When Dr. Norm Wong needs a ‘second opinion,’ he doesn’t have to look far for help.

Thanks to the multidisciplinary approach of the University of Calgary’s Faculty of Medicine, the expertise Wong needs to help research, review and assess medical problems is located all around him.

“ When you have department-based research, the departments become islands in isolation,” says Wong, a researcher and professor of biochemistry and molecular biology within the Faculty of Medicine. “By putting your best clinical people right beside your best researchers – all of whom have the same interests and expertise – you break down barriers. It’s what makes working here so exciting.”

The U of C’s Faculty of Medicine is a crucible of creativity, where dedicated teams of researchers work hand-in-hand with clinicians and other experts to further the breadth and scope of medical knowledge.

The outcome of the research done here is of crucial importance to the people of Alberta – and beyond – because today’s breakthroughs in the lab can become the cures of tomorrow.

The key to the faculty’s success is its bench-to-bedside philosophy.
“ If you’re going to stimulate innovative thinking and research programs, you want to be around people who are thinking about the same issues as yourself, ” explains Dr. D. Grant Gall, dean of the Faculty of Medicine.

“ It’s the old story – if you sit down and have coffee with someone with the same medical interests, or meet them in the hall, you get chatting about your research and it leads to other things. ”

The faculty is divided into 16 key research groups, each focussed on a specific type or family of medical conditions or diseases.

For instance, Wong – an expert in gene therapy – is a member of the Diabetes and Endocrinology research group. However, he’s also a member of the Cancer Biology and Cardiovascular groups, and as such, is able to tap into the wealth of multidisciplinary medical experience offered by his fellow faculty members.

The cross-pollination of ideas here has led to some exciting breakthroughs.

Earlier this year, Dr. Samuel Weiss, Chair of the Genes and Development Research Group at the U of C’s Faculty of Medicine, and his research team discovered that a naturally occurring hormone, prolactin, stimulates growth of new brain cells. Future research will reveal whether the hormone could help repair the brains of stroke victims.

Last year, the Faculty of Medicine brought in $110 million in research revenue (approximately 65 per cent of the U of C’s total research revenue). The Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research are the two major contributors of research funding.

Also adding to the mix is the strong partnership enjoyed between the Faculty of Medicine and the Calgary Health Region.

“ The faculty and the health region are inextricably linked,” says Dr. Michael Hill, director of the CHR’s Stroke Unit and an assistant professor in the departments of clinical neurosciences, medicine and community health sciences in the Faculty of Medicine.

“ The end result is excellence in clinical care and in research.”