Celebrating Department Success

Whether you're a prospective student, a current member of our department, or a collaborator, we invite you to explore the incredible work being done by our faculty and staff. Their dedication to research, education, and community engagement is what makes our department thrive.

Help us celebrate by making submissions for this page here. 

Winter 2026 Spotlight Stories

Faculty Excellence

• Dr. Cindy Feng’s new manuscript accepted for publication
  Dr. Feng's article, “Concurrent Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders Among Canadian Adults During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Population-Based Study,” has been accepted for publication in Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention in Canada and will appear in Volume 46:6 (June 2026).
  
  This population-based study provides important insight into the intersection of mental health and substance use among Canadian adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Feng’s work contributes valuable evidence to help inform health promotion strategies, service planning, and prevention approaches nationwide.
  
  Please join us in celebrating this achievement and in recognizing Dr. Feng’s ongoing contributions to public health research.

• Dalhousie’s Dr. Daniel Dutton Testifies Before Canadian Senate on Food Insecurity
  Dr. Daniel Dutton appeared before the Canadian Senate’s Standing Committee on Agriculture and Forestry on December 4, 2025. The committee is examining the role of the agriculture and agri-food sector in addressing food insecurity in Canada.
  
  Dr. Dutton provided evidence-based insights on how health policy and food systems intersect, emphasizing the need for practical solutions to ensure equitable access to nutritious food for all Canadians.
  
  Watch the full recording: Senate Committee Meeting Video (time stamp: 9:14:30)
  Read the meeting details: Notice of Meeting & Witness List
  
  
• Dr. Watson‑Creed invited to provide CJPH commentary
  Congratulations to Associate Dean, Serving and Engaging Society, Dr. Gaynor Watson-Creed on her invited commentary in the Canadian Journal of Public Health, “The roads not yet taken: 50 years after Lalonde—where does public health go from here?” (2025). Building on the Lalonde Report’s legacy, Dr. Watson‑Creed poses timely questions for the next half‑century of public health: How ready are we to help surface Canadian societal values? To engage the complex structural determinants and the power dynamics they invoke? And to evolve our discourse on the social determinants of health—joining work already underway to advance wellbeing? This brief piece invites renewed, values‑aware action across policy, practice, and scholarship.
  
  Read the publication here.

Staff Achievements

• Coming soon!

Student Success

• Hugh Atkinson named CAME Rising Star (Certificate of Excellence) — 2026
  Hugh Atkinson, an MSc student in the Epidemiology & Applied Health Research program, has been awarded the 2026 CAME Rising Star – Certificate of Excellence, a national award recognizing learners who demonstrate exceptional commitment to medical education through research, leadership, and educational innovation.
  
  Hugh’s impact spans student leadership—serving as co-president of the Community Health & Epidemiology Student Society (CHESS), president of the Canadian Society for Epidemiology and Biostatistics Dalhousie Chapter (CSEB-DAL), and student representative for the Canadian Public Health Association on campus—where he launched hands-on workshops and journal clubs, re‑established CHESS to expand student‑led programming, and helped introduce Orientation Week and a new peer mentorship program. He also contributes to the department’s EDIRA (Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Reconciliation and Accessibility) committee, bringing an interdisciplinary lens from his BA in the History & Philosophy of Science (UBC).
  
  His thesis research, examining the diagnostic accuracy of khat immunoassay testing and its links to mental health outcomes in Ethiopia, underscores his dedication to rigorous scholarship and global health equity.
  
  
• Celebrating Research Excellence: Samuel Silva’s Achievement
  We’re thrilled to share that Samuel Silva, PhD student, was invited to co-author a paper with international colleagues, highlighting the latest evidence on low back pain diagnosis and prognosis. This collaboration underscores Samuel’s growing impact in advancing musculoskeletal research and contributing to global scientific dialogue.
  
  Read the full publication here.

Recent Publications & Projects

Highlights from recent research, community initiatives, and strategic collaborations. 

• Coming soon!

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