May 2023 Invited Speaker Rounds

Professional Identity Formation as Immigration

Lara Varpio, PhD

Professor, Department of Pediatrics
Perelman School of Medicine
University of Philadelphia
Co-Director of Research in Medical Education
The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia

Date: Tuesday, May 9, 2023

Time: 12:00pm to 1:30pm

Hybrid: Life Sciences Centre 1312 CMR & Zoom*

Zoom Details: For connection details, please email ches.communications@ubc.ca.

Abstract

Just as immigrants from various countries travel great distances in hopes of earning the right to call a new country home, our medical learners also undertake great journeys. For some, their trips might involve geographic treks; however, all will undertake great private travels for the sake of professional identity formation. In this session, we’ll consider professional identity formation as a form of immigration. Through this framing, we will consider the deeply personal—and sometimes painful–work that is involved in taking on the weight of the white coat.

Biography

Dr. Lara Varpio is Professor of Pediatrics at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Philadelphia and the Co-Director of Research in Medical Education at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. She started these positions in 2022, after serving for 9 years at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USUHS). Prior to that, She spent the first 6 years of her career at the University of Ottawa, Canada.