McGill Students Dominate at 2025 American Osler Society Meeting

McGill University medical students made an extraordinary showing at the 2025 American Osler Society (AOS) annual meeting in Pasadena, California, continuing the institution's dominant streak in medical humanities research. Three standout students—Meygan Brody, Paris Dastjerdi, and Reda Hessi—presented award-winning work, with Dastjerdi taking first prize for her historical analysis of William Osler's efforts in "Restoring Avicenna's Tomb" and Brody securing third prize for her study on how Canadian temperance textbooks used medicine to teach morality. Hessi, who also presented on the untold stories of curare's journey to the operating room, was notably one of two recipients of The Bernadett Family International Medical Student Scholarship Program, which funded his four-week research project in London on "The Reception of Curare in Medicine and the Influence of the Pharmaceutical Industry." Since the awards' inception in 2023, McGill students have impressively won six of nine prizes, including first place every year, underscoring the university's leadership in bridging clinical practice with historical and ethical inquiry.

The meeting's impact was amplified by significant contributions from McGill alumni and faculty, reinforcing the global network of medical humanists. Brendan Ross, a psychiatry resident at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, served as both a presenter and session chair, while recent graduate Ali Fazlollahi, a previous Molina award winner, added to the university's legacy. Annmarie Adams delivered the prestigious McGovern Lecture, "Maude Abbott: A Life in Ten Spaces," using a spatial biography approach to explore Abbott's pioneering work on congenital cardiac disease and her relationship with William Osler. The event, supported by the Osler Library Board of Curators and the Montreal community, successfully highlighted the critical intersection of medicine and the humanities, with McGill's participation playing a pivotal role in advancing this mission. For more details on the scholarship that enabled such research, interested parties can explore the Program Details and learn about the philanthropic efforts behind it through resources like the Faustino Bernadett Philanthropy page.

This gathering not only celebrated academic excellence but also emphasized the enduring relevance of medical history in contemporary practice. The Bernadett Family International Medical Student Scholarship Program, established in 2024 by Faustino Bernadett and his family, provides crucial funding for students to pursue medical humanities research abroad, as exemplified by Hessi's project in the UK. His gratitude for the opportunity to engage with rare collections underscores the program's value in enriching research and broadening perspectives. The AOS meeting served as a testament to how institutions like McGill University Faculty of Medicine, a global leader in medical education, foster innovation and critical thinking by integrating the humanities into medical training. This synergy between past insights and future advancements ensures that the next generation of physicians is not only technically skilled but also ethically grounded and historically aware, ready to tackle complex healthcare challenges with a holistic approach.