• Developing the skills required in order to elicit a pertinent cardiovascular history and the relevant physical examination findings in patients with cardiovascular disease. 
• Integrating normal and abnormal anatomy and physiology knowledge into the clinical setting. 
• Learning about the diagnostic tools available for the evaluation of cardiac patients.

• Students are encouraged to book electives as far in advance as possible as they will be assigned on a first come, first served basis. 
• Useful links: 
  • CarCardiology Elective Information for 1st and 2nd Year uOttawa Medical Students (PDF) 
  • List of Doctors for uOttawa Pre-Clerkship Medical Student electives (PDF) 
• The elective spans 4 weeks during the cardiology block of Unit 1. Each week, a different patient will be interviewed and examined by a cardiologist. Students will use stethophones to hear the patients’ heart sounds, both normal and abnormal. The relevant pathophysiology as well as some of the tools (e.g., ECG, echocardiogram, cardiac catheterization) that can be used to further evaluate the patients’ problems will be discussed. A sign-up sheet will be circulated by the Undergraduate Medical Office during the month of December.

• University of Ottawa Heart Institute 
• The Ottawa Hospital, General Campus

• Observe the clinical assessments of people living with endocrine conditions such as diabetes mellitus, thyroid disorders, adrenal and pituitary disorders, and metabolic bone disease. 
• Describe the complications of diabetes mellitus. 
• Identify key components of specialty ambulatory care clinics. 
• Recognize the importance of multidisciplinary teams in ambulatory care including diabetes nurse specialists and dietitians. 

• Program administrator will provide clinic and preceptor details through email. 
• Student should reach out to their preceptor 24–48 hours in advance to discuss clinic preferences e.g., meeting time. 

• Recognizing the morphology of primary and secondary skin lesions and medical terms used for description of skin abnormalities.
• Identifying the general features of common bacterial, viral and fungal infections affecting the skin.
• Identifying common skin diseases and infestations.
• Listing the general features of acne vulgaris and rosacea.
• Recognizing benign skin lesions like seborrheic keratoses and melanocytic nevi.
• Identifying the features of malignant skin lesions like basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and melanoma.
• Appreciate the role of commonly used diagnostic procedures in dermatology, and be familiar with the technique of performing punch and shave skin biopsies.
• Listing common topical and systemic therapies used in dermatology, especially topical corticosteroids, and describe their side effects.
• Appreciate the burden of skin disease on quality of life of patients and the interaction with the community and environment.

• 10 hours for 1^st year medical students
• 20 hours for 2^nd year medical students

• The Ottawa Hospital, Civic Campus
• The Ottawa Hospital, General Campus
• CHEO

• Attendance in outpatient clinics in various general adult and pediatric dermatology, cancer outpatient clinics and specialty by dermatology centre clinics.
• Benefits for students interested in taking this elective: better understanding of dermatology conditions, increased knowledge of cutaneous morphology, understanding of diagnostic dermatological procedures.

• The Ottawa Hospital, Civic , General campus and Riverside Campus  
• Note that preceptors work at all 3 sites.

• Learn what is different about the assessment of an elderly patient, including the problem list approach, functional assessment, mental status examination and assessment of social supports.
• Interview patients and become familiar with the special aspects of history taking and physical examination that are of particular importance in the elderly.
• Be exposed to the atypical presentations of illnesses in the elderly and to common geriatric syndromes including dementia/delirium, falls and depression.
• Learn about the roles of the geriatrician and the geriatric team in the care of elderly complex patients.

• Attending general hematology clinics, with an option to attend some of the subspecialty clinics depending on availability.
• Most clinics are currently held in the morning, and therefore many pre-clerkship students choose to do rotations with us during their summer months.

• Being exposed to a variety of clinical infectious disease problems and their management.
• Being exposed to the principles of appropriate antimicrobial utilization.

