Southern Alberta Medical Program at U of L now accepting applications from future doctors
It's a collaboration between the University of Calgary Cumming School of Medicine and the University of Lethbridge, and now, prospective students can begin applying to join the first class of future doctors.
'It feels like a huge milestone, a huge step ahead and we're thrilled that it's coming to fruition,' said Richard Buck, associate dean of the Southern Alberta Medical Program.
The University of Lethbridge is one of two Rural Medical Education Program Training Centres in Alberta. The other is a University of Alberta partnership with Northwestern Polytechnic in Grande Prairie.
The three-year doctor of medicine (MD) program will launch with a class of about 20 undergrad students in July of 2026, allowing the future physicians to earn a University of Calgary medical degree while completing their training in southern Alberta.
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The program says it will enrol learners who are identified as being likely to practice in rural areas upon graduation.
'I think it's really good for us in Lethbridge,' said Matthew Ridding, a resident who says he spent years trying to find a family physician.
'It was just kind of bouncing around from clinic to clinic doing just walk-ins and it's just not as good, especially trying to get prescriptions and things like that.'
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Unfortunately, some people are still waiting for a doctor.
'We tried for months. We left our information (at a local pharmacy) where we've come for years and they put us on a list, but no luck,' said Mel Vienneau.
He says he did have a family physician until recently when his doctor moved away.
'It's really a shame that we don't have family doctors (in Lethbridge).'
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Click to share quote on Twitter: "It's really a shame that we don't have family doctors (in Lethbridge)."
Now, he and his wife are seeing a nurse practitioner instead, which he says has been an admirable replacement.
'She has been excellent, we're very happy with her. She's very intelligent, very efficient. She's very capable. So, we don't have a family doctor, but we do have the next best thing.'
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However, he's hopeful the new program at the university will ensure more doctors in the community. This, according to Buck, is a real possibility.
'By taking folks that have community roots in the place where they're training and then training them here, there's a better chance that they'll stick around and set up practice,' said Buck.
This plan, Vienneau expects, should mostly work.
'It's a great city to live in, but young people like to move around, too, so we'll get some of them certainly. We'll keep some of them here,' he said.
Lethbridge's mayor, Blaine Hyggen, says the city is committed to bringing more doctors to the city.
'We've been pretty happy with those that we've been able to recruit, both from family physicians to specialists within Lethbridge. So, we'll keep doing our advocacy work as much as we can to make sure that those doctors are within our community.'
For Vienneau, this is where the recruitment efforts are really shining.
'Lethbridge does a good job with tourism and general promotion of the city. I think the mayor and the city council, I'm happy with them.'
Hyggen, meanwhile, says he's glad to celebrate the small victories, as those will eventually lead to bigger changes.
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'Anything that we can do to better our community step-by-step and be in that right trajectory of becoming a safer community, a community that is welcoming to all, a community that has physicians, it's important.'
Furthermore, he says it's great to see residents sharing this view.
'Having somebody comment on the importance of this and being thankful to council and the work that they've done in it is quite heartwarming,' said Hyggen.
Anyone interested in applying to the Southern Alberta Medical Program are encouraged to visit the University of Calgary's admissions portal. The program says students from all disciplines are welcome to apply.
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Global News
30-07-2025
- Global News
Southern Alberta Medical Program at U of L now accepting applications from future doctors
It's been talked about for quite some time, but the first tangible evidence of the Southern Alberta Medical Program has arrived. It's a collaboration between the University of Calgary Cumming School of Medicine and the University of Lethbridge, and now, prospective students can begin applying to join the first class of future doctors. 'It feels like a huge milestone, a huge step ahead and we're thrilled that it's coming to fruition,' said Richard Buck, associate dean of the Southern Alberta Medical Program. The University of Lethbridge is one of two Rural Medical Education Program Training Centres in Alberta. The other is a University of Alberta partnership with Northwestern Polytechnic in Grande Prairie. The three-year doctor of medicine (MD) program will launch with a class of about 20 undergrad students in July of 2026, allowing the future physicians to earn a University of Calgary medical degree while completing their training in southern Alberta. Story continues below advertisement The program says it will enrol learners who are identified as being likely to practice in rural areas upon graduation. 'I think it's really good for us in Lethbridge,' said Matthew Ridding, a resident who says he spent years trying to find a family physician. 'It was just kind of bouncing around from clinic to clinic doing just walk-ins and it's just not as good, especially trying to get prescriptions and things like that.' Get weekly health news Receive the latest medical news and health information delivered to you every Sunday. Sign up for weekly health newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Unfortunately, some people are still waiting for a doctor. 'We tried for months. We left our information (at a local pharmacy) where we've come for years and they put us on a list, but no luck,' said Mel Vienneau. He says he did have a family physician until recently when his doctor moved away. 'It's really a shame that we don't have family doctors (in Lethbridge).' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "It's really a shame that we don't have family doctors (in Lethbridge)." Now, he and his wife are seeing a nurse practitioner instead, which he says has been an admirable replacement. 'She has been excellent, we're very happy with her. She's very intelligent, very efficient. She's very capable. So, we don't have a family doctor, but we do have the next best thing.' Story continues below advertisement However, he's hopeful the new program at the university will ensure more doctors in the community. This, according to Buck, is a real possibility. 'By taking folks that have community roots in the place where they're training and then training them here, there's a better chance that they'll stick around and set up practice,' said Buck. This plan, Vienneau expects, should mostly work. 'It's a great city to live in, but young people like to move around, too, so we'll get some of them certainly. We'll keep some of them here,' he said. Lethbridge's mayor, Blaine Hyggen, says the city is committed to bringing more doctors to the city. 'We've been pretty happy with those that we've been able to recruit, both from family physicians to specialists within Lethbridge. So, we'll keep doing our advocacy work as much as we can to make sure that those doctors are within our community.' For Vienneau, this is where the recruitment efforts are really shining. 'Lethbridge does a good job with tourism and general promotion of the city. I think the mayor and the city council, I'm happy with them.' Hyggen, meanwhile, says he's glad to celebrate the small victories, as those will eventually lead to bigger changes. Story continues below advertisement 'Anything that we can do to better our community step-by-step and be in that right trajectory of becoming a safer community, a community that is welcoming to all, a community that has physicians, it's important.' Furthermore, he says it's great to see residents sharing this view. 'Having somebody comment on the importance of this and being thankful to council and the work that they've done in it is quite heartwarming,' said Hyggen. Anyone interested in applying to the Southern Alberta Medical Program are encouraged to visit the University of Calgary's admissions portal. The program says students from all disciplines are welcome to apply.
