exposed to a variety of practice styles and settings, such as pediatric oncology, arthritis programs, neurological rehabilitation, acute care, and private clinics. Growing up, I only really understood physiotherapy as being the private clinic setting, but being able to witness and learn about our wide scope of practice has been truly incredible.

What is your favorite memory from your time at UBC?
It is really difficult to pick just one favourite memory from my journey over the past two years. While in Prince George, I was fortunate enough to explore the surrounding areas of Northern BC. From snowshoeing in Smithers, to skating on the stunning lakes of Jasper, to horseback riding in the Cariboo Region, and hiking in Williams Lake, I have more good memories to look back on than I can count.

Where do you find inspiration?
I find inspiration in all the unique patient encounters I have experienced through my clinical placements. It is always an honour to be a part of someone’s rehabilitation journey, from start to finish. I recall one patient I worked with suffered a stroke and lost their ability to walk. After five weeks of intensive rehabilitation, they were able to walk a few steps with the help of equipment and physical support. I remember seeing the joy on the patient’s and their loved ones’ faces as they expressed their gratitude to our team. It is moments like these that truly reinforce my passion for the physiotherapy field.

What does a healthy society mean to you?
I believe that a healthy society strives for the advocacy of health and wellness in multiple dimensions. Burnout and mental health challenges are present more than ever, and it is important that we work together as a society to reduce the stigma associated with mental health conditions. Being in the physiotherapy field, I truly believe that exercise and staying active are equally important for both physical and mental health, and that the best way to stay active is to find a form of exercise that is most enjoyable. Additionally, a healthy society is one where everyone is treated equally and with respect.

What are your plans after graduation?
I can confidently say that through my journey over the last two years, I have grown and developed my professional toolkit that I look forward to utilizing in practice. I cherish the skills I have developed from working in rural communities and I know that they will enable me to grow as a clinician. I plan to work in an orthopedic setting where I can follow patients through their rehabilitation journey, helping them regain function and return to activities they enjoy. I have a special interest in arthritis management and concussion care, both of which I was lucky to be exposed to while on placement. I look forward to continuing my education through various coursework over the coming years to provide up-to-date and quality care for patients. Lifelong learning is most definitely a large part of the physiotherapy profession, and I am grateful to be entering such an impactful and vast field.

Dr. Warren B. Fingrut (he/him) is a Hematologist and Transplant Physician with a research interest in characterizing and mitigating disparities in the provision of transplantation and cellular therapies. He is currently completing a research fellowship with the Adult Bone Marrow Transplantation Service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, as well as a Masters of Public Health in Epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Dr. Fingrut is also Founder and Director of Stem Cell Club, a Canadian national donor recruitment organization which augments access to unrelated stem cell donors, especially for patients from underserved racial/ ethnic populations. Through his work, Dr. Fingrut advocates for a more inclusive transplant system, both for populations underrepresented as donors and impacted by unique barriers to donation, and for underserved patient groups.

What drew you to the MD Program at UBC?
I was initially drawn to medicine as I wanted a career where I could forge strong longitudinal relationships with patients and provide care during difficult parts of their lives. I grew up in Toronto, and I moved across Canada to pursue Medicine at UBC. I quickly fell in love with Vancouver, and it’s still one of my favourite cities.

What is your favorite memory from your time at UBC?
In third year, I completed a rural medicine elective in Inuvik, Northwest Territories. In addition to rotating through the departments of Inuvik Regional Hospital, I also visited remote communities including Tsiigehtchic and Tuktoyaktuk. Through these experiences, I learned about the unique challenges facing rural Canadians, especially those of Indigenous heritage. For example, I was involved in the care of a patient facing a medical crisis while working on a barge, and for whom special evacuation plans needed to be arranged. Additionally, in clinic, I saw a patient who told me and the medical team that they were going to be leaving town to live off the land for the months ahead. I worked with this patient to develop a care plan to manage the relevant medical issues as best possible during their time away. I also followed pregnant patients from rural communities who needed to travel great distances for their pre- and perinatal care.

During my last week of the elective, when I was off-duty in hospital, I ran a stem cell drive – at a booth I setup at the Inuvik NorthMart. It was the first-ever stem cell donor recruitment event north of the Arctic Circle. I recruited 44 young adults to be potential stem cell donors, the majority of whom were Indigenous. Given that patients in need of an unrelated stem cell donor are most likely to find a match from within their own ancestral group, and since Indigenous peoples are underrepresented as donors, the outcome of this drive had special meaning. I wrote up my experience as a manuscript which I published the following year in the UBC Medical Journal. This was the very first paper of my academic career.

