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MedEmail
Your source for COVID-19 news from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto
April 1, 2020 | Volume 28, Number 13
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Photo by Engin Akyurt on Unsplash
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COVID-19: No Solitary Heroes
The myth of the solitary hero is pervasive in popular culture. The tireless scientist alone at the bench. The bedside physician, confident and reassuring. The dedicated therapist coaxing just one more step forward.
Yet real life is not an individual pursuit. It’s a complex collective endeavour — more so than ever during a COVID-19 pandemic that is straining every part of how we live. Maximizing that collective endeavour is where our efforts have been focused at the Faculty of Medicine.
Here’s what we’ve been working on and what lies ahead.
Read the message from Professor Spadafora. |
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Salvatore Spadafora
Vice Dean, Post MD Education
Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto
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New Partnership Creates Safe Spaces for U of T Medical Trainees to Stay During COVID-19 Pandemic
The Faculty of Medicine is working with StayWell, a charity that normally provides suites for patients in the city’s downtown, to house residents and fellows working the frontlines of the COVID-19 crisis.
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U of T Experts Launch Quick ICU Training Resource for COVID-19
Clinicians and researchers at the University of Toronto and partner institutions have created an educational website for non-intensive care clinicians who may have to work in critical care units during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Faces of U of T Medicine: Gray Moonen
Dr. Gray Moonen is a first-year resident in family medicine at University Health Network, who has brought attention to unsung frontline workers in the COVID-19 pandemic through social media and helped bring U of T residents together online.
U of T Researcher and Toronto Public Library Form Partnership to 3D Print Face Shields
Professor Azad Mashari will use 3D printers lent to Toronto General Hospital by the Toronto Public Library to design and create reusable face shields for health care workers during the COVID-19 outbreak.
U of T Donates Masks, Gowns and Other Critical Supplies to Health-Care Workers Combatting COVID-19
The University of Toronto has so far collected more than 175,000 pairs of gloves, 2,000 surgical masks and 3,100 N95 respirators for academic hospitals in Toronto dealing with COVID-19.
Firm Led by U of T Alumnus Joins Fight Against COVID-19 with Portable Test Kit
University of Toronto alumnus Paul Lem is behind a biotech firm that could soon be bringing portable COVID-19 tests to communities across the country — and ultimately around the world.
Researchers at U of T Developing Antibodies to Neutralize Novel Coronavirus Before it Invades Cells
Professors Dev Sidhu and James Rini are working together on antibodies that could neutralize the novel coronavirus outside of healthy cells, similar to a current treatment for rabies.
'We're Right to be Optimistic,' Says U of T Epidemiologist About Search for COVID-19 Vaccine
Professor Natasha Crowcroft says estimates of 18 months to develop a vaccine don’t account for the time necessary to produce the vaccine on a global scale. She talks about the pitfalls of vaccine development and how these problems have been dealt with in the past.
U of T Infectious Disease Expert's AI Firm now Part of Canada's COVID-19 Arsenal
BlueDot will provide the federal government with insights and intelligence to help combat the virus – in part by using anonymous location data from hundreds of millions of mobile devices to see how the public health response is working.
Faces of U of T Medicine: Naheed Dosani
Professor Naheed Dosani, a palliative care physician who specializes in care for the homeless, is working at a COVID-19 assessment centre and assisting on urgent policies for the vulnerably housed. He spoke about this work and lessons learned.
U of T Med Students Make Hundreds of Masks for Hospital Training
First-year medical student Calandra Li is working with more than 25 other students to make masks from towels and braided elastics for training purposes at Toronto hospitals during COVID-19.
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Appointments
Dean Trevor Young
The University of Toronto has deferred Professor Cheryl Regehr’s leave from the position of Vice-President and Provost until further notice; Professor Trevor Young’s appointment as Acting Vice-President and Provost is therefore also deferred.
As a result, Prof. Young has ended his current leave and re-assumed the role of Dean of Medicine and Vice-Provost, Relations with Health Care Institutions.
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Faculty Council Meeting
April 27 (cancelled)
Proposals that were to be considered by at this meeting will be on the agenda for a streamlined approval the next time Faculty Council is able to meet. Contact the Faculty Affairs Officer, Todd Coomber, to provide input by April 7 or for more information.
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U of T Libraries Services
UpToDate
In response to COVID-19, UpToDate is now free for all clinicians until the end of April.
To receive free access, new subscribers can follow this link. Those who previously held a license should contact customer support.
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