Congratulations to uOttawa Faculty of Medicine’s 2021 Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada (AFMC) award winners: Dr. Robert Bell (Clinical Teacher Award) and Dr. Ali Jalali (John Ruedy Award for Innovation in Medical Education).
2021 Clinical Teacher Award
The AFMC Clinical Teacher Award recognizes excellence in clinical teaching by an individual faculty member in a Faculty of Medicine in Canada. This award was established in 2014 and is intended to emphasize the importance of clinical teaching in academic medicine.
Winner: Dr. Robert Bell
“Dr. Bell is an exceptional teacher and mentor and it is professors like him who will continue to ensure a high standard of education for future medical students,” said Dr. Bernard Jasmin, dean of the Faculty of Medicine at uOttawa. “Dr. Bell is a unique and rare clinician educator who takes joy in seeing all levels of learner flourish, while providing outstanding clinical care. He is a role model for many aspiring physicians.”
Dr. Robert Bell received his BMSc and MD from the University of Alberta. He then finished pre-licensure residency at the University of Alberta, followed by Internal Medicine residency and Nephrology fellowship at the University of Ottawa. Dr. Bell recently retired from clinical practice as a nephrologist in the Department of Medicine at The Ottawa Hospital and is now adjunct professor at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Ottawa.
He has been curriculum director, director of the Distinguished Teacher Program and is currently unit one leader for the University of Ottawa MD Program. His interest is in teaching all levels of medical learners for which he has received local and national teaching awards and his focus is on the development and enhancement of teaching skills.
John Ruedy Award For Innovation In Medical Education
The AFMC John Ruedy Award for Innovation in Medical Education is presented to an individual or group who has developed innovative print materials, electronic learning aids or other teaching aids.
Winner: Dr. Alireza Jalali
“Dr. Jalali is an exceptional and innovative educator whose will and enthusiasm have mobilized significant changes and development within our faculty, always with the goal of supporting our students in their learning process,” said Dr. Jasmin. “His innovative teaching methods, enhanced by his research, have profoundly impacted his students and colleagues and has garnered an impressive reputation for the University of Ottawa in educational networks.”
Dr. Jalali is the head of the Division of Anatomy, and the associate dean, External Relations at the Faculty of Medicine, uOttawa. He has a medical doctorate and a specialist diploma in Sports Medicine from the University of Liège in Belgium. Since coming to the Faculty of Medicine in 2003, he has been teaching anatomy passionately. He has developed an active research program in educational innovations: podcasts, YouTube, team-based learning, social media, and 3D printing.
Dr. Jalali also has an established track record of leadership: UGME unit leader, director of practical exams and social media advisor at the Royal College. He has received numerous awards, including the 2020 University of Ottawa Award for Excellence in Teaching (Teacher of the Year).