Dr. Bina Nair is appointed Assistant Dean, Resident & Fellow Affairs for the Office of Advocacy & Wellbeing
24 October 2022
Dr. Bina Nain. Photo supplied.
The Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Bina Nair as Assistant Dean, Resident & Fellow Affairs for the Office of Advocacy & Wellbeing (OAW). The OAW plays a key role in the health and well-being of learners and advocates on their behalf.
Dr. Nair completed her undergraduate medical education at the University of Saskatchewan before moving to start her psychiatry residency at the University of Calgary in 2001. After completing her general psychiatry and child and adolescent psychiatry training in Calgary and working for a few years in Calgary and then Edmonton, she moved to the United States for an addiction medicine fellowship at the University of Michigan.
Dr. Nair returned to Edmonton in 2009 and practises outpatient child and adolescent psychiatry with a focus on trauma and addiction. She currently works with two non-profit organizations to decrease barriers for access to psychiatric care for vulnerable, oppressed and marginalized youth and families.
Dr. Nair has a specific interest in residency education and physician health. She has been part of the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Subspecialty Residency Program since 2016, and serves on several provincial and national committees including the Physician Health Monitoring Committee of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta, the Specialty Committee for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Examination Board of both the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.
Dr. Nair is the current Chair of the University of Alberta’s Residency Wellbeing Committee, having been the Co-Chair since 2018 along with Dr. Erica Dance, the outgoing Assistant Dean of Resident & Fellow Affairs. Dr. Nair and the OAW would like to acknowledge and thank Dr. Dance for her inspiring leadership, advocacy, and mentorship during her time with the OAW.
Dr. Nair looks forward to supporting FoMD residents and fellows in a variety of areas including (but not limited to) academic concerns, accommodations/leaves, personal concerns, physical or mental health struggles. She plans to continue advocating for healthy learning and work environments for learners, which includes challenging individuals and systems that uphold racism, inequities, and discrimination.
The Faculty thanks outgoing Assistant Dean Erica Dance for her outstanding contributions in the role, and the search and selection committee who helped make this appointment possible.