At the 2025 annual meeting of the American Osler Society (AOS) in Pasadena, California, McGill University medical students delivered award-winning presentations, continuing a strong tradition in medical humanities research. The event, which gathered physicians, researchers, and students globally, focused on the history of medicine and its ongoing relevance.
Three McGill students—Meygan Brody, Paris Dastjerdi, and Reda Hessi—attended the meeting. Paris Dastjerdi won first prize for her presentation "Restoring Avicenna's Tomb: A Historical Analysis of William Osler's Efforts", while Meygan Brody received third prize for "Justifying Judgment: How Canadian Temperance Textbooks Use Medicine to Teach Morality." Reda Hessi also presented on "Harold Griffith and Sir Robert Macintosh: Untold Stories of Curare's Journey to the Operating Room." Since the inception of the Best Medical Student Presentations awards in 2023, McGill students have won six of nine prizes, including first prize all three years.
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. Reda Hessi was one of two recipients, undertaking a four-week research project in London titled "The Reception of Curare in Medicine and the Influence of the Pharmaceutical Industry." Hessi expressed gratitude for the opportunity, stating, "I am immensely grateful for having been selected for the AOS Bernadett Family International Medical Student Scholarship Award. This exceptional opportunity to engage with rare collections in the UK will deeply enrich my research and broaden my perspective."
The meeting also featured McGill alumni Brendan Ross, a psychiatry resident at Mount Sinai Hospital, New York, who served as both presenter and session chair, and Ali Fazlollahi, a recent graduate and previous Molina award winner. Annmarie Adams delivered the McGovern Lecture, entitled "Maude Abbott: A Life in Ten Spaces," exploring Abbott's pioneering studies on congenital cardiac disease and her enduring relationship with William Osler through a spatial biography approach.
The 2025 AOS meeting successfully emphasized the intersection of medicine and the humanities, with McGill's participation playing a pivotal role. The contributions of the Osler Library Board of Curators and the Montreal community were instrumental in supporting McGill students' attendance. The Faculty of Medicine at McGill University continues to foster innovation, critical thinking, and a commitment to the medical humanities.
