Our Activities

Neera Bhatnagar, McMaster University
Navigating the Scholarly Landscape: Understanding APC Waivers, Predatory Publishing, and Research Metrics in Academic Publishing

Teresa Chan, Toronto Metropolitan University & McMaster University
Exploring the Scholarly Health Leadership Landscape: Reflections on past, present, and future

Collaboration with St. Joseph’s Education Research Centre

Michelle Lazarus, Monash University
Steering through uncharted waters: Techniques, tips and teaching for uncertainty tolerance

Collaboration with Education Program in Anatomy

Cheryl Poth, University of Alberta
Why and How are the Design Possibilities for Mixed Methods Limitless?

James Leung, McMaster University (Centre for Simulation Based Learning)
Beyond individual learning: systems learning and translational educational outcomes using healthcare simulation

Cheryl Poth, University of Alberta & Sarah Munce, University of Toronto
Leveraging Integration in Mixed Methods Health Sciences Research

Collaboration with St. Joseph’s Education Research Centre

Rounds presentations can be found on the MERIT YouTube channel.

Keynote Speaker

Dr. Stefanie Sebok-Syer is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine at Stanford School of Medicine. Prior to joining Stanford, Dr. Sebok-Syer was postdoctoral fellow at the Centre for Education, Research and Innovation at the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry at Western University. She received her PhD in Measurement, Assessment, and Evaluation from Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario. Her research interests broadly include examining psychometrics aspects of performance-based assessments, capturing the interdependence that exists within teams, and developing innovative approaches such as using electronic health record data to support the shift to competency-based medical education.

Contemporary Assessment Challenges: Measuring Interdependence in Healthcare Systems and Teams

Individual and collective competence are required to provide effective patient care in our healthcare systems. But, assessing both types of competence remains problematic because individual assessment disregards the team and team assessment disregards the individual. In order to meaningfully connect medical education and team-based performance with patient outcomes, we need approaches to assess interdependence. Interdependence, as it relates to teamwork, is focused on complex interactions among human and material agents that exist within teams.

In this talk, Dr. Sebok-Syer will present the current conceptualization of interdependence, which has expanded to distinguish between supportive and collaborative interdependence. She will also engage the audience in thinking about opportunities for assessing interdependence within healthcare teams. Finally, she will present data on how faculty currently view interdependence and understand its relationship to other assessments such as entrustable professional activities and milestones.

Keynote presentation can be found on the MERIT YouTube channel.

Conference Committee (alphabetical order):

Sonaina Chopra, Lawrence Grierson (co-chair), Amelia Herman, Shayan Novin, Samantha Roberts, Jonathan Sherbino (co-chair), Courtney Wright

Speakers

Gideon Christian,
University of Calgary

Lorelei Lingard,
Western University

Matthew Sibbald,
McMaster University

Presentations can be found on the MERIT YouTube channel.

Winning Research Proposal on AI and Education Research

The purpose of this fund is to facilitate scholarship on the intersections between artificial intelligence and education in the health sciences.

 Principal Investigator: Matthew Sibbald, Department of Medicine

Research Team: Leo Morjaria, Anthony J Levinson, Quang Ngo, Keyna Bracken, Levi Burns

Project Proposal: AI-Driven Question Generation: Improving Access to Concept Application Exercises for Medical Students

This project represents a preliminary investigation into the feasibility and efficacy of using AI to generate Concept Application Exercises (CAEs) problems. The primary research aim is to determine whether AI-generated CAE problems can meet the educational standards required at McMaster University in terms of problem difficulty, appropriateness, and adherence learning objectives. Furthermore, by conducting additional student and faculty focus groups, the research team will explore the feasibility of implementing AI-generated CAE problems into the UGME program as well as assess its impact on assessment cost, scalability, consistency, and ethical considerations. The pilot data generated from this study will serve as a proof-of-concept to guide future larger-scale research initiatives. Additionally, these preliminary insights will form the foundation for future grant applications aimed at exploring the use of AI in medical education assessment practices and further developing AI-powered tools for medical education.

At the end of this virtual activity, participants will be able to:

• Identify a practice-relevant problem that can be addressed through qualitative research.
• Develop research questions for a qualitative study.
• Select and describe a qualitative methodology relevant to specific research questions.
• Select and describe qualitative methods, aligned with a specific research question and methodology.
• Develop a qualitative research proposal (problem, research questions, methodology and methods).