What has been your journey since graduating from UBC?
I completed my Internal Medicine Residency at University of Toronto, and then returned to UBC for Hematology Fellowship training. Through to present day, I have continued to serve as Director of Stem Cell Club, building and supporting teams to engage Canadians to stem cell donation. Under my leadership, Stem Cell Club has recruited over 23,000 potential stem cell donors, the majority of whom are from underrepresented racial/ ethnic backgrounds. I led development of multiple resources aimed at improving the recruitment of diverse donors, including whiteboard videos, TikToks, and a stem cell donation story library called WhyWeSwab. These resources have been shared widely to support donor recruitment efforts around the world.

My teams and I partnered with advocates from diverse communities to spearhead national campaigns to recruit donors from underserved and historically marginalized groups (e.g. Black Donors Save Lives, Saving Lives with Pride). Overall, this work has secured coverage in >50 print/broadcast media outlets, has been routinely highlighted in Oral presentations at Canadian and US/ International meetings in Hematology and Transplantation, and has culminated in multiple peer-reviewed publications (including in The Lancet Haematology, BMT, BBMT, Transfusion, Vox Sanguinis, and Current Oncology). These efforts could not have been possible without the hard work of my many mentees across Canada, at all levels of training (undergraduates, medical students, Masters and PhD students, and resident physicians).

In the past few years, I’ve expanded my research to include projects which seek to identify and address inequities in care delivery for transplantation and cellular therapy candidates and recipients. My research is assessing how alternative donor allografts (i.e. cord blood, haploidentical, and mismatched unrelated donor transplants) have extended the possibility of allogeneic transplant, and evaluates whether significant disparities in access to optimal donors persist for patients from underserved racial and ethnic populations. I am also evaluating socioeconomic status and its intersection with patient race/ ethnicity/ ancestry as it pertains to the provision of therapies for life-threatening diseases of the blood and marrow.

What do you find most interesting about your medical career?
My clinical work provides me with the opportunity to care for very sick, complex medical patients, both as a transplant expert (i.e. evaluating eligibility for transplant, optimizing the transplant platform, managing post-transplant complications) and as a generalist (being the most responsible physician for my patients, both on the ward and in clinic). While there are challenging cases, including those with disease relapse or severe graft-versus-host disease, there are also many success stories. Patients in my networks have shared some of these stories with Stem Cell Club – we’ve published a series of heartwarming letters written by patients to their anonymous unrelated donors, and last year we were invited to capture the first meeting between a stem cell recipient and the donor who saved her life (https://youtu.be/k6xmtXcOjwk; this five minute video has secured > 110k views on YouTube).

On the research front, I am especially interested in deploying “big data” to advance equity for vulnerable patient groups. Through my work at Sloan-Kettering, I have had the opportunity to describe disparities in large cohorts of transplant recipients, and share my findings with stakeholders in the transplant community. I have seen firsthand the importance of such data to mobilize the resources and support required to change policy and practice.

Where do you find inspiration?
I am greatly inspired by the mentors I have had over my career, who have made me into the physician I am today. I am also inspired by my trainees and mentees with Stem Cell Club, many of whom have personal connections to stem cell donation and/or have pursued national projects with me spanning years. They all bring unique skills and passion to the work, and I am so proud of their accomplishments. In the past year alone, one of my mentees was invited to give two plenary presentations; another delivered a TedX talk sharing lessons she learned from her experience being a stem cell donor for her father; and a third presented the first-ever Oral on a LGBTQIA+ topic at a major meeting in Hematology/Transplant, a milestone in our field. Many others have won leadership and abstract achievement awards, spoken with the media, published manuscripts, and abstracts on our work, and spearheaded stem cell drives and campaigns recruiting hundreds of donors.

How has your identity affected your perspective on the field of medicine and future pursuits?
My passion for diversity, equity, and inclusion in hematology stems from multiple facets of my identity. My Canadian multicultural upbringing taught me to respect and accept people across diverse backgrounds, and my medical training instilled in me the critical value that everyone deserves medical care, including those from marginalized or underprivileged groups. I am Jewish and the grandchild of Holocaust survivors, and my family history has motivated me to pursue equity, justice, and anti-racism efforts. And my LGBTQ+ identity has guided me to work to advance inclusion in Hematology, for patients, donors, and the Hematology workforce.

What is one thing you hope to accomplish?
My research aims to better recognize specific patient groups at special risk for compromised care delivery, and to develop interventions to mitigate structural barriers, diversify patient populations, and maximize the equitable provision of optimal transplantation and cellular therapies. For donors, a key theme of my work is that health equity should be prioritized alongside donation safety.

Altogether, I hope to help build a more inclusive transplant system.

What does a healthy society mean to you?
A healthy society aims to eliminate discrimination and ensure that everyone has equal opportunities for education, employment, healthcare, and social participation, regardless of their background or identity. This work is critical for creating a culture where all individuals can thrive, contribute to their fullest potential, and lead fulfilling lives.

James Andrew, BSc’96 is a 2023 recipient of the UBC Medical Alumni Association Honorary Medical Alumni Award.

