News & Media

February 2010
Director's Corner: Clichés

There are some words and phrases that should be retired from the lexicon, because they are meaningless, shopworn or impede progress.

Imagine the veldt on the Serengeti plain…

The Alpha lion has gathered the stakeholders to coordinate the upcoming wildebeest kill. Stakeholders include the lionesses, hyenas, jackals, vultures, small carrion eating rodents and reptiles, and a few vociferous insects. On an ordinary day, Alpha may be found panting under a bush, wearing his Senior Administrator hat. But today, signifying the importance of this meeting, he is wearing his “King of Beasts” hat, the one with the Order of Tanzania button on it. Of all the hats he wears, this one is his favourite, to be worn only on very special occasions.

He clears his throat, and with a grunt says, I just wanted to put out a heads-up and touch base with all of you. Going forward, we have to be proactive in these challenging economic times. Very soon now, the wildebeests will be migrating across the veldt, and we have to put on a world-class event for the photo safari tourists who want good value for their hard-earned dollar. Let’s show them that we can take it to the next level! We can strive for excellence and transparency, think outside the box and employ evidence-based paradigm-shifting best hunting practices derived from new knowledge-transfer studies. He paused and took a long sip from a “Simply Water” bottle.

From my vantage point at 35,000 feet, he continued, we don’t have to snarl and growl and attack one another over the kill. The free-for-all feeding frenzy is history. Tourists are quite squeamish these days. I have done the due diligence and come up with some changes that should appeal to all stakeholders as well as the tourists. We will put on a lean and mean show, while teaching them that eating wildebeest goes with the territory. Let's get a shovel in the ground!

Over the past few weeks I have been working 24/7 on a kick-ass strategic repositioning effort that others will benchmark against, and I welcome input from all stakeholders. Here is the plan: I ask you all to hold back while the ladies and I cull a calf from the herd and dispatch it. Hyenas, please do not leap in, laugh hysterically and clamp down on that lower lip. It upsets the children on safari. Wait until we have gorged, and then you can dive in and chomp on the offal and bones. Try to be neat. Vultures, lizards and small mammals, be patient and wait your turn. And, last, but definitely not least, you bugs can finish the job. Although you are few and small, you are some of our most important stakeholders. Follow this plan, and at the end of the day, it's an empowering win-win-win for all!

At which point the insects grumbled that the view from the trenches was that only a dung beetle could possibly be happy with this plan. In fact, they noisily complained after looking around, there were no dung beetle stakeholders in attendance. Chagrined to have neglected this important constituency, the lion promptly adjourned the group and stated that a follow-up meeting would have to be convened in the near future. Not too bad, he mused, I get to wear my King of Beasts hat again next week.

Please send any comments about the Director's Corner to David Colman

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Recent News

Killam Trustees visit The Neuro
George Cooper and John Matthews, Trustees of the Killam Trusts, made their annual visit to the Neuro to attend to business and to meet with Killam Professors Brenda Milner and Bruce Pike, and Killam Scholars Amit-Bar-Or, Barry Bedell, Andrea Bernasconi, Jean-Francois Cloutier, Lesley Fellows, Ted Fon, Angela Genge, Tim Kennedy, Chris Pack and Robert Zatorre. The Killam Trusts support the Neuro and 4 universities across Canada as Killam Institutions, and award prizes and scholarships in the arts and sciences.

Neuro Development welcomes Marie-Anne Desjardins
Marie-Anne Desjardins joined the Neuro as Development Officer, Leadership and Annual Giving after 3 years at the Université de Montréal where she was Development Officer for the Faculty of Dentistry and the School of Optometry. Marie-Anne has valuable experience in the pharmaceutical industry and in management consulting, and is a graduate of the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario.

Neuro nurses – excellence in research and patient care
Lucy Wardell, Clinical Nurse Specialist in the Multiple Sclerosis Clinic, was lead investigator on a study of the value and use of online health-care information. Working with MS Clinic Director and neurologist Yves Lapierre and other colleagues, the study reported on groups of patients most likely to use this resource. This project, supported by an MUHC Nursing Research Department grant, appeared in the International Journal of MS Care.

List of publications by Neuro faculty staff.

Neurologist Anne-Louise Lafontaine recently welcomed more than 200 people to the first educational session for people living with Parkinson’s Disease and their caregivers. Presentations by experts from the Parkinson’s Movement Disorders Program included Voice, speech and swallowing changes with Parkinson's Disease by Occupational Therapist Robert Campos and Speech-language Pathologist Carla Di Gironimo; Nutrition and Parkinson's Disease: Can diet make a difference? by Clinical Nutritionist Connie Kirsch; and Management of Constipation by Clinical Nurse Specialist Lucie Lachance. This informative and informal evening was a great success. To find out about future sessions, contact Lucie Lachance at lucie.lachance@muhc.mcgill.ca

The NEURO·Science·Letter
The latest issue The NEURO·Science·Letter, is now on line. This electronic publication from the researchers at the MNI, features news about neuroscience from the labs at the Neuro. This peek into the workings of science brings the excitement and buzz of neuroscience to a general audience, and with a regular feature, Neuroscience 101, explains some basic mechanisms of the nervous system. Watch for the next issue of The NEURO·Science·Letter in October on the

The Neuro on Facebook
If you’re on Facebook, please check out The Neuro's new Fan page and become a fan!

