The yellow and blue banners emblazoned with the 100 Years of Medicine logo are slowly disappearing from the University of Alberta's North Campus. As the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry's centennial year comes to a close, its faculty, staff, students, alumni and supporters reflect on a year rich in education, history and tradition.
The start of the centennial
The celebration began when an at-capacity crowd in Bernard Snell Hall heard Mayor Stephen Mandel proclaim January 17, 2013, "100 Years of Medicine Day" as he presented a proclamation to Dean Douglas Miller.
"I don't think there's any city prouder of its medical school than the city of Edmonton," Mandel said. "We in Canada are so blessed-in Alberta we're blessed-but in Edmonton we're even luckier to have an institution that's had 100 years of incredible commitment and dedication to a city giving medical care in so many different ways."
Other esteemed guests included former deans Lorne Tyrrell and Douglas Wilson; Ralph Young, U of A chancellor; Martin Ferguson-Pell, acting provost and vice-present academic, and Stephen Khan, Alberta's former minister of enterprise and advanced education.
Facets of a distinguished year
Faculty, staff, students and alumni were treated to several events throughout the year. Each focused on different aspects of the last century of medical education and advancements from Alberta's first medical school.
April brought the 2,013 Hours of Service Volunteer Challenge. Students, staff and faculty were asked to donate an hour of their personal time to a non-profit cause with the goal of completing a total of 2,013 hours of volunteer work in 22 days. It didn't matter whether the volunteer helped an elderly neighbour or worked with a registered charity; what mattered was their commitment to helping the community.
Deb Key, a WCHRI staff member, was one of many members of the Faculty who rose to the occasion. In addition to her regular volunteer hours with Junior Diabetes Research Foundation, she also volunteered with the Stollery Children's Hospital Foundation and the Royal Alexandra Hospital Foundation. By April 27, the end of International Volunteer Week and the last day of the challenge, the Faulty boasted 2,395 hours of volunteer work.
April also brought TEDMED to the UAlberta. The event is held annually in Washington, D.C. and highlights the brightest concepts of medicine from the most prolific physicians and researchers in the field. The Faculty hosted six sessions that consisted of talks streamed live, which included presentations from faculty members including Kim Solez, Sarah Forgie and Douglas Miller. This was the first TEDMED event hosted at the University of Alberta.
The Faculty saw a reflection of its history in the 100 Years of Medicine Photo Exhibit. Students, alumni, faculty members or staff members were asked to submit photos then vote for their favourites. The photos with the most votes were entered in the gallery, which was on display in the John W. Scott Library for the entire month of May. Audiences saw current medical education juxtaposed against a century of advancement with submissions like "Rehumanizing Medicine: Josephine" by Sahil Gupta and "Dr. Callahan" by Greg Olson.
To help commemorate the rich history in the exhibit, the next generation of health-care professionals were invited to find out, "What's Up, Doc?" Elementary classes enjoyed the medical-themed field trip that included meeting Chris, a patient simulator mannequin used to train medical students in their first two years of school.
Summer arrived and so did convocation. Approximately 400 students graduated on June 7, 2013, in a ceremony that included all programs within the Faculty. Lincoln C. Chen also took part in the ceremony as a recipient of an honorary doctorate of science. Chen is a physician and policy advisor, as well as president of the China Medical Board and a former vice-president of the Rockefeller Foundation. Douglas Miller, dean of the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, received a standing ovation in response to his commencement speech.
With the winter semester completed, the Faculty took its centennial on the road as part of the Our Alberta Pavilion at K-Days. Guests wandered through a timeline of Alberta's first century of medicine, enjoyed select activities from the field trip and marveled at historical devices. The booth also included "100 Years, 100 Faces," an original photo exhibit created by third-year medical student Gregory Sawisky. He paired photos of 100 medical students with quotes explaining why they chose to enter medicine.
Throughout the year, the Faculty hosted seven events in the Centennial Lecture Series. During each event, U of A professors discussed how the latest medical breakthroughs are moving from bench to bedside to improve the health of all Albertans. The events were free and open to the public.
Welcoming a new century of excellence
One of the most exciting moments of the centennial year was welcoming the 100th incoming class of medical students. More than 1,400 applicants vied for a position in the class of 2017, but only 162 were selected.
The new students enjoyed the events of Orientation Week but nothing could compare to their excitement for the White Coat Ceremony. The class of 2017 donned their white coats for the first time and were welcomed to the University of Alberta's tradition of educational and clinical excellence.
Weekend of celebrations
Alumni Weekend 2013 was the natural culmination of the centennial celebration and featured several signature events for graduands of the medical school.
Festivities began with the Celebrating a Century dinner at the Fairmont Hotel Macdonald. Alumni and esteemed guests-including former deans Douglas Wilson, Thomas Marrie and Lorne Tyrrell-reconnected with colleagues and friends. The keynote speech was delivered by Paula Findlay, Edmonton-born Olympic triathlete.
Saturday morning brought "A Conversation with Four Deans." Douglas Wilson, Thomas Marrie, Lorne Tyrrell, and Douglas Miller discussed the growth of Alberta's first medical school through historical recounts and personal anecdotes to a sold-out crowd in the Oborowsky Degner Seminar Hall. The event was emceed by Robert Lampard, author of Deans, Dreams and a President. Upon exiting, guests were enjoyed the "100 Years, 100 Faces" photo exhibit, which was set up in the lobby of the Li Ka Shing Institute of Virology.
The final piece of Alumni Weekend was found in the Tuck Shop Tent alongside the famous cinnamon buns. A 100 Years of Medicine booth featured games from the "What's Up, Doc?" field trip and the 100 Years of Medicine Photo Exhibit. Historical books and yearbooks were also on hand.
The first president of the University of Alberta and champion of the establishment of the province's first medical school on the university's campus in 1913, Henry Marshall Tory, asked future generations to remember that:
"The modern state university has sprung from a demand on the part of the people themselves ….The people demand that knowledge shall not be the concern of scholars alone. The uplifting of the whole people shall be its final goal."
Never was the achievement of this goal more evident than 100 years later, as FoMD celebrated its centennial of the University of Alberta medical school, and the graduation of 7,012 doctors during that first century who have gone on to serve the sick through medical research and patient care.
More information about the medical school's centennial can be found on the 100 Years of Medicine website.