Message from the Associate Dean, Continuing Professional Development
As I look back on the past year — and indeed the past ten years of my tenure as Associate Dean, CPD — I am proud to recognize how far Continuing Professional Development (CPD) has evolved. CPD in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine is distinguished by its innovative programs and conferences that set new standards in lifelong learning. At the heart of this progress is a dedicated community of faculty and professional services staff, committed to demonstrating the value of CPD and shaping best practices on an international scale. Through a network of engaged CPD leaders, we have strengthened our influence and impact globally.
We are driving innovation through a diverse range of certificate programs, including: CPD Foundations, Advanced CPD Leadership Development, Applied AI in Medicine, Leadership Communication, and Coaching Essentials for Healthcare Professionals. Our Narrative-Based Medicine Lab is fostering deeper connections between storytelling and healthcare, while Taking Action on Planetary Health is addressing the environmental challenges that impact health outcomes worldwide. With a focus on forward-thinking approaches, we are reimagining program design through the Health by Design Program and integrating quality improvement into our offerings with the IDEAS Foundations of QI Program.
We are dedicated to fostering inclusivity, diversity, and equity in our programming, ensuring that our scientific planning committees, conferences, and educational initiatives represent a broad range of perspectives, backgrounds, and lived experiences. By actively involving patient partners and embracing inclusive approaches, we create learning environments that are not only excellent and relevant, but representative of the communities we serve. Our engaged CPD community continues to thrive, with accreditation of over 250 programs and conferences annually — ensuring excellence and relevance in lifelong learning.
Through our commitment to advancing CPD through scholarship and research, we continue to drive the field forward, cementing our leadership in CPD innovation. Our CPD Grants provide invaluable opportunities for faculty and professionals to further their contributions and elevate the impact of CPD. With the institution of the CPD Scholarship Rounds, we are highlighting the remarkable contributions of our CPD grant winners, whose dedication and expertise are advancing the field in meaningful ways. Expanding our scholarly efforts, we are exploring the critical value of accreditation, an area that holds immense potential for shaping the future of CPD. Our accreditation team spearheaded an Accreditation Information Series this past year to enhance best practice in CPD.
Our national and international collaborations and connections with organizations such as the Society for Academic Continuing Medical Education and the Coalition for Physician Learning and Practice Improvement allow us to exchange knowledge, share best practices, and drive advancements in CPD. These partnerships strengthen our ability to innovate and lead in CPD. None of this progress would be possible without the dedication, passion, and commitment of our faculty, professional services staff, and CPD leaders and directors. Their contributions continue to shape the future of CPD, and I extend my deepest gratitude to everyone who has played a role in transforming CPD to what it is today.
Dr. Suzan Schneeweiss
Associate Dean, Continuing Professional Development
Temerty Faculty of Medicine
Program Innovations
Propelling Leadership in Healthcare
Since launching in October 2025, over 60 participants have taken the next step in their professional journeys by harnessing the power of communication and propelling their leadership in healthcare.
Led by executive communication coach Dr. Andrea Wojnicki, the Leadership Communication certificate program focuses on the development of core communication strategies informed by evidence-based frameworks and proven techniques. Sessions cover a wide variety of inter-related topics such as articulating a strong professional identify, delivering impactful presentations, using storytelling as a communication tool, and more.
A tailored offering for professional services staff working across the Medical Education portfolio provided an immersive professional development experience designed to enhance leadership and communication skills within the Temerty Faculty of Medicine.
Leveraging Artificial Intelligence Tools and Programs in Medicine
Building upon the success of our Applied AI in Medicine: From Coding to Implementation certificate program, we launched 4 hands-on workshops in April 2025 that aim to share the practical applications of AI in medicine with even more learners.
These Applied AI in Medicine workshops delve into specific topics related to utilizing common AI programs and tools to their fullest potential. From mastering prompt engineering and customizing large language models for different use cases to cybersecurity best practices and policies in healthcare and more, these workshops allow learners to develop key skills in a truly interactive learning format.
Narrative-Based Medicine: Building Community and Transforming Healthcare
Our Narrative-Based Medicine Lab’s programming continued to expand over the past 12 months with several new offerings exploring innovative focus areas. In addition to the Foundational Certificate in Narrative-Based Medicine and the Advanced Certificate in Narrative-Based Medicine we delivered 14 unique offerings spanning multi-session series, experiential workshops, and community-based activities that introduced narrative-based medicine to a wider audience. Learners explored the nourishing power of narrative in cultivating well-being, developed tools for communication and compassionate care, and so much more.