Neuro fellow in McGill’s Making History Report on Private Giving
Isabelle Thiffault, post-doctoral fellow in Eric Shoubridge’s lab, is featured as one of the outstanding students who benefit from private giving. As the first recipient of the National Bank Post-Doctoral Fellowship in Experimental Therapeutics newly established at The Neuro, Isabelle is pursuing a stem cell project, which may have important implications for the development of new therapies for challenging neurological diseases.

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Upcoming Events

Excellence in Research Exposition, February 4
The Neuro’s Chris Pack will showcase his vision research at McGill’s Excellence in Research exposition that will be open to the public on Thursday, February 4, from 10 am to 6 pm in Redpath Hall (3461 McTavish Street). On February 9, Chris, Brenda Milner and others from The Neuro will participate in McGill’s BRAVO! celebration, which will honor award winning scholars at this by-invitation-only event.

Experience Philippe Séguéla’s passion for space exploration, February 11
Neuroscientist Philippe Séguéla will talk about his passion for space exploration as the inspiration for his new book, Histoire Visuelle des Sondes Spatiales, a comprehensive history of space probes. Philippe’s talk, “From Ion Channels to Channels on Mars? The Case of a Curious Neuroscientist” will be at Noon, Thursday, February 11 in the deGrandpré Centre at the Neuro. Light refreshments will be served before the talk.

Student Brain Bee at The Neuro, February 12
Area high school students will test their knowledge of neuroscience in a Brain Bee, organized at The Neuro by Marta Ceko and fellow graduate students. The Montreal area winner will progress to the third annual Canadian Brain Bee sponsored by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, to be held at McMaster University in May.

Undergraduate Open House, Integrated Program in Neurosciences, February 15
Neuroscience researchers from the Integrated Program in Neurosciences (IPN) will host an Open House for undergraduates who are interested in graduate work in neuroscience at McGill. Undergrads from any discipline are welcome to the IPN Open House in the Jeanne Timmins Amphitheatre at the Montreal Neurological Institute from 1-6 pm on Monday, February 15. While enjoying refreshments, students will hear brief presentations from a variety of neuroscience researchers, talk with current IPN grad students and get information on how to apply to for graduate studies through IPN.

Discover science at the movies: The Neuro Film Series starts February 18
Don’t miss the first Neuro Movie Night! Join Cognitive neuroscience pioneer Brenda Milner and National Film Board Director Munro Ferguson who will screen and discuss Memento in the Jeanne Timmins Amphitheatre at The Neuro, 6:30pm on Thursday, February 18. Come and see what this compelling and provocative film reveals about amnesia. Watch a real Fantastic Voyage with interventional neuroradiologist Donatella Tampieri on March 25, and an join an eye opening discussion of Stalag 17 with David Colman on April 15. Neuro Movie Nights are free and snacks can be purchased.

Call for abstracts: 2010 Canadian Neuroscience Meeting, Ottawa, May 15-18
The Canadian Association for Neuroscience (CAN) and the Canadian College of Neuropsychopharmacology (CCNP) will co-host the 2010 Canadian Neuroscience meeting in Ottawa. Scientific abstracts are due by February 26. For more information and to register, please visit their website.

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Congratulations to ...

Dedicated Neuro staff who responded to the Agence de Montréal H1N1 preparedness plans by facilitating the transfer of long-term Neuro patients to other facilities in November; among those recognized by Arthur Porter, MUHC President and CEO, and Ann Lynch, Associate Director General of Clinical Operations and Nursing Affairs, were Martine Alfonso, Administrative Director, Neurosciences Mission; Mark Angle, Associate Director of Professional Services; Christine Bouchard, Patricia Kerr, Sylvie Lussier-Coderre, and Anne-Marie Sy, Nurse Managers; Antoinette Di Re, Associate Director, Diagnostic & Therapeutic Services; Lucia Fabijan, Interim Associate Director of Nursing, Neurosciences; Constance Lechman, Manager, Social Services; Bora Mahano and Melissa Rodney, Social Workers; and Rick Sanchez and Kitty Toye, Assistant Nurse Managers.

Trainees who received Best Presentation Awards in the Neuro’s 2008-2009 CNS/CBET/BTRC Research Discussion Series: PhD student Jin Cho (Cloutier lab); Post-doctoral fellow Patricia Yam (Colman lab)and Masters student Karl Grenier (Fon lab).

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Condolences to ...

Friends and colleagues of the late Neuro professor Leon Wolfe (1926-2001) as we report the death of his wife, McGill Professor Emeritus Jeanne Wolfe, Fellow of the Canadian Institute of Planners and Membre émérite of the Ordre des urbanistes du Québec, at her home in Montreal on December 20, 2009. For more on Dr. Wolfe’s life and work see "Montreal Gazette article".

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Director - David R. Colman, PhD
Senior Management - Martine Alfonso; Mark Angle, MD; Phil Barker, PhD; Rob Dunn, PhD; Lucia Fabijan; Tom Gevas; Elizabeth Kofron, PhD; Catherine Rowe; Donatella Tampieri, MD
Neuro News: Elizabeth Kofron, PhD & Sandra McPherson, PhD

Please send any items for the Neuro News to Sandra McPherson or Beth Kofron.

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