Coordinator: Renate Kahlke, Department of Medicine

Chris Watling
Speaker

Dr. Chris Watling is Professor in the Departments of Oncology, Clinical Neurological Sciences, and Family Medicine at the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry at Western University in London, Canada. He is the Vice Dean (Acting), Education Scholarship and Strategy, the Director of Schulich’s Centre for Education Research and Innovation, and a Faculty Scholar at Western University. In June 2024, he will begin a new role as CEO of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. A neurologist by clinical training, he holds a Masters in Medical Education from the University of Dundee and a PhD in Health Professions Education from Maastricht University. His research, widely published in the medical education literature, explores how and why feedback influences learning, and how medicine’s professional culture shapes its educational practices. He is an avid teacher of academic writing, and is the co-author, with Lorelei Lingard, of a recent book on the subject – Story, Not Study: 30 Brief Lessons to Inspire Health Researchers as Writers (Springer 2021).

Towards a Coaching Culture in Medical Education

Contemporary formative assessment approaches promise to deliver tailored coaching to learners that enables them to develop as competent professionals. But doctors can be difficult to coach. The problem is not that doctors are not coachable, but rather that medicine’s professional culture can be a tricky context in which to expect coaching approaches to thrive. In this lecture, Dr. Chris Watling will describe the intended function of formative assessment as coaching, explore the challenges of realizing its potential in medical education contexts, and suggest some ways forward.

Sibley Lecture can be found on the MERIT YouTube channel.

2024 Sibley Award Recipient

Mohamed Alarakhia
Assistant Clinical Professor, Department of Family Medicine, Waterloo Regional Campus

Dr. Mohamed Alarakhia is a Family Physician at the Centre for Family Medicine Family Health Team and CEO of the eHealth Centre of Excellence. He is Assistant Clinical Professor at McMaster University and Adjunct Professor at University of Waterloo. He is also Faculty Digital Health and Innovation Lead at McMaster University, Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine (Waterloo Campus).

“This award is about recognizing the critical role of part-time faculty in supporting our future clinicians, many of whom will practice in the communities in which they train. Part-time faculty take on teaching roles in an environment which can be more challenging to teach. There are less resources, less space, less dedicated time, and more demands from the local health system. However, clinicians are passionate about providing support to learners and go above and beyond to do this,” says Alarakhia. “It is wonderful that the role of part-time faculty is being recognized and especially that it includes those from distributed sites.”

Read the full article on the Faculty of Health Sciences website.

2024 Health Professions Educator Award Recipient

Suzanne Archie
Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences

Dr. Suzanne Archie, MD, FRCPC, is a Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences and a psychiatrist at the East Region Mental Health Clinic. She is the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Director for the Post Graduate Medical Education at McMaster University and is Chair of the Anti-Black Racism Task Force for the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Sciences. She has published on different aspects of early intervention, including substance abuse, program evaluation, and ethnic diversity in pathways to care for a first episode of psychosis. Her research has been supported by the Canadian Institute of Health Research, Peter Boris Centre for Cannabis Research, and the Mental Health Commission of Canada. Currently, Dr. Archie is engaged in knowledge translation projects involving video game technology educate youth about cannabis particularly those from Black African and Caribbean communities. She is also conducting a program evaluation of an educational module designed to advance the mental health of Black children and youth.

Read the full article on the Faculty of Health Sciences website.

2024 Education Scholarship Fund Recipients

Principal Investigator: Renate Kahlke, Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine
Collaborators: Kori LaDonna, Daniel Brandt Vegas, Maria Nicula, O.G Thorne, Jessica Ostrega and Sandra Monteiro

Project Proposal: When the White Coat Only Comes in One Size: An Intersectional Qualitative Study of Anti-Fat Bias in Medical Education

With the aim of understanding how anti-fat bias may affect those learning and practicing medicine, the researchers will ask: 1) How do fat medical learners and doctors understand their intersectional experiences in medical education and medicine? 2) How do fat learners and doctors feel that their fatness and its intersections with other identities may have influenced their professional experiences and opportunities (e.g. medical school admissions, residency match, entry to practice)? 3) What social and systemic factors influence fat learners’ and doctors’ success in medicine, such as external and self-assessments of competence, career decision-making, and relationships with patients and colleagues?

