We are delighted to announce the appointment of Dr. Marc Afilalo as Chair of the newly created Provisional Department of Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University.The creation of a provisional Department of Emergency Medicine is a major step forward in the establishment of a permanent academic home for adult emergency medicine. The Department will unite efforts from all participating adult Emergency Departments across the McGill academic health network, with the goal of promoting the advancement of the research and teaching missions, the provision of excellent patient care and the optimization of operations management.
In his role as Chair, Dr. Afilalo will lead all facets of the new department including mentoring faculty members, making recommendations to the Dean on academic appointments, promotion and tenure and overseeing budget allocation. As part of the process of moving toward a permanent department, Dr. Afilalo will establish an Executive Committee for Emergency Medicine that will oversee all the activities of the Department. He will also undertake negotiations with the Chairs of the Departments of Medicine and Family Medicine to work out joint and cross-appointments as necessary and will develop a practice plan and a set of by-laws for the permanent department. In addition, he will ensure election of two academic representatives from Emergency Medicine to sit on the Faculty of Medicine Faculty Council.
Dr. Afilalo obtained his MD from Université de Montréal in 1979. He was the first appointed Professor in Emergency Medicine at McGill University. Dr. Afilalo has published extensively on clinical emergency medicine topics such as acute coronary syndromes, thromboembolic disease, pain management, frailty, emergency department overcrowding and Lean management, patient safety and knowledge translation. He has received research grants from numerous funding bodies, including the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Fonds de recherche du Québec – Santé (FRQS), the Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement (CFHI), the Canadian Patient Safety Institute (CPSI) and the Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux (MSSS).
Dr. Afilalo has been involved in the Emergency Medicine training program of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and the College of Family Physicians of Canada’s third-year special competence in Emergency Medicine. He has supervised research scholars at the Faculty of Medicine and has actively supported the advancement of simulation and the Emergency Department Ultrasound Program, as well as the information management system.
Throughout his career Dr. Afilalo has been a key player in the advancement of Emergency Medicine as a distinct specialty. He has served as President of the Expert Committee on Emergency Medicine for the MSSS and co-authored the Guide de Gestion de l’Urgence. He actively pursued the fields of Emergency Department Operations Management, Emergency Department Design, and Lean functioning.
Dr. Afilalo served as President of the Quebec Association of Emergency Physicians and of the Quebec Association of Emergency Medicine Specialists. He has been actively involved in the dissemination of evidence-based health care and the implementation of knowledge translation in Emergency Medicine. Dr. Afilalo was the recipient of the Queen’s Jubilee Medal Award for an extraordinary leader in the Field of Emergency Medicine in 2013.
Please join us in congratulating Dr. Marc Afilalo and wishing him every success as he embarks on this new role.
Vice-Principal (Health Affairs)
Dean of the Faculty of Medicine
Vice-Dean, Academic Affairs
July 18, 2018