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STUDENTS' CORNER

Surgical Exploration and Discovery (SEAD) Director Dave Cornell

Dave Cornell

Dave Cornell

Dave Cornell is a 3rd year medical student currently in his orthopaedic surgery rotation with Drs Ferguson and Wunder at Mount Sinai Hospital. He is the 1T6 student representative for the Surgical Education Directorate (SED), and participated in the SEAD program during his 1st year before being selected as the Director of the program for 2014. During his first year of medical school, he was among 20 students selected to participate in SEAD, a two week elective program that exposes students to direct-entry surgical specialties through observerships, workshops and seminars.

A Canadian National Track and Field medalist and Canada Games competitor in high school, Dave coached in the sport for six years. Prior to earning his undergraduate degree in Molecular Biology and Chemistry at Saint Mary’s University in Nova Scotia, he worked as a tradesman for 10 years with his father’s plumbing company specializing in diagnostic boroscoping (a technique similar to guiding endoscopic surgical instruments) and stenting pipes with epoxy liners. He spent 18 months as a volunteer Firefighter and First Responder, being dispatched to motor vehicle accidents, medical assists, rescue-recovery missions, and structure and forest fires. It was on an ambulance run, where he assisted the paramedics with cardio-pulmonary resuscitation and dropped the patient off at a hospital, that he realized he wanted to pursue a career in medicine. “I knew then I wanted to be on the other side. I wanted to be receiving the patient, so I did my Bachelor of Science and worked as a phlebotomist in the mornings to prepare myself for medical school. I loved the hospital work, and I was fortunate to be accepted at the University of Toronto.” Another defining moment that propelled Dave towards medicine was his experience first on scene at a house fire. He went in “on the hose” searching for a missing 5 year old, who was luckily found unharmed. [Artistotle teaches us that “courage is the ability to act in the presence of fear. It is not fearlessness which is foolhardy.”] “I discovered I loved the stress and wanted to further develop life-saving skills in a broader range of patient settings”.

Dave finds great enjoyment in teaching. He served as the Coordinator for the Medical Imaging Interest Group and the 1T6 representative for the Cardiac Surgery Interest Group. His leadership role as the 2014 SEAD Director has been one of his most rewarding teaching experiences. Participants observe in the OR, have opportunities to speak with staff and residents, and practice skills such as plating fractures and simulating aortic valve replacements in pig hearts. He says the program helps solidify the intent to pursue a surgical specialty for some, and rule them out at an early stage for others. Dave is carrying forward research that was initiated by Nada Gawad, the founder of SEAD. The study will evaluate the benefit of the SEAD program in terms of increasing participants’ knowledge of surgical principles, understanding of a career in surgery, and basic surgery skills. It also follows SEAD participants through their CARMS match to evaluate the impact of SEAD on career choices.

Dave found Drs. Rutka, Christakis, and Kodama to be a wealth of support and guidance, and their insight into the planning to be central to the success of the program. “The mentorship I have received from leaders in my community has played an integral part in shaping the man I am today, and I strive to do the same for others”. He has worked with Mike Wiley in the Anatomy Division doing pro-sections for examinations and study purposes. “Mike was a great friend and mentor. He taught me how to use surgical tools and quizzed me on my knowledge of anatomy”. Dave is providing the occasional guidance to his successor, and he sees great potential for the SEAD program going forward. “Medical programs from Ottawa and Western have shown an interest. We’re extremely fortunate to have some of the world’s finest surgeons here in Toronto, who are happy to engage with students and volunteer their time for educational initiatives such as SEAD”.

Dave’s enthusiasm for enjoyable stress finds an outlet in surfing, by far his favourite past time. He is an avid sportsman who enjoys football, hockey, and exercise. He also enjoys travelling, having spent 2 months in South East Asia and visited several European countries. Coming up next is a ski trip to the Swiss Alps.

M.M.




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