On Friday, November 17, faculty and staff gathered to wish Dr. Rama Nair a fond farewell.
After 42 years of service, Dr. Nair is hanging up the many hats he has worn as a member of the Faculty of Medicine. Long a familiar face in the halls of the Faculty, he has served with both the Office of Professional Affairs and the School of Epidemiology and Public Health.
Dr. Bernard Jasmin, interim dean of the Faculty of Medicine, joined the group in sharing fond memories of Dr. Nair and his impact on the Faculty. He called out key highlights of Dr. Nair’s career as an active teacher and researcher—since his arrival in 1975, Dr. Nair has:
- Served in many leadership positions at the Faculty, including acting chair of the Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine, and director of Grad Studies
- Taught courses in biostatistics, epidemiology and health care research
- Supervised 50+ graduate students and residents
- Led workshops on research methodology in such countries as Malaysia, Vietnam, China, Cambodia and Thailand
- Published 100+ articles in peer-reviewed journals
- Given many presentations on the national and international scene
- Been elected a Fellow of the American College of Epidemiology in 1994
- Directed numerous significant changes in the key leadership position of Vice-Dean, Professional Affairs since 2007, including:
- Changes in academic practices within the Faculty, especially with the development of a new faculty appointment policy
- A new promotion policy, and the creation of standards for the promotion of clinical professors
- An instrumental role in guiding the automation of the process of application for promotion
- Developing, in collaboration with vice-dean of Continuing Professional Development Dr. Paul Hendry, conflict of interest policy on interaction with industry for faculty members and trainees
“Many of the initiatives Dr. Nair has led or collaborated on have been pioneering initiatives at the level of the University and even nation-wide,” Dr. Jasmin commented.
The afternoon’s guests worried that this would be the last they would see of Dr. Nair.
“Dr. Nair will continue to work at the University as an emeritus professor teaching our students and mentoring graduate students and faculty,” Dr. Jasmin assured. “But he also has some travel plans, to parts of the world he hasn’t covered yet, such as the Northern part of South America as well as some parts of Europe.”
Dr. Nair remarked on his career’s longevity, regaling guests with tales of his arrival in Canada’s capital as well as having served under all of the Faculty’s deans but one.
“It has been 42 years of great stories at uOttawa,” Dr. Nair said. “Throughout my life here at the University, I have been very lucky to work with a lot of good people, fun people, and very bright people.”
“I am going to miss everybody, but I hope to keep coming back.”
Dr. Nair will officially retire on December 31. The Faculty of Medicine wishes to express its gratitude to Dr. Nair for his 42 years of service.
Enjoy your retirement!
