McGill Students Excel at American Osler Society Meeting, Highlighting Medical Humanities and Scholarship Expansion

McGill University medical students delivered award-winning presentations at the 2025 annual meeting of the American Osler Society in Pasadena, California, reinforcing the institution's prominent role in medical humanities research. The event gathered physicians, researchers, and students globally to examine the history of medicine and its contemporary significance. Three McGill students—Meygan Brody, Paris Dastjerdi, and Reda Hessi—attended, with Dastjerdi winning first prize for her presentation "Restoring Avicenna's Tomb: A Historical Analysis of William Osler's Efforts" and Brody receiving third prize for "Justifying Judgment: How Canadian Temperance Textbooks Use Medicine to Teach Morality." Hessi presented on "Harold Griffith and Sir Robert Macintosh: Untold Stories of Curare's Journey to the Operating Room."

Since the Best Medical Student Presentations awards began in 2023, McGill students have consistently excelled, securing six of nine prizes, including first place each year. This track record underscores McGill's commitment to integrating humanities into medical education, which can enhance patient care by fostering empathy, critical thinking, and a broader understanding of medicine's social context. For readers in healthcare and academia, these achievements highlight the value of interdisciplinary approaches in training future physicians, potentially influencing curricula and research priorities worldwide.

The Bernadett Family International Medical Student Scholarship Program, established in 2024 on behalf of Faustino Bernadett and his family, provides funding for students to pursue medical humanities research in the United Kingdom. Hessi was one of two recipients, undertaking a four-week project in London titled "The Reception of Curare in Medicine and the Influence of the Pharmaceutical Industry." He expressed gratitude for the opportunity, noting it would enrich his research and broaden his perspective. The program's expansion, detailed at www.americanosler.org/content/awards-scholarships/international-medical-student-scholarship-program, offers increased access to rare collections and international collaboration, benefiting students and advancing global medical knowledge.

McGill alumni also contributed significantly to the meeting. Brendan Ross, a psychiatry resident at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, served as both presenter and session chair, while Ali Fazlollahi, a recent graduate and previous Molina award winner, participated. Annmarie Adams delivered the McGovern Lecture, "Maude Abbott: A Life in Ten Spaces," exploring Abbott's pioneering studies on congenital cardiac disease and her relationship with William Osler through a spatial biography approach. These contributions reinforce McGill's ongoing influence in medical humanities, bridging historical insights with modern practice.

The 2025 AOS meeting emphasized the intersection of medicine and the humanities, with McGill's participation playing a pivotal role. The support from the Osler Library Board of Curators and the Montreal community facilitated student attendance, demonstrating the importance of institutional and community backing in fostering academic excellence. For the industry, this news matters as it showcases how scholarships and awards, like those supported by Faustino Bernadett's philanthropy at https://www.bernadett.org/, can drive innovation and cross-cultural exchange in medicine. The implications include potential improvements in medical education models, increased funding for humanities research, and enhanced global health outcomes through a more holistic understanding of medical history and ethics.