Two books and a stethoscope

Innovation in Surgical Education Grant

Advancing Surgical Education

The Innovation in Surgical Education Grant supports novel, academic surgical education projects led by faculty and trainees within the Department of Surgery. Funding may be used to support a surgical education research project, innovative curricular design and implementation, equipment to enhance surgical education, or other educational initiatives.

Funding Details

A total of $100,000 is awarded annually. Each application may request between $5,000 and $50,000.

Applications are evaluated by department reviewers based on originality, feasibility and team, and potential impact.

Preference is given to projects that:

  • Involve a trainee as a co-applicant
  • Demonstrate collaboration among department members or other educational stakeholders
  • Contribute to the expansion of surgical education

Refer to the current application guidelines for the most up-to-date information on eligibility, funding limits, and submission requirements.

Past Recipients

  • The Calgary Cataract Simulator: A portable extended reality (XR) training platform for ophthalmic surgical education.
    Investigators: Patrick Gooi, Chijindu Ukagwu, Mark Ungrin, Abdullah Al-Ani
  • Enhancing Surgical Competency with High-Fidelity Training in a Perfused Cadaver Lab.
    Investigators: Kenton Rommens, Cierra Stiegelmar, Paul Cantle, Caleb Zavitz, George Mulvey, Jamie Cowie, Stephanie Juanin
  • Comparison of a Novel Non-Cadaveric Tactile Model to Cadaveric Training for Reverse Shoulder Arthroplasty Skills Acquisition in Orthopaedic Surgery Trainees: A Randomized Control Trial.
    Investigators: Daniel You, Stephanie Gibbon, Michael Leslie, Kaja Matovinovic
  • Developing and Validating a Virtual Simulation Tool for Local and Regional Facial Reconstruction.
    Investigators: Fatemah Ramazani, Ella Koonar, Justin Lui, Robert Hart
     
  • Bridging the Education Gap between Family Medicine and Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery (in progress).
    Investigators: Justin Lui, Ryan Chan, Fatemah Ramazani, Arthur Baptosta, Jing Han, Myra Chen, William Kim
  • Humble Pie’s Secret Ingredients: Exploring the Relationship Between Imposter Syndrome, Humility, and Self-Efficacy in surgeons (in progress).
    Investigators: Jena Hall, Natalie Czuczman, Marcia Clark, Allison Brown
  • Preventing Cancer-Related Lymphedema (LE): Curricular Development for Multidisciplinary Surgical Oncology Teams to Acquire Immediate Lymphatic Reconstruction (ILR) Skills (in progress).
    Investigators: Claire Temple-Oberle, G McKinnon, E. Lindell-Jonsson, S. Yakabak, I. Bains
  • Understanding Factors Attributed to Surgical Resident Attrition (in progress).
    Investigators: Tito Daodu, Adrian Harvey, Ana Sepulveda
  • University of Calgary’s UpSurge (in progress).
    Tito Daodu, Mirna Matta, Aisouda Savaldlou, Oluwakanyinsola Bello, Kerry Yang Maitri Pancha, Veneeza Adnan
  • Validating a Virtual Learning Application for Local and Regional Flap Education (in progress).
    Investigators: Justin Lui, Robert Hart, Ella Koonar, Fatemah Ramazani
  • Integration of Large Language Models into Interactive Surgical Learning (complete).
    Investigators: Adrian Harvey, Eddie Guo

Integration of Large Language Models into Interactive Surgical Learning.

Investigators: Adrian Harvey (Faculty, General Surgery), Eddie Guo (Medical Student, Cumming School of Medicine)
Grant Year: 2024

OSCEai was created to address the gap in opportunities for medical students to practice patient communication and case‑based surgical scenarios outside formal teaching sessions. The AI‑powered platform provides a safe, interactive environment for medical trainees to practice clinical reasoning and communication skills.

Support from the Innovation in Surgical Education Grant enabled platform refinement, expanded case development, and pilot implementation in medical curricula, laying the foundation for ongoing research into AI‑enhanced medical education and improving learner preparedness for clinical practice.

Explore other internal grants and awards available to Department of Surgery members through the Office of Surgical Research's funding opportunities page, including links to Cumming School of Medicine opportunities Other Funding Opportunities