Program goals

Residents in Public Health and Preventive Medicine must develop a comprehensive knowledge of the sciences of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, and the skills to apply this knowledge to a broad range of community health issues in the socio-political and cultural contexts in which they occur. They must demonstrate the knowledge, skills and attitudes relating to socio-economic status, gender, culture and ethnicity of the populations with which they work. In addition, all residents must demonstrate an ability to incorporate these factors in research methodology, data presentation and analysis. During training, all residents will be expected to acquire a substantial knowledge of and necessary skills in: concepts of health and illness and their determinants, methods in community health, health services organizations, trans-organization collaboration, community health programs, communication and advocacy. In addition, residents are encouraged to develop a higher level of expertise in one of these fields, and to acquire knowledge in other academic subjects relevant to their own interests.

Program Curriculum

This residency program is for 5 years. Program length of training does not exceed the Royal College or College of Family Physicians of Canada standard. The program is designed to fulfill the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada General and Specific Training Objectives for Public Health and Preventive Medicine. There are three main components to the curriculum: clinical, academic, and applied field training. 1. Clinical component Residents entering the program at the PGY-1 level are required to complete two years of clinical training under the auspices of the Family Medicine Residency Program, leading to eligibility for certification in family medicine (CCFP). Supplementary clinical experience is available in a variety of areas, depending on interests and career plans. 2. Academic component One year full-time is spent on academic preparation for Public Health and Preventive Medicine. All residents take courses towards either a Master of Science in Community Health Sciences or a Master of Public Health. Core courses include: principles of epidemiology, biostatistics, research methods, and health care system organization and financing. A broad range of elective courses is available, including but not limited to: applied epidemiology, advanced biostatistics, principles of occupational and environmental health, program planning and evaluation, economic evaluation of health care, and the epidemiology of cancer, chronic disease, and communicable disease. The M.Sc. is a thesis-based degree, and residents can go on to complete a thesis before or soon after completion of the residency program. 3. Applied field training The remaining training time (minimum 18 months) is spent in field rotations in community medicine, under the supervision of the program’s preceptors. Residents take on a greater degree of responsibility over this period, assuming a high level of responsibility by their senior year. Core rotations include: Urban Regional Medical Officer of Health; Rural Regional Medical Officer of Health; Provincial Public Health Branch (includes Chief Provincial Public Health Officer, Communicable Disease Control, Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Control, Epidemiology and Surveillance, and Environmental Health); Provincial Public Health Laboratory; Occupational Health; and First Nations, Metis, and Inuit Health. Elective rotations are developed individually based on resident interests.   Overview of the residency program: 2 years of clinical training in Family Medicine An academic year One year of coursework required by the Royal College Course work completed between September and May of that academic year Most residents opt to complete an MPH or MSc degree 2 years of public health rotations   Mandatory rotations include:

• 7 blocks with urban MOHs in the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority (WRHA)
• 6 blocks with provincial/chief MOHs at Manitoba Health
• 3 blocks with rural MOHs in Interlake-Eastern Regional Health Authority (IERHA)
• 2 blocks with First Nations & Inuit Health Branch (FNIHB)
• 2 blocks with northern MOHs in Northern Regional Health Authority (NRHA)
• 1 block with Cadham Provincial Lab
• 1 block with Occupational Health

Elective rotations include:

• 5 blocks of electives

If taking an MPH for the academic year, 3 blocks of electives are used for the practicum placement (not required for the MSc degree) Can be done locally, interprovincially or internationally, dependent on program director approval Example electives done by residents in the past include:

• Manitoba Office of Disaster Management (ODM)
• National Collaborating Centre for Infectious Diseases/International Centre for
• Infectious Diseases
• Manitoba Centre for Health Policy

————————————————————————- Other Residency Program Activities and Requirements include:

• Academic Half-day Starting at 1:00 pm on Fridays (currently via Zoom) Scheduling done by the program director, program administrator and chief resident Includes teaching sessions by guest presenters (MOHs, CHS staff, and other individuals working in public health or a public health related field), as well as resident presentations Critical appraisals to be done by residents CHS colloquium

The Department of Community Health Sciences has a weekly colloquium called “Bold Ideas” (similar to Grand Rounds), from September through May most Fridays from 12:00 to 1:00 pm. Presenters include CHS faculty, as well as invited speakers from other departments of the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, or the University in general, as well as visiting speakers from other provinces or internationally. For the colloquium schedule, go to the Community Health Sciences website. Attendance is expected during the academic year of residency, and optional (but encouraged) during the clinical and Public Health rotation years.

WRHA Journal Club

The Winnipeg Regional Health Authority holds a monthly journal club (critical appraisal), which can be attended in person or by teleconference. Residents are expected to attend journal club in their senior years of residency, and to present at least once per year starting in R3.

Medical Student Teaching

There is an expectation of involvement with teaching medical students during the residency training. This includes but is not limited to the following activities:

• Being a tutorial leader for various public health/community health sciences sessions (generally as an R3 and higher) (this is a good activity to be involved with as you will receive a letter from the department head detailing your teaching involvement over the course of a year)
• Giving teaching sessions to medical students on public health electives (when on public health rotations in R4-R5)
• Orientation to the public health portion of clerkship and facilitating some of the clerkship activities (variable)
• On invitation from the student-run Public Health Interest Group (PHIG), give a talk on the residency program or public health issues, depending on their request, (generally given by more senior residents with the program director)

Chief & Senior Resident

Every resident will have the opportunity to become chief / senior resident during the residency program, for a variable period (usually 6-12 months) sometime during the senior years of residency (R4-R5). Duration and timing of being chief is dependent on the number of residents, as well as their stages in training, and will be determined by the program director. Responsibilities of the chief / senior resident include, but are not limited to the following:

• Helping the Program Administrator to organize academic half-day (in conjunction with the program director)
• Attending the Residency Program Committee (RPC) meetings quarterly, and providing a chief resident report
• Meet with medical students interested in information on the residency program
• Participate in the CaRMS process as an interviewer of residency candidates
• Providing guidance and information to junior residents

Training Sites

The applied training sites include:

• 9 blocks of urban MOH at the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority (WRHA) 490 Hargrave St., Winnipeg, MB topic areas in this rotation include CD, environment, health promotion and chronic disease prevention, management, surveillance
• 6 blocks of provincial/chief MOH at Manitoba Health 300 Carlton St., Winnipeg, MB
• 3 blocks of rural MOH in Interlake-Eastern Regional Health Authority (IERHA) residents will commute to Stonewall (589 3 Ave S, Stonewall, MB)
• 2 blocks of First Nations & Inuit Health Branch (FNIHB) 300-391 York Ave, Winnipeg, MB Possibility for day trips to FNIHB communities
• 1 block of Cadham provincial lab 750 William Ave, Winnipeg, MB gain exposure to all the departments in the provincial lab
• 1 block of Occupational Health Based primarily at Workplace Safety & Health – 401 York Ave, Winnipeg, MB Includes outings to workplaces The clinical teaching sites use resources of the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority in tertiary care and community facilities.

The academic component uses resources from the Department of Community Health Sciences.