In October 2024, our community gathered for an in-person offering that combined live theatre performance with experiential learning at a performance of The Flin Flon Cowboy at Theatre Passe Muraille in Toronto and discussion geared towards a health professional audience facilitated by Dr. Sarah Kim (Health Humanities Theme Lead, Temerty Faculty of Medicine).
Members of our community also shared their own creative work and heard from physicians, academics, and writers who are engaging with narrative-based medicine in novel ways during our 6 drop-in Literary Lunch Hours. “Narrative Technologies” was the theme for our spring season of free programming where guest speakers contemplated how narrative-based medicine can employ different kinds of technology both effectively and compassionately.
A new series in 2024-25, Coffee Hours: Community Connections, brought our community of past learners together to reconnect and refresh their professional practice in a small, supportive group setting.
Looking ahead, we’re excited to introduce more learners to this growing field of study, practice, and critical inquiry through planned programming for 2025-26.
Education Scholarship
The CPD scholarship team continued to advance scholarship in the field of CPD through diverse research contributions.
Accreditation Scholarship
In 2024, CPD struck a working group aimed at delivering recommendations pertaining to Mainpro+ accreditation practices. Using a scholarly lens, the CPD team conducted a qualitative study using reflexive thematic analysis to identify the value of ‘dual accreditation’ (simultaneously accrediting a program for both College of Family Physicians of Canada Mainpro+ and Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada Maintenance of Certificate credits).
Dual accreditation was perceived to be valuable in enriching learning by supporting intraprofessional learning and practice, promoting equity and belonging, and moving toward an integrated health system. A dually accredited program designed to meet the needs of both family physicians and specialist physicians can attract a broader audience, make learners feel that they are valued for their unique knowledge, and increase opportunities for family and specialist physicians to work together and understand each other’s scope of practice, which is a critical step in eliminating silos and building capacity.
While the study population was small, the findings contributed to the recommendation to continue and refine dual accreditation. The team presented this work at the national AFMC CPD Research Symposium in May 2025.
Together, and with internal and external partners, the CPD Accreditation and Scholarship teams are embarking on a new program of research that is focused on accreditation scholarship and exploring the value of accreditation practices.
CPD Ideas Grant
The CPD Ideas Grant supports research and scholarly activities within the Temerty Faculty of Medicine that are aligned with CPD's mission and focused on the continuing professional development of practicing healthcare professionals. This year’s grants were awarded to 2 Ideas projects. Learn more about the winning projects.
Presentations at SACME Annual Meeting
Members of the University of Toronto CPD community delivered presentations on varied topics at the Society for Academic Continuing Medical Education (SACME) Annual Meeting that convened under the theme “Advocacy in Action: Empowering CPD/CE Professionals to Lead Change” from March 16 - 19, 2025 in Washington, D.C. Read more about the presentations delivered by our CPD colleagues.
CPD Scholarship Rounds
We continued to mobilize the science of CPD for health professionals with the CPD Scholarship Rounds this past year. These rounds provide a harmonized space for members of the CPD community to share knowledge, explore resources, and exchange ideas.
Across 3 online sessions in 2024-25, invited scholars shared innovative research into the future of CPD that included: lived experience engagement in CPD scholarship, patient and family storytelling in health professions education, the deployment of AI in CPD program design and delivery, and the strategic role of CPD/CE.
Awards
Celebrating Excellence at Continuing Professional Development
Each year, we recognize faculty members who advance CPD for health professionals through demonstrated excellence in research, teaching, scholarship, innovation, and collaboration. Congratulations to recipients of this year’s awards for their significant contributions to CPD during the academic year of July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024:
Colin Woolf Award for Excellence in Program Development and Coordination
New and Evolving Academic Leaders (NEAL) Program
Catherine Creede-Desmarais (Program Lead, NEAL Program, Centre for Faculty Development)
David Fear Fellowship
Karen Wang (Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry)
Excellence in Interprofessional CPD Award
2024 Future of Psychotherapy Conference
Rajeevan Rasasingham (Associate Professor and Director of CPPD, Department of Psychiatry)
Ivan Silver Innovation Award
Petal Abdool (Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Faculty Lead, Simulation Education Integration, PGME)
We would also like to thank all nominators for helping us recognize members of our CPD community who are making an impact. Learn more about our annual CPD Awards.
