As we close out another remarkable academic year, it’s important to acknowledge all that has changed since June 2024. In our health-care system, our university sector and in our department, this has been a year of huge progress and also huge challenges affecting family medicine. It’s so important to acknowledge and celebrate the hard work done by so many in the DFCM community to build a more positive and hopeful future.
First and foremost, congratulations to our newest cohort of DFCM residency graduates who will be honoured at tomorrow’s postgraduate celebration! As an utterly biased advocate for family medicine, I continue to believe very sincerely that they are entering a discipline that offers huge joy and meaning. Completing family medicine residency is no small feat, and our learners should feel proud of all they have accomplished and hopeful for what lies ahead in their own careers. Even for those of us who graduated decades ago, it is a moment we remember with pride and fondness. I must say that as the years fly by, I feel enduring appreciation for the faculty who trained me, so many of whom made a real imprint on the way I practice medicine to this day. To the educators, preceptors and administrative staff who supported our graduates along the way—thank you. Your dedication helped make this milestone possible.
Beyond departmental achievements like these, this academic year has also brought exciting recognitions and milestones at the university and faculty levels. The University of Toronto was once again named the top university in Canada, and the Temerty Faculty of Medicine was recognized as the leading medical school in the country. These honours reflect the excellence and impact of our entire academic community, which are also reflected in the fact that we filled 100 per cent of our residency positions this year in spite of massive expansion in postgraduate training positions across the country.
Our global standing as a department also shone through at our first-ever Starfield Summit that took place in April. Starfield Summits are prestigious gatherings of international leaders in family medicine and primary care who come together for powerful dialogue on the future of the field. This year, DFCM had the honour of being the first host ever outside the United States. The Summit brought together over 100 delegates from 23 countries for two days to talk about how we can advance family medicine and primary care around the world. The incredible showing of colleagues from Ethiopia, Ghana, Australia, Malaysia, India and many, many more countries was a clear reflection of our department’s influence on primary care on the global stage, and I’m looking forward to the impactful work that will come from the gathering.
This milestone comes at a time of growing momentum in primary care here at home in Ontario. As many of you know, with our friend Dr. Jane Philpott’s leadership, the province has made important investments in strengthening primary care and primary care education, and DFCM has played a key role in influencing these policy decisions. These historic investments totalling $2.1 billion (so far!), paired with residency expansions and research highlighting where improvements are needed, show that real progress on the issues that matter to our patients, learners and faculty is happening, and our department is helping to lead it. I couldn’t be more proud to be associated with DFCM, and alongside all of you, I will continue to work hard to play my part in building a hopeful future for family medicine and the communities we serve.
It’s been a very busy year for all of us. As we hurtle towards the summer months, I hope you all find time to enjoy a well-deserved break.
