Learners as Leaders

Iain Sander

MD student and Rhodes Scholar

As an engineering undergrad at Queen's University, Sander co-designed a device for swimmers with disabilities. But it was coaching Special Olympians that ignited his interest in medicine.

As a 2018 Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University, Sander will study orthopedic biomechanics and examine the musculoskeletal system, seeking root causes of mobility-related disorders.

After his two-year sojourn, he will finish medical school at the University of Alberta and hopes to specialize in physiatry.

"When people say, 'What do you want to do 10 years from now?' I say, 'I'll still be in school.' But that's OK. I love it.

Mackenzie Coatham

UAlberta's first PhD in OB/Gyn

Recruited through the graduate program in Maternal and Child Health (MatCH), Mackenzie Coatham is an award-winning endometrial-cancer researcher and the first PhD student in obstetrics and gynecology at University of Alberta.

Coatham is passionate about the importance of basic science research in advancing women's health. Her biochemistry background makes her a valuable asset in Cancer Research Institute of Northern Alberta (CRINA) co-director Lynne Postovit's lab and she volunteers monthly to help curate the CRINA e-newsletter.

"As scientists, I think it is important for us to be accountable to society and disseminate our findings to our fellow researchers so that the entire field can keep progressing," said Coatham.

Danielle Clark

MSC student and dental hygeine award winner

Danielle Clark, RDH, BSc DH, is the first Canadian student to win the American Dental Education Association (ADEA) Crest Oral-B Scholarship for Dental Hygiene Students Pursuing Academic Careers Award.

Currently, she is practising dental hygiene at the U of A School of Dentistry’s Oral Health Clinic and is a clinical instructor within the division of periodontology. Her research, focused on the role of loricrin (a protein) in aggressive periodontal disease, has her publishing in leading peerreviewed journals, attending conferences and lecturing around the world.

"More work needs to be done in terms of knowledge translation in order to see high-risk populations get the care they need." said Clark.