CTV News
29-07-2025
- CTV News
ULethbridge, UCalgary partner for Southern Alberta Medical Program
The University of Lethbridge and the University of Calgary are partnering to kickstart a new chapter in Alberta's medical education system.
Global News
24-07-2025
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From tree cover to green roofs, how are cities fighting extreme heat?
As a heat wave grips parts of Ontario amid a scorching summer, some Canadian cities have been trying new techniques to try to tackle extreme heat, which can quickly turn deadly. A Statistics Canada study last year showed there were roughly 670 deaths between 2000 and 2020 attributable to extreme heat events in 12 Canadian cities. In 2021, a heat dome in British Columbia killed an estimated 619 people in one week. And this week, temperatures in parts of Ontario are set to feel like the mid-40s C — and cities can feel the heat keenly due to how they're built, experts say. 'The surfaces in the cities are such that they absorb more heat and that causes the entire environment to become hotter and the temperature rises as well,' said Sandeep Agrawal, a professor at the University of Alberta's School of Urban and Regional Planning. Story continues below advertisement It's due to the 'urban heat island effect,' which can make a city one to three degrees hotter than the surrounding area during the day and warmer at night, according to decades of urban studies. Among the reasons are glassy or concrete skyscrapers that absorb a lot of heat during the day and take longer to cool down at night. James Voogt, a Western University professor of geography and environment, said heat is a top 'weather hazard.' 'Our ability to physiologically respond to those is relatively slow,' he said. From increasing tree cover to installing 'green' roofs, here's how some Canadian cities have been trying new techniques to try to tackle extreme heat. What's been done to cool cities down so far? A study by the European Commission in 2023 found that increasing tree coverage to 30 per cent in European cities could lower temperatures by an average 0.4 C, with a maximum effect of 5.9 C in some areas, avoiding 2,644 premature deaths. Story continues below advertisement Planting more trees is one approach some Canadian cities are using. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Toronto plans to increase the number of trees covering streets to 40 per cent canopy cover by 2050 by planting about 120,000 trees a year. 'So you want to make use of strategic planting of trees to try to take advantage of the fact that a tree cools by shading a surface and a tree cools by evapo-transpiring water,' Voogt said. 'So if you strategically locate your tree well, you can get maximum benefit.' In May, Vancouver approved an update to its urban forest strategy with a goal of covering 30 per cent of the city with tree canopy by 2050. 1:55 'Wet-bulb' temperatures: What are they and why can they be so deadly? Trees take time to grow, but they can still benefit cities in the long term, said Sara Barron, program director for the Master of Urban Forestry Leadership Program at the University of British Columbia. Story continues below advertisement 'That immediate impact, it's not going to help maybe with next year's heat wave, but we know climate change is a shift that's going to be happening for years,' she said. Voogt cautioned that it may be difficult to just dig up areas of downtown Toronto to plant trees, but green roofs are an alternative. The Urban Land Institute said green roofs replace dark surfaces with soil and vegetation, noting that the 'greening' of five per cent of Toronto's area lowered citywide temperatures by an estimated 1.5 to two degrees. Toronto implemented a green roof bylaw in 2009, requiring new commercial and industrial developments of more than 2,000 square metres to incorporate them. Other cities have also taken steps, including Saskatoon, which offers a stormwater credit for commercial buildings with green roofs, and Port Coquitlam, B.C., which fast-tracks development applications that incorporate green roofs. There are also other techniques cities are using outside of Canada. The Spanish city of Murcia implemented 61 measures to adapt to extreme heat, including resurfacing dark asphalt roads with lighter-coloured materials to reflect sunlight, with Dallas doing something similar by installing reflective pavement. The Texas city has also required new buildings to use materials that reflect solar heat on at least 75 per cent of the surface or have 50 per cent of the roof covered by vegetation. Story continues below advertisement Still more to do, experts say While some cities have taken steps, Agrawal said 'better design' is needed. 'So incorporating more vegetation, vegetation cover and tree canopies, (and) permeable material within the built environment I think would lead to a more sort of sustainable and cooler environment than the current way of doing it, where it's sort of a patchwork of things being done,' Agrawal said. Barron noted changes like using lighter material for roads to lower heat absorption and adding water where you can, such as water fountains, can make a difference. 1:59 'Extremes you never want to be at': As temperatures spike, so do health hazards Using misting systems can also help with cooling, which she said has been used in places like Australia. The systems are set up to spray a mist of water around an area, or to let people walk through them to cool down. Story continues below advertisement Voogt said city planning can also improve how it handles heat, though he said that is a longer-term solution. 'So changing the form of the city, the way it's laid out, how the buildings are spaced, that's longer term, right, because you don't change the buildings that often,' he said. 'What we have to do is start thinking about cities that are a little bit more optimized in terms of the climate they're embedded in.'
