CREMS Summer Research Program

The Comprehensive Research Experience for Medical Students (CREMS) Summer Research Program provides opportunities each year for medical students enrolled at the University of Toronto to participate in a full-time summer research project between their first and second year, or second and third year of medical school, under the supervision of a faculty mentor. 

2023 CREMS Summer - Project Catalogue

3. Vijay Chauhan - Novel ECG markers of electrical dyssynchrony to improve patient selection for cardiac resynchronization therapy

4. Samir Sinha - Barriers and Facilitators to the Use of Personal Hearing Amplifiers in Inpatient Settings

13. Sarah Ferguson - Fertility-sparing treatment for atypical hyperplasia and grade 1 cancer of the endometrium using progestin therapy: assessment of oncologic and reproductive outcomes

14. Rachel Soyoun Kim - Understanding the clinical implications of MLH1 methylation in endometrial cancer

23. Antoine Eskander - Osteoradionecrosis (ORN) in patients with head and neck cancer

26. Sunit Das - Do findings from randomized clinical trials predict outcomes in the real world? A comparative analysis of patients with HER2-positive breast cancer

27. Zoe Hilton - A scoping review of the quality and appropriateness of methods used to measure coercive control

30. Alene Toulany - Transition from Paediatric to Adult Care for Youth with Chronic Physical, Developmental, and Mental Health Conditions: A National Consensus-Building Multi-stakeholder Initiative

32. Akash Goel - Psychotherapy for Ketamine’s enhanced durability in Chronic Neuropathic Pain (PSYKED) – A Randomized Pilot Trial

36. Tania Tajirian - Improving Cancer Screening Amongst Chronic Stay Patients with Severe Mental Illness in Specialized Mental Health Settings

37. Mark Boulos - Strengthening Oropharyngeal Muscles as a Novel Approach to Treat Obstructive Sleep Apnea: A Randomized Feasibility Study

39. Keera Grewal - Cancer care for patients with a new cancer diagnosis from the emergency department: A qualitative study of health care providers

40. June Lam - Mental Health Experiences of Trans & Gender Diverse East Asian Persons: A Scoping Review

41. John Sievenpiper - Quality assurance evaluation of a healthcare professional-facing toolkit on the Portfolio Diet

42. Ali Hosni - A retrospective analysis of radiotherapy outcomes in isolated local or regional recurrence in pancreatic cancer after surgery: Are we making a difference?

43. Andrea Waddell - Development and Piloting of an Early Warning Score and Alerting System for Psychiatric Deterioration

44. Paul Kuzyk - Implementation of a Cup-cage Construct for Large Acetabular Defects and Pelvic Discontinuity: A Follow-up Study

49. A. Kinga Malinowski - Use of Hydroxyurea in Pregnancies of Patients with Complex Sickle Cell Disease

52. Lilian Gien - Management of recurrent vulvar cancers in the era of sentinel nodes

54. Shiri Shinar - Fetal Aqueductal Stenosis - from prenatal diagnosis to postnatal treatment and neurodevelopmental outcomes

55. Sascha Drewlo - The role of irisin and in human pregnancy and preeclampsia

58. Natasha Fernandes - Evaluation of the Adult Neurodevelopmental Consult Liaison Service at Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH)

60. Rima Styra - Hearing the Caregiver: exploring quality of life for caregivers of cardiac patients

61. Cristina de Lasa - Increasing Goals of Care Discussion and Documentation at a Canadian Mental Health Hospital

63. Sophie Soklaridis - Leadership for Structural Change: A Framework for Integrating Structural Competency into Physician Leadership Programs

64. Anne Berndl - The impact of pregnancy on bowel health in people with spinal cord injury

65. Mireille Norris - The impact of pregnancy on bowel health in people with spinal cord injury M.E.D.I.C. Mentoring-Evaluation Driving Improvement of the Canadian Black Physicians Mentoring Program: A mixed-methods study

