Meet the OES Team

Dr. Mahan Kulasegaram is the Director of the OES and a Professor in DFCM. He is also a Scientist at the Wilson Centre and Temerty Faculty of Medicine where he holds the Temerty Chair in Learner Assessment and Evaluation. His research focuses on how assessment practices and assessment data can be used to help learners, programs, and systems in meeting their goals. His focus on assessment for learning studies both the micro level (e.g. the impact of testing to enhance future learning) and the macro (e.g. how assessment data can reveal gaps in training for clinically important outcomes). More recently, he has been exploring the uses - and abuses - of artificial intelligence in medical education assessment and research with a particular focus on Big Data, the use of theory to guide AI implementation, and alignment of technological solutions with the best evidence in education. His additional interests include curriculum and instructional designs to promote transfer of learning and the validity of admissions and selection processes for medical training.

Keywords: Assessment, Big Data, Clinical reasoning, Transfer of learning, Instructional Design, Undergraduate medical education.

Dr. Nicole Woods is a cognitive psychologist by training. Her work examines the role of basic science knowledge in clinical reasoning and the development of medical expertise. Her primary interests focus on the mental representation of categories and instructional design that supports cognitive integration of basic and clinical sciences. Although closely linked to undergraduate education, her work has implications for developing expertise along the entire spectrum of professional education. In the OES, Dr. Woods leads our Big Ideas research pillar on generalism in family medicine.

Keywords: learning science, cognitive psychology, clinical reasoning, generalism in family medicine, basic science education

Dr. Sarah Wright is a health professions education consultant and academic whose work focuses on assessment, admissions, and the application of psychometric and sociological theory to health professions education. As Consultant at Large with the Office of Education Scholarship, she supports clinicians and educators in developing and advancing their education scholarship projects. She has expertise in quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods approaches.

Keywords: Assessment, admissions, undergraduate medical education, transformative education, hidden curriculum. 

Dr. Melissa Nutik is an academic family physician and clinician educator in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Toronto where she practises comprehensive Family Medicine and teaches learners of all levels. Following her medical training she undertook a formal academic fellowship in medical education and then subsequently completed a Masters of Education degree through the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education with a focus on Higher Education. She is the Undergraduate Education Lead for the Office of Education Scholarship at the Department of Family and Community Medicine. Her scholarship interests include curriculum design and evaluation, in particular related to promoting generalism and advocacy within medical school curricula. Her other areas of interest are multi-source feedback and work-based assessment and developing and studying innovative ways to support people new to education scholarship.      

Keywords: curriculum design, curriculum evaluation, generalism, advocacy, multi-source feedback, work-based assessment 

Dr. Risa Freeman is the Vice Chair of Education and Scholarship in the Department of Family and Community Medicine.  She is a community-based family physician affiliated with North York General Hospital, and holds a cross appointment in the School of Graduate Studies, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, Division of Clinical Public Health, and membership as a Clinician Educator Researcher at The Wilson Centre. In all these roles, she enjoys working with learners from across the continuum of medical and interprofessional education. Dr. Freeman’s academic work in medical education focuses on adopting and promoting scholarly change in curriculum innovation, learning strategies, evaluation, faculty development and leadership. She is a mixed method researcher in health professions education and has a strong track record of leading, mentoring, and supervising research projects for medical students, residents, graduate students, and faculty members.

Key words: curriculum innovation, learning strategies, evaluation, faculty development, leadership

Dr. Risa Bordman is an Associate Professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine. She joined the OES in 2016 as the Faculty Development Lead. She is co-director of the Essence course, a one-year longitudinal program that helps faculty to create their own education scholarship project. She is a community-based family physician in suburban Toronto. Her areas of interest are Faculty Development, supporting undergraduate and postgraduate learners, using technology in teaching, and innovative curriculum delivery methods.  

Key words: Faculty development, curriculum, technology 

Cynthia Whitehead is an education scientist, educator, and family physician. Anchored in critical historical analyses, her research examines the effects of power relations on various structures, systems, processes, and practices in health professions education, paying attention to who and what is advantaged or disadvantaged as a result. She aims to use her research findings to promote health and education practices that are compassionate, equitable, and effective. Working at the intersection of health and higher education, she sees exciting opportunities to harness the transformative potential of education in service of a healthier world. Some of her specific content areas of research interest are globalized medical education, primary care education, accreditation, outcomes-based education, and education for collaboration.

Dr. Tavis Apramian is clinician-investigator in medical education and palliative care at the University of Toronto. He holds an MA (English Literature), an MSc (Narrative Medicine), and a PhD (Health Professional Education). He works as a palliative care physician at St. Michael’s Hospital, an assistant professor in the Department of Family & Community Medicine, and an education scientist in the Department’s Office of Education Scholarship. His research program includes primary palliative care education, workplace-based education and assessment, and end-of-life care.

Karelle Pickersgill is the Coordinator, Education Scholarship in the Department of Family & Community Medicine, where she provides operational leadership across the scholarship lifecycle, from application intake and adjudication support to award administration. She works closely with faculty leadership, finance teams, and academic administrators to align scholarship processes with institutional priorities, while leading efforts to improve data integrity, reporting, and program evaluation.

Karelle brings over five years of project management experience within the University of Toronto's Temerty Faculty of Medicine, having previously coordinated strategic initiatives and academic appointments processes for the Department of Psychiatry. Karelle holds a master’s degree in Strategy & International Business.

Tasnia Khan is the Research Officer, Education Scholarship, in the Department of Family and Community Medicine. In this role, she supports a diverse portfolio of research, scholarly, and educational initiatives, with a focus on advancing education scholarship and research activities within the Office of Education Scholarship and supporting affiliated research projects at The Wilson Centre and The Michener Institute.

Tasnia manages the Art of the Possible grant program, providing ongoing guidance and support to grant recipients. She also supports the planning and coordination of the Essence Course, contributing to its effective delivery and ongoing operations.

Tasnia holds a master’s degree in Nutrition & Global Health from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.