Principal Investigator: Danielle Brewer-Deluce, Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology & Molecular Medicine
Collaborators: Bruce Wainman, Alex Cen, Ryan Phan, Nyssa Rousta, Linda Wu, Jessica Gu

Project Proposal: FOAL study – Feature Optimization for Anatomy Learning

In modern anatomy classes, starting the curriculum with learning nominal anatomy is meant to act as a scaffold for future content. While intentionally designed, this approach is insufficient, as the cognitive demands imposed by this task exceed cognitive resources available to novice learners. Thus, the researchers hypothesize that there exist more manageable subcomponents in this seemingly homogeneous task which could be scaffolded to reduce cognitive load and improve learner outcomes. Specifically, landmark proximity and key-views required during learning are two facets to be further explored. As such, the objective of this study is to evaluate the relationship between proximity and key-views with learning nominal anatomy such that evidence-based pedagogical decisions regarding teaching methods and resources employed can be optimized for novice students.

2024 Faculty Fellows

Desigen Reddy
Associate Clinical Professor, Department of Anesthesia

Mentor: Sandra Monteiro & Matthew Sibbald, Department of Medicine
Project: The implications of Artificial Intelligence use in Applications to Postgraduate Medical Programs

“Expanding on my rudimentary knowledge on the theory of medical education, having discussions with my mentors, and networking has been invaluable. I’m inspired by the commitment, enthusiasm and willingness to share ideas and knowledge by all in the MERIT team. I am so grateful to be part of this community.”

Allison Sohanlal
Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics

Mentor: Renate Kahlke, Department of Medicine
Project: A Qualitative Study Exploring Child Life Internship Program Decision-Making for Intern Application Reviews & Matching Processes

“The MERIT fellowship provides me with an exciting opportunity to expand my research knowledge and skills in education scholarship. This is possible because it allows me dedicated time to focus on a major research project of my own and access to a network of experienced research scientist mentors that I plan to stay connected to throughout my career.”

2024-2025 Fellows

Jasmin Dhanoa
Supervisor: Elif Bilgic, Department of Pediatrics

Jasmin is a recent graduate of the Honours Life Sciences program at McMaster University. A significant part of Jasmin’s undergraduate education has included teaching and learning through teaching assistantships, peer tutoring, and working as an educational research assistant at the MacPherson Institute. During her final year in undergrad, Jasmin investigated equitable access to learning opportunities in large enrollment programs and facilitated the Institutional Quality Assurance Process (IQAP) for the Life Sciences program. As a recipient of the MERIT-HSED fellowship award, Jasmin will be pursuing a Master’s Degree in the Health Science Education program with an interest in researching expertise in procedural medical skills.

“My experience as a MERIT graduate fellow has been transformative, providing a strong foundation for both my research skills and professional development. The fellowship has allowed me to build meaningful connections with mentors and peers who challenge and inspire me to pursue excellence in educational research. Through hands-on projects and collaborative opportunities, I’ve gained invaluable insights that will guide my career path. I am excited to continue building on these experiences and to stay connected with the MERIT community well beyond my time as a fellow.”

Rebecca Madan
Supervisor: Sandra Monteiro, Department of Medicine & Anita Acai, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioural Neurosciences

Rebecca Madan is a Thesis student in the McMaster Health Science Education Program and a recent graduate of McMaster Arts and Science. She is interested in the relationship between health science education and health equity. In her final year of undergraduate studies, Rebecca completed a thesis exploring how undergraduate prospective medial students make clinical decisions about 2SLGBTQIA+ patients. As a MERIT Scholar and Health Science Education student, she aims to expand her undergraduate thesis and create educational interventions to reduce implicit bias.

“As a MERIT fellow, I have been able to connect with likeminded individuals who share my passion for education, innovation and research. My few months as a MERIT fellow have given me the opportunity to engage in various educational activities that have taken my learning to the next level. I look forward to continuing to learn through this amazing opportunity!”

2024 Visiting Professor

Cheryl Poth
Professor, Faculty of Education, University of Alberta

Cheryl Poth, Ph.D. is a Professor and award-winning instructor in the Centre for Research and Applied Measurement and Evaluation at the University of Alberta, Edmonton. In this role, she has developed and teaches graduate courses in research design and mixed methods research. She was a founding board member of the Mixed Methods International Research Association and served as its fourth President in 2018/19. Her specific research interests include enhancing mixed methods research and teaching quality and collaborative research teams in the fields of education and the health sciences.

Watch Dr. Poth’s Rounds presentations on the MERIT YouTube channel.