Professional Development Seminar Series

Enhance your skills, expand your knowledge, and connect with colleagues - offering hybrid, in-person and virtual session to fit your schedule. Sessions are listed in date order.

Overall learning objectives:

By the end of a specific session, participants should be able to:

  • Recognize the importance and relevancy of session content to their practice specifically and the profession of medicine generally (Collaborator; Communicator; Leader; Professional; Scholar)
  • Apply new learnings to improve, diversify, and strengthen their clinical care and/or research (Collaborator; Communicator; Leader; Professional; Scholar)

Accreditation:

This activity meets the certification criteria of the College of Family Physicians of Canada and has been certified by Dalhousie University Continuing Professional Development and Medical Education for up to 3.0 Mainpro+® Certified Activity credits.

This activity is an Accredited Group Learning Activity (Section 1) as defined by the Maintenance of Certification Program of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, and approved by Dalhousie University Continuing Professional Development and Medical Education. You may claim a maximum of 3.0 hours (credits are automatically calculated).

Educationally approved by Dalhousie University Continuing Professional Development and Medical Education.

Gender Affirming Care: From teaching to practice 

Presenter: Sarah Fraser, MD, MSc, CCFP, Co-Director, Medical Humanities-HEALS (DMNS), Assistant Professor, Department of Family Medicine

📅Date: Thursday, February 19, 2026
🕐 Time: 12:00 p.m.– 1​:00 p.m.
💻 Where: Live on MS Teams

Click here to Register

By the end of this session, attendees should be able to:
1. Explain the core principles of gender-affirming care and their application in clinical practice (Scholar)
2. Demonstrate strategies to teach gender-affirming care effectively to medical students and residents (Scholar, Collaborator).
3. Identify resources and tools to support patients and learners in the provision and understanding of gender-affirming care (Scholar, Communicator, Health Advocate)

For more information, please contact facdev@dal.ca

Talking about Grief in the Clinical Environment (part of Grief Education series)

Presenters: 
Sarah Burm
, PhD, Associate Professor & Associate Director of Education Research, Faculty of Medicine, and Nova Scotia Health Affiliate Scientist (Research)
Matthew Fillier is the provincial grief and bereavement practice lead for the palliative care network at Nova Scotia Health (NSH)

📅Date: Tuesday, February 24, 2026
🕐 Time: 6:00 p.m.– 7​:30 p.m.
💻 Where : Live on Zoom - Open to all DalMed faculty

Click here to Register

You are welcome to attend one or more!
Session 3: Tuesday, March 315:00 p.m.– 6​:30 p.m. | Grief, Self-care, and Physician Wellness
Session 4: Tuesday, April 28, 5:00 p.m.– 6​:30 p.m. | Honouring your Grief and the Grief of Others

Overall Learning Objectives:
 After attending this program, participants should be able to:
1. Recognize the importance and relevancy of session content to their practice specifically and the profession of medicine generally
2. Apply new learnings to improve, diversify, and strengthen their clinical care and/or research

Session 2
Talking about Grief in the Clinical Environment

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify barriers to discussing grief among physicians, learners, and within healthcare teams (Scholar, Professional)
2. Explore the impact of medicine’s professional culture on expressions of vulnerability (Scholar, Professional)

Introduce language and strategies for initiating conversations about grief with colleagues and learners (Scholar, Professional, Collaborator)For more information, please contact sarah.burm@dal.ca

Anti-oppression (EDIA)

Led by Dr. Gaynor Watson-Creed 

White Fragility Clinics (WFC)

Are you ready to shift from awareness to informed action? 

Do you aspire to be a stronger ally and deepen your understanding, while gaining the tools, insight, and support to make that a reality? 

This highly interactive session offers a safe, non-judgmental space. 

Register for a White Fragility Clinic. 2025-26 dates are below and listed again for your convenience in the registration link. All session are on MS Teams, and run from 1-2 p.m. unless otherwise noted.

Learning Objectives:
By the end of the session, those attending may be able to: 

·       Discuss critical concepts such as whiteness, white fragility, and their roles in sustaining systemic racism [Professional, Scholar]
·       Acquire capacity for racial resilience through reflection, dialogue, and practice [Professional, Leader, Collaborator, Communicator]
·       Reflect on their understanding of allyship and assess how to show up with intention and accountability [Collaborator, Communicator, Leader, Professional]
·       Integrate practical strategies for interrupting bias and fostering inclusion [Collaborator, Communicator, Leader, Professional, Scholar]

2026
Thursday February 12 & 26, 2026
Thursday, March 12 & 26, 2026
Thursday, April 9 & 23, 2026
Thursday, May 7 & 21, 2026
Thursday, June 4 & 18, 2026

Join us as we seek to understand our experiences and/or observation of oppression towards priority communities within the Maritimes and beyond. Learn skills to effectively create and support an anti-oppressive working and learning environment.  These adeptly curated and insightful sessions will be hosted by the Serving and Engaging Society office.

Please watch this space for additional programs.

Humanities

Led by Dr. Aruna Dhara and Dr. Wendy Stewart

From the visual and performing arts to the history of medicine, we believe in the value of having medical professionals and faculty engage in the humanities. Wherever you are in your career or your lifelong learning there is something for everyone to gain from humanizing medicine. Integrating medical humanities will: stimulate your creativity; sustain your energy; support the compassion required to provide excellence in care; develop your capacity for critical thinking and improve your communication and advocacy skills.