James Andrew, a member of Lil’wat Nation’s Mount Currie Band, has been with the University of British Columbia for more than 25 years. Twenty-one of those years has been with the Faculty of Medicine as the Indigenous Student Initiatives Manager where his role was to recruit and support the Indigenous medical students through the Indigenous Pathway. The Indigenous Pathway program recently celebrated its 20-year anniversary in November 2022. To date, UBC Faculty of Medicine’s MD program has graduated more than 130 Indigenous physicians. He is currently the Associate Director of Indigenous Initiatives, Office of the Vice Dean, Education, Faculty of Medicine.

Rachel Ramsden (she/her) is a PhD Candidate at the School of Population and Public Health at UBC and a Research Coordinator at the Play Outside UBC Lab. Rachel completed a Bachelor of Kinesiology (2013) and a Master of Public Health (2016) at UBC before pursuing her doctoral studies in 2019. Rachel’s PhD research examines the design of outdoor environments and how they support young children’s outdoor play. She is also a UBC Public Scholar and invested in ensuring children’s perspectives are sought in research through innovative methodologies. Rachel grew up in Richmond, BC, and enjoys regularly connecting with the outdoors by running on the local trails with her dog and playing on her community soccer team. Through her research, Rachel hopes to mobilize academic findings into policies and community planning standards that enhance children’s outdoor play opportunities across communities in BC.

What drew you to the Master of Public Health program at UBC?
I was initially drawn to the MPH program at UBC to learn more about health promotion and how it applies to my interests in child health and development. I was particularly interested in how societal systems and policies contribute to children’s early development, as well as their health outcomes into adulthood. The MPH program provided further education on the social determinants of health, health policy and epidemiology, while also allowing me to explore specific interest areas within the field of child health. I was also drawn to the MPH program because it offered a practicum placement opportunity and gave graduates a unique range of skills that are highly sought after by employers. I knew that this program would provided a positive foundation for future work in industry or academia, regardless of where my path took me.

What is your favorite memory from your time at UBC?
I’ve spent a lot of time at UBC, as an undergraduate and graduate student, and my fondest memories are those spent outdoors on campus. As an undergraduate student, I was a member of the women’s soccer team and spent most of my time between classes on the soccer field. It then became a practice of mine to seek out new outdoor spaces on campus to study or write my thesis during my graduate degrees. I’m grateful for the great outdoor spaces UBC has to offer and the opportunities to connect with nearby nature.

What has been your journey since graduating from UBC?
After graduating from the MPH program, I continued to work with the BC Injury Research Prevention Unit (BCIRPU), a research unit in the BC Children’s Hospital Research Institute, where I completed my practicum as a component of the MPH program. In this role, I investigated the determinants of childhood injury, and became interested in policy development and urban design as primary levers to influence child health outcomes. I then entered a career in community planning at the City of Richmond, where I worked on the planning, design and development of child care-related projects in the community. These opportunities lead me to pursue a PhD and combine my passion for early child development, healthy built environment and community planning towards a research graduate degree. Since commencing my PhD studies, I joined the Play Outside UBC Lab, where I am able to work on research projects that bridge outdoor play research, child care policy and outdoor space design to support my research and future career interests.

What do you find most interesting about a career in public health?
The thing that I find most interesting about a career in public health is the amount of unique career paths and job roles within this field. When I first entered the MPH program, I wasn’t sure where my path would lead me after graduation. However, the skills you learn through the program are highly applicable to a range of roles across multiple sectors, which open up opportunities that extend beyond the well-known health sector career paths. The field of public health also has many different interest areas and intersections with other fields of work, and there are always new and emerging roles created to support population health.

Where do you find inspiration?
I find inspiration in the many amazing colleagues and mentors I have had through the course of my career to-date. Being a part of the public health community amidst the pandemic has also highlighted the important work that many individuals do on a daily basis to support healthy and safe communities. I’m continually inspired by the public health community and the many front-line health care workers who have supported our health care system during this time.

How has your identity affected your perspective on the field of public health and your future pursuits?
My identity has largely been shaped by experiences participating in competitive sport throughout childhood and into adulthood. This led me to complete an undergraduate degree in Kinesiology with the thought that I would enter into a sports medicine or physiotherapy career path. However, once introduced to the field of public health, I realized that an interest in physical activity and sport can extend into many other career opportunities. I continue to see physical activity as a key ingredient to support human health and well-being, but I also recognize that population-level systems and policies play an important role in influencing human behaviour and health outcomes.

What is one thing you hope to accomplish?
I would love to see an increased emphasis on outdoor play as a key component of healthy child development, as well as an overall increase in children regularly participating in outdoor play. While there are many individuals working towards these goals across the globe, I hope my research can contribute new academic knowledge to support these outcomes. Through my PhD research, I also hope to advance outdoor space planning and design so that children’s preferences for play are prioritized.

What does a healthy society mean to you?
A healthy society prioritizes and values equity in health care access and the determinants of health. It supports strong and healthy starts for our children, so they may grow to have positive and equitable health outcomes throughout their lifetime.