• Observing a nephrologist at work by accompanying them on hospital rounds. 
• Familiarizing oneself with the structure and function of the kidneys through selected readings. 
• Developing interviewing skills and an understanding of the impact of illness by interviewing a patient with chronic kidney disease undergoing dialysis. 
• Giving a general overview of the research interests and relevance of basic science done in the University of Ottawa Division of Nephrology.

The student will have the opportunity to: 

• Spend 2-3 hours in an outpatient clinic with a nephrologist, seeing patients with renal disease, possible renal symptoms or other abnormalities, hypertension, etc. 
• Spend 2-3 hours rounding with the nephrologist looking after the chronic hemodialysis unit, to interview a chronic hemodialysis patient and to discuss technical and/or medical aspects of hemodialysis. 
• Spend 2-3 hours in the home dialysis unit seeing how peritoneal dialysis is done, and perhaps to interview a patient being treated. 
• Follow along with a nephrologist caring for the inpatient renal service, to get a feel for inpatient nephrology. 
• Attend informal 2–3-hour classroom type sessions reviewing topics of interest related to nephrology, including a general overview of the kidneys and renal failure. 
• Depending on commitments of faculty, perhaps spend 1-2 hours with Drs. Burns and/or Hebert to discuss their research interests and the physiology underlying these interests. Actual observation of experiments may be possible.

• Learn the process of anatomical localization and etiologic differential diagnosis. 
• Learn the indications and interpretation of neurological investigations.

• Develop communication skills that lead to a therapeutic relationship with patients who are terminally ill and their families. 
• Experience an interdisciplinary team and a holistic approach to the assessment and management of patients. 
• Manage symptoms and end-of-life using a palliative approach to care.

• Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. (varies based on availability)  
• No weekends, statutory holidays, or evenings.

• Palliative Care Unit - Bruyère Continuing Care, Saint Vincent Hospital 
• The Ottawa Hospital, General or Civic Campus - inpatient consults 
• Regional Palliative Consultation Team - community and home visits, based out of Saint Vincent Hospital

During the elective, under the supervision of a palliative care physician, the student will admit and assist in the care of patients as a member of the interdisciplinary team of professionals and volunteers, or assist in the consultation of admitted patients under other services. Orientation materials and educational sessions are provided. Students are encouraged to consider reflective practice with a focus on personal objectives. 

This elective qualifies for both internal and family medicine.

• Assess a patient from a holistic perspective with an emphasis on their functional limitations.
• Demonstrate a basic musculoskeletal and neurological examination.
• Participate in patient care as a member of an interdisciplinary team.
• Be aware of the care needs of the disabled population.
• Indicate which patients might benefit from a referral to a physiatrist.

• Rehabilitation Centre
• Elizabeth Bruyere Health Centre (EBHC)

• This rotation has been structured to ensure students achieve some basic objectives but with sufficient flexibility to allow students to pursue areas of specific interest within physical medicine and rehabilitation. Students have a primary supervisor with whom they spend approximately half of their time. This supervisor is determined by the specific interests expressed by the student. The remainder of their time is spent with one or more secondary supervisors, ensuring a general exposure to physiatry.
• Learning methods are varied and may include attendance at clinics, ward rounds, team meetings, and patient therapy sessions, literature searches, and interactive teaching sessions. Evaluation is based on achievement of objectives agreed to by the student and supervisor.

• Introducing the student to a multidisciplinary cancer care setting, with an emphasis on the role of radiotherapy in the curative management of cancer.
• Becoming familiar with the staging and investigation of cancer and cancer-related problems, including intra-operative assessments and procedures.
• Introduction to the "behind the scenes" treatment planning, simulation, and delivery of curative radiotherapy.

• Gain experience in the assessment and management of patients with acute and chronic respiratory diseases.
• Increase knowledge of respiratory diseases and pathophysiology.
• Enhance skills in pulmonary function test and chest radiograph interpretation.