67. Julie Thorne - Evaluation of a Virtual “No Touch” Abortion Program Implemented in the Greater Toronto Area During the COVID-19 Pandemic—Phase 2

68. Sari Kives - Quality improvement initiative; assessment of primary care referrals for heavy menstrual bleeding in adolescents

69. Abhimanyu Sud - A cross-provincial policy comparison of opioid use disorder treatment in primary care

70. Carolyn Steele Gray - Digital Bridge: Using technology to support patient-centered care transitions from hospital to home

76. Amer M. Burhan - Cognitive and gait effects of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation in patients with treatment-resistant late-life depression and motoric-cognitive risk syndrome (CogniTReaD-TMS)

83. Mara Sobel - A double-blind, triple-arm randomized controlled trial of 1% lidocaine paracervical block for endometrial biopsy

84. Cathryn Sibbald - Retrospective review of Morphea in patients with Skin of Color

86. Victor Tang - Predictors of Retention and Treatment Response in Two Integrated Care Pathways for Alcohol Use Disorder

87. Monica Farcas - A wearable biosensor for ambulatory bladder monitoring: the bladder belt

88. Seema Marwaha - Physician Health Advocacy in the 21st Century: A Grounded Theory Analysis of Barriers and Enablers

90. Jamie Kroft - Evaluation of a novel virtual team-based single-entry model for managing endometriosis referrals

92. Rohit Mohindra - Experience and perception of care by refugee patients presenting to a community emergency department

95. Tahara Bhate - Retrospective analysis of Serious Safety Events (SSEs) in the post-pandemic emergency department

96. Christopher Cheung - Development of Machine Learning Techniques for Electrocardiogram Analysis

97. Srinivas Raman - Analyzing outcomes of post-prostatectomy, salvage radiotherapy patients in the era of PSMA PET imaging

99. Ashwin Mallipatna - "Investigating the Effects of Focused Ultrasound as a Treatment Option for Retinoblastoma Through In Silico Simulations and 3D Modelling Simulations and 3D Modelling "

101. Claudia dos Santos - In vitro and in vivo evaluation of miR-324-5p mechanism in COVID-19 critical illness

102. John Snelgrove - Preterm birth and antenatal corticosteroids: Do we get the timing right?

104. Heather Baltzer - Development of a smart thumb prosthetic: sensate capacity with low-cost design

105. Andrew Pinto - Developing provider education materials for the Screening for Poverty And Related social determinants and intervening to improve Knowledge of and links to resources (SPARK) Implementation Study

106. Gregory Costain - Developing new methods to clinically interpret findings from (whole-)genome sequencing for rare disease diagnosis

107 - Catharine Walsh - The relationship between gluten-free diet adherence and knowledge of gluten-content in food: A prospective study of children with celiac disease and their caregivers

109. Liat Hogen - Homologous Recombination Deficiency (HRD) status as a predictor of surgical outcome in patients with advanced high grade serious ovarian cancer Disorder

113. Annie Huang - Histopathological and Molecular Characterization of Rare Embryonal Brain Tumour Mouse Xenografts

117. Anne Stephenson - Real world use of modulator therapy in Canada: A retrospective analysis using the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Registry

120. Chung-Wai Chow - Comparison of respiratory oscillometry to standard pulmonary function tests in diagnosis of lung disease

122. Istvan Mucsi - Understanding the perceptions, concerns and needs about kidney health and treatment options for African, Caribbean and Black (ACB) Canadians

124. Nicole Coles - Improving Physical Activity Guidelines among Youth with Type 1 Diabetes

125. Lindsay Shirreff - Vaginal Hysterectomy Practice Patterns in a Canadian Context: A Retrospective Review

126. R. W. Melissa Tai - A Pilot Study evaluating the impact of a novel intrapartum patient education module on obstetrical perineal tears and patient birthing experience satisfaction

127. Stephane Laframboise - The impact of vulvar cancer diagnosis and treatment on sexual health and well-being

129