“I wasn’t really raised with any of the culture or traditions. I had to discover that for myself later on,” says Sophie, a University of Toronto medical student and a participant of SPARK (the Sunnybrook Program to Access Research Knowledge for Black and Indigenous Medical Students).

“My mother’s grandmother was a residential school survivor and suppressed that side of her completely to protect herself,” she says, explaining the disconnect from her Indigenous background growing up.

But now as an adult and aspiring geriatrician, Sophie has been reconnecting with her roots by exploring Indigenous practices and building relationships with other Indigenous people.

“I’m at a point where I’m very proud and sure of who I am in my identity,” says Sophie. “But it’s taken a lot to come to this point, and there are still lots of challenges that I face.”

One of the challenges she has been dealing with is the emotional heaviness of the residential school graves that continue to be uncovered throughout the country.

To cope, Sophie has leaned on the relationships she’s built while reconnecting with her heritage. One of the people she’s turned to is her roommate, who happens to be the only other Indigenous person in her medical school class.

“Feeling like you have a safe place to talk can really be motivating,” says Sophie.

And while she’s grateful she has her roommate, Sophie says it’s jarring that there’s such low Indigenous representation in her class, and in medicine in general. Connected to that issue is the fact that Indigenous people are more likely to experience poor health-outcomes than non-Indigenous people.

To help address these tough realities, Sophie’s focus has been learning as much as she can—in school, from her Indigenous mentors, and through social interactions with other Indigenous individuals—so that she can inform her medical career and better support her community.

“I have a very large interest in Indigenous health, and I plan to do lots of outreach and really form my future practice around that,” she says. “I know that I can make an impact.”

The post Reconnecting with her roots and advancing Indigenous health: Meet medical student Sophie Weiss appeared first on Your Health Matters.

In the latest webisode of Sunnybrook’s Day in the Life of a Resident series, Dr. Tiffany Florindo, chief resident, welcomes 12 newcomers to the family practice unit.

It’s amazing that last year at this time, Dr. Florindo was sitting where they are filled with anticipation. She even worried that she’d be “the worst resident in the history of residents”. Congratulations on completing your year, Dr. Florindo! And thank you for letting us go on the journey with you!

The post Day in the Life: Dr. Florindo welcomes new family practice residents appeared first on Your Health Matters.

Watch the full series HERE.

The post Day in the Life web series: Dr. Florindo to become chief resident appeared first on Your Health Matters.

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The post New Guest Series: A Master’s student on career hunting and life after school (if there is one) appeared first on Your Health Matters.

The post Mark your calendar: TEDMED Live April 16-19 appeared first on Your Health Matters.

University of Toronto biomedical engineering PhD candidate Padina Pezeshki won a TEDTalentSearch last year (That’s TED – Technology Entertainment Design – not Ted) and was chosen to give a presentation on her work in developing radiofrequency techniques for treating cancer that has spread to the bone.

The post Catch TED Talent Search winner talk about her bone-zapping research appeared first on Your Health Matters.

The University of Toronto century-old tradition Daffydil is just a day away.

The post Daffydil 2013: A promo video to get you in the cancer-fighting musical mood appeared first on Your Health Matters.

It took awhile for Dr. Bradley Strauss, interventional cardiologist and chief of the Schulich Heart Program, to realize that it’s OK to think big.

“Don’t think that because you are just an individual in a hospital somewhere in Toronto that you can’t make a huge difference,” Dr. Strauss said. “Look for new ways to do things differently, and better.”

He started to follow that advice after seeing that spirit in his mentor. Dr. Strauss dreamed big: The University of Toronto professor has invented a new way of unclogging totally blocked arteries. 

The post I Wish I Knew Then: Advice for Students to Think Big! appeared first on Your Health Matters.

Med students Rebecca Hicks, back, and Christina Reppas-Rindlisbacher are thrilled to be part of the U of T tradition Daffydil.

When Christina Reppas-Rindlisbacher got into medical school at the University of Toronto, she knew there was one thing she’d have do that had nothing to do with medicine: be a part of Daffydil.

It’s a century-old Faculty of Medicine tradition. The health sciences students write, produce and star in the musical production, which raises money for the Canadian Cancer Society. More than 50 students are involved.

“I heard about it before I even got in to the school,” the first-year Peters-Boyd Academy student said. “My stepdad was in the show when he did his physiotherapy degree at U of T – and that was probably 30 years ago.”

A chorus member in this year’s show, Reppas-Rindlisbacher said it was a surprise to see some of her classmates’ hidden talents.

“One girl scored all the music, parts for the whole band. She studied music before med school and was a concert pianist,” she said. “I’ve been in musicals in the past and it was with people who focused on (performing). Here, it’s people who spend most of their time study anatomy and the caliber of the production is still amazing.”

Second-year medical student Rebecca Hicks also stars in this February’s show.

“I was involved in Daffydil last year and it was such an amazing experience, I had to be a part of it again,” Hicks said. “It is wonderful having the chance to raise money for a great organization like the Canadian Cancer Society, while also being able to branch out of our student roles and utilize our artistic talents.”

Both placed at Sunnybrook, Hicks and Reppas-Rindlisbacher have been balancing their books and rehearsals.

“The teachers and tutors all have been great,” Reppas-Rindlisbacher said. “It’s been so great to be around people at that level who still care so much about the students.”

Dr. Mary Anne Cooper, Peters-Boyd Academy director, said she’s happy to see students involved in Daffydil.

“We are so proud of our students for their hardwork – in the classroom, in the hospital and on the stage,” she said. “They see the importance of giving back to the community and volunteering their time and talents to this production.”

Date: February 20-23
Location: Hart House Theatre, University of Toronto
Time: Show starts at 8 p.m., Doors open at 7:30 p.m.
Note: February 23 is Alumni Night!

The post Quadruple threat: singer, dancer, actor and soon-to-be health professional appeared first on Your Health Matters.

According to Dr. Steven Park at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, a lack of shut-eye can be really harmful – to our grades, our decision-making abilities and more.

Read his whole blog post, complete with 5 tips Dr. Park says will help (along with studies to back him up), on the Albert Einstein College of Medicine Blog, “The Doctor’s Tablet”. And while he’s talking about med school in particular, same thing goes for all students in any health discipline!

So, how’s your sleep pattern? Are you managing 6-8 hours a night?

The post Why we should get more sleep appeared first on Your Health Matters.