• Observe information gathering (history-taking and physical examination techniques) as part of the clinical assessment in rheumatology. 
• Identify common musculoskeletal and systemic symptoms that may lead to a rheumatology evaluation. 
• Observe the development of a differential diagnosis for patients presenting with musculoskeletal complaints.  
• Learn about the role of various healthcare professionals in the management of rheumatic diseases including allied health professionals. 
• Develop self-directed learning skills by seeking out additional resources and information to enhance understanding of the presentations seen in clinic. 

• This elective is not available during statutory holidays and clinic closures (Feb 29, Mar 1, Mar 11–15, July 2–28, Aug 28–Sep 1, Nov 10 and 13, Dec 25–Jan 5). 
• Most morning clinics begin between 8 and 8:30 a.m. Most afternoon clinics begin at 1 p.m.

• Students will gain exposure to the evaluation and management of patients with a wide variety of rheumatic diseases. Students may choose to join the general rheumatology, the lupus, the vasculitis, or the osteoporosis clinic. Students may also choose to join senior rheumatology residents on the inpatient consult services at the General or Civic campuses.   
• Reporting detailswill be communicated 1 week before the start date. 
• Benefits for students interested in taking this elective:  
  • Gain exposure to rheumatologic conditions, which are frequently multi-system and are relevant to a wide variety of medical and surgical specialties.  
  • Learn through direct interaction with rheumatologists as well as other more senior learners (medical students, residents, fellows) also working in the rheumatology clinic. 
  • Flexible scheduling to ensure that the student’s interests are met during the elective. 

• Understanding the surgical aspects of heart disease and the treatment modalities.
• Understanding the principles of perioperative care of cardiac surgical patients.

• Through a series of lectures, indications for surgical treatment of various cardiac diseases (including coronary disease, valvular disease, and arrhythmias) will be presented. 
• The surgical options for therapy will be discussed including coronary artery bypass surgery, valve repair and replacement, pacemaker technology and circulatory assistance. 
• The student will be expected to participate in clinics, the operating room and the intensive care areas under supervision.

• Emphasize applied clinical anatomy of the musculoskeletal system.
• Introduce the student to common orthopedic conditions.

• Introducing the student to pediatric patient care.
• Introducing the student to the function of a surgeon in an academic hospital.
• Arranging the rotation so that the student’s knowledge of physiology and anatomy is reinforced by the clinical experience.
• Encouraging the student to consider academic pediatric surgery or pediatrics as a possible career.

• The elective will be offered in pediatric general surgery, pediatric neurosurgery, pediatric orthopedic surgery, pediatric urology, pediatric cardiac surgery, and pediatric plastic surgery.  
• During the elective, the student will have a set schedule involving 4 separate and different outpatient clinic visits. At this time, the student will have a one-on-one experience with a pediatric surgeon and a pediatric surgical resident. The remaining 4 weeks will be allotted to 1 afternoon in the operating room, 1 afternoon attending teaching clinical patient care rounds, and 2 afternoons of electives.

• Gaining a basic understanding of common problems encountered by the plastic surgeon, including their relevant presentation, pathophysiology, investigations and management.
• Being familiar with the clinical presentation, the pathophysiology, indicated investigations and the basic management of:
  • elective hand and peripheral nerve diseases (Dupuytren’s contracture, trigger finger, carpal tunnel syndrome, cubital tunnel syndrome, tumours of the hand, arthritis);
  • emergency hand and nerve diseases (tendon lacerations, infections, fractures, amputations, nerve injuries);
  • benign and malignant skin lesions (cysts, lipomas, nevi, basal cell, squamous cell, malignant melanomas);
  • facial trauma (soft tissue and musculoskeletal);
  • burns;
  • acute and chronic wounds.
• Get familiarized with:
  • post-traumatic and cancer reconstruction (breast cancer, head and neck, upper extremity, lower extremity, chest wall, hand);
  • microsurgery for nerve, vessel and flap reconstruction.

• The Ottawa Hospital, General Campus
• CHEO

• For 2-week rotations, you will spend at least 4 out of your 10 days in clinic. Clinic provides the opportunity to see and review many patients with a plastic surgeon.
• Before morning clinics and after early afternoon clinics, return to the wards to round with the team. This will give you the opportunity to see more acute problems that have required hospitalization or see clinic patients who have been brought in for elective surgery.
• Try hard to get to the operating room to see surgeries and learn technical skills.
• Attend all scheduled rounds.

