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The Wightman-Berris Academy is composed
of a network of hospitals and clinics which delivers major components
of the preclinical and clinical curriculum of the undergraduate medical
program of the University of Toronto, Faculty of Medicine. The Academy
also supports interprofessional programs and provides a home for
educational activities and resources to support postgraduate training
at the University. The main anchors of this network are the University
Health Network (Toronto General Hospital, Toronto Western Hospital and
Princess Margaret Hospital) and Mount Sinai Hospital. Other hospitals
which are major contributors to the educational mandate of the
Wightman-Berris Academy include Toronto East General Hospital, Baycrest,
The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, and
the Centre for Addiction and the Mental Health. Prior to the official
opening of the University’s fourth Academy in Mississauga, clinical
activities have been offered at Credit Valley Hospital for WB students.
As the largest of the University of Toronto’s academies, undergraduate
MD student enrollment is approximately 110 students per academic year
and the Academy registers over 700 preclerkship, clerkship and elective
students in total every year including international trainees.
Educational activities are housed in facilities with state-of-the-art
learning resources and simulated clinical settings including the Paul
B. Helliwell Centre at Toronto General Hospital, the Sydney and Florence
Family Education Centre at Mount Sinai Hospital, the The University of
Toronto Surgical Skills Centre at Mount Sinai Hospital and the Medical
Education Centre at Toronto Western Hospital. Each major site of the
Academy provides seminar rooms, large classrooms, examination rooms,
computing facilities, videoconference capability and trainee lounges.
Trainees also have access to a collection of clinical simulation learning
tools including the cardiopulmonary simulator “Harvey”, a pulmonary
simulator, and venous and arterial puncture simulators.
The anchor hospitals of the Wightman-Berris have a proud history of
strength in patient care, research and education and faculty members
are innovators in medical education at the University of Toronto.
The UHN is home to the Wilson Centre for Research in Education and
the newly created Centre for Interprofessional Education. The
association of the UHN and Mount Sinai goes far beyond undergraduate
education into joint clinical services, collaborative research and
postgraduate educational programs.
The Wightman-Berris Academy offers students a breadth of learning
opportunities in primary and generalist care as well as tertiary and
highly specialized care, ambulatory and inpatient care, acute and
chronic care, surgical, medical and psychiatric care. The Academy’s
associated community and research partners provide a wide variety of
clinical and research placements. The WB Academy has been a leader in
providing opportunities for its students in the new University of Toronto
interprofessional health curriculum.
The Mount Sinai Hospital is a 472 bed hospital which has several priority
programs including peri-natal medicine and special pregnancy care, surgical
oncology and acute care. The UHN has 707 beds and priority programs include
organ transplantation, advanced cardiac, cancer care, musculoskeletal and
neurosurgical care. The Toronto East General is an urban community teaching
hospital serving a diverse, multi-cultural population of South East Toronto.
The Wightman-Berris Academy is responsible for recruiting clinical, research
and basic science tutors, supervisors and facilitators for its students. Its
faculty are committed to teaching and many of its educators have been recognized
locally, regionally and internationally for their contributions to education.
The Academy prides itself on providing outstanding teachers, role models,
mentorship and learning environments for students. Each year, outstanding
teaching in undergraduate, postgraduate and allied health professions is
recognized by the Wightman-Berris Academy Awards.
The educational administrative staff, led by Dr. Jacqueline James, the Academy
Director, is committed to ensuring that despite the large and diverse nature of
the Academy’s sites, that students and faculty find themselves in a learning
environment which is optimal for productive, creative and enthusiastic learning
about health care and research. The Academy endeavors to maintain spaces which
are comfortable and conducive to collaboration and social interaction for learners.
The Academy also provides counseling, information technology support and research
support to its students.
The Wightman-Berris Academy is named for two distinguished physician educators,
Dr. KJR (Kajer) Wightman (1914-1978) who was Physician in Chief of the Toronto
General, Chair of the Department of Medicine and post-graduate Dean at the
University of Toronto and Dr. Barnet Berris (1921-2008) who was a visionary
Physician-in-Chief at the Mount Sinai, an extraordinary medical educator and
exemplary role model.
Biography of Dr. K. J. R. Wightman
Biography of Dr.
Barnet Berris
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