• Exposure to thoracic surgery
  • Basic introduction to the operating room and ambulatory procedures
  • Outpatient consultations and follow-up visits
  • Inpatient and emergency consultations

Dr. Villeneuve’s office – General Campus, room 6362

Contact Emily Masson 
Tel.: 613-737-8845 
Email: [email protected]

• Scrubs and white coat
• Smart casual dress for clinic

• Gain experience in the interview and assessment of adolescent patients.
• Understand the interaction of the process of adolescent development on the biopsychosocial health outcome of youth.
• Become comfortable using the HEADSS interviewing technique.
• Gain confidence in engaging and working with adolescents deemed to be at high risk.

• Students and learners will have the opportunity to experience both the inpatient and outpatient settings with patients aged 12-18 years in several areas of adolescent health: eating disorders including a half-day assessment process, outpatient clinic, day program (maximum of 8 patients) and inpatient care (averaging 4-8 patients), general adolescent health issues with a range of patients presenting with issues related to adolescent development, identity, sexuality, anxiety and depression, school refusal, substance use and abuse, etc. There is a specific focus on:
  • Sexual health: 1 adolescent health clinic weekly with emphasis on sexual histories, sexual assault, etc.
  • Chronic illness: patients seen in either the general adolescent health clinic or in concert with various subspecialty clinics (i.e., diabetes, IBD, etc.)
• Please note that the outpatient clinics are currently scheduled for Monday and Thursday evenings (4-8 p.m.). There is also an opportunity for students/residents to attend a drop-in high school clinic (1 half-day/week) and as well a sexual health clinic off site. This opportunity is dependent on the number of learners per given month interested in attending. Students are asked to inform the supervising physician of their wish to attend these clinics or of other specific interests prior to or as early as possible after elective onset to enable proper planning. Students also have the opportunity to become involved with research projects addressing any facet of adolescent health. 

• Provide students with an opportunity to use humour and distraction techniques in the medical setting in order to:
  • normalize the hospital environment;
  • empower the child & family;
  • assist in procedural support;
  • develop skills.
• Recognize the interdisciplinary collaboration involved in the setting of therapeutic clowning goals.
• Identify the significance of legacy building.
• Appreciate and practice skills like listening, intuition, sensitivity, emotional creativity, intelligence and humour while acquiring some traditional tricks of the magic trade.

• The Association of Child Life Professionals website provides information on child life professionals.
• Koller D, Gryski C. The life threatened child and the life enhancing clown: towards a model of therapeutic clowning. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2008 Mar;5(1):17-25.
• Therapeutic Clowns Canada

Videos:

• The serious business of clown doctoring | Thomas Petschner | TEDx Talks
• One, Two, Three: Play | Jeff Smithson | TEDx Talks
• Humor in healthcare | Gary Edwards | TEDx Talks
• La Belle Visite | Teatro do Sopro [French with English subtitles]
• The Dream Doctors Project- Israeli Medical Clowns

• Be able to perform an appropriate cardiac examination in a child.
• Understand the application of physiologic concepts to children with heart disease.
• Describe common palliative cardiovascular procedures.

• Gain a basic understanding of the developmental assessment for children.
• Be able to appreciate both the quantitative and qualitative aspects of development.

• Develop an approach to the assessment of a patient with short stature.
• Develop an approach to the assessment and initial investigations of a patient with precocious or delayed puberty.
• Become familiar with the presentation and management of hypo- and hyperthyroidism in children and adults.
• Become familiar with the presentation, initial and long-term management of children and adolescents with diabetes.

• Enhance pediatric clinical skills.
• Appreciate the impact of a serious illness on a child and their family.
• Learn basic principles of pediatric hematology and oncology.
• Appreciate the care and support given to patients and their families.
• Observe lumbar puncture and bone marrow aspirate procedures.
• Pursue a small research project if desired. 

The student will work under the supervision of a pediatric neurologist at CHEO. They will act as a clinical clerk on the Pediatric Neurology Consulting Service. They will work directly with infants, children, adolescents and their families completing inpatient and outpatient consults in ambulatory clinics, hospital wards, PICU, NICU and the ER. The student will attend weekly teaching rounds and may be expected to complete a short oral presentation.

• Ward rotation. They will be involved in patient assessments, interpretation imaging and test results, and providing their opinion regarding treatment and management decisions. The student will have support and back-up from a pediatric neurology resident and/or staff physician at all times. They will only be assigned tasks that are within their level of comfort, knowledge, and training. 
• Clinic rotation. The student will be assigned to pediatric neurology ambulatory clinics that may include: general child neurology, epilepsy, neuromuscular, headache, neuro-oncology, movement disorders, white matter diseases and cerebral palsy.

• Learn about the fundamental principles of screening, and the diseases for which newborns in Ontario are screened.
• Observe the testing process and learn about the fundamental principles of the tests themselves and the basic concepts underlying the interpretation of screening test results.
• Observe and learn about the referral process for screen positive infants, and the operational systems for ensuring appropriate screening, retrieval, and follow-up of infants.
• Observe the retrieval and diagnostic evaluation of screen positive infants, including the initial communication with parents, diagnostic approaches, triaging, and treatment decisions.

• Gain insight into normal and abnormal fetal development.
• Learn about the transition from the intrauterine to the extrauterine environment.
• Learn about the disease processes in newborn infants.
• Explore ethical principles involved in neonatal intensive care.

• Acquire/enhance clinical skills in pediatric rheumatology.
• Learn to communicate with rheumatology patients and their parents.
• Learn clear and concise rheumatology history taking.
• Learn competent physical examination skills, including a detailed examination of the musculoskeletal system.
• Experience hands-on management of patients with rheumatologic disorders.

Centretown Community Health Centrer

420 Cooper St, Ottawa, ON

• Understanding integrative medicine as a medical care philosophy as well as an interdisciplinary method of providing health care.

• Learn about the profession of chiropractor and how to collaborate with these health professionals.

Learn about the scope of practice of dentists. 

Communicate and refer appropriately to dentists. 

Learn about the importance of dental health in overall health.

• Students will shadow a dentist for a minimum of 10 hours. Typically, they may be exposed to restorative procedures, orthodontics and oral surgery. They might encounter implant dentistry and/or IV sedation. 
• Benefits for students interested in taking this elective: Familiarizing themselves with common oral pathologies and buccal manifestations of systemic diseases. 

• Gaining an appreciation for the philosophy, approach, evaluation, and management from various complementary health providers for patients with different health conditions. 
• Exploring the evaluation and management of functional disorders commonly treated in the community by non-allopathic providers. 

• Dr. Adrienne Junek
  Email: [email protected]
• Dr. Richar Raigoza
  Email: [email protected]  

• Interprofessional elective for pre-clerkship medical students to shadow and work with practitioners of different integrative health professions.  
• Available health care providers include: 
  • integrative medical doctors; 
  • chiropractors, physiotherapists, osteopaths, massage therapists; 
  • naturopaths, holistic nutritionists, dieticians, health coaches; 
  • traditional Chinese medicine practitioners, acupuncturists. 
• Please indicate the profession you would like to shadow during your elective when you contact the faculty supervisor and coordinator. Other professions may also be available by request. 

• Understanding the roles of the midwife and pathologies they treat.
• Knowing when to refer to this specialty.
• Collaborating with allied healthcare members.

• Understanding the roles of the naturopathic doctor and pathologies they treat.
• Knowing when to refer to this specialty.
• Collaborating with allied healthcare members.

• Understanding the roles of the physiotherapist and the pathologies they treat.
• Knowing when to refer to this specialty.
• Collaborating with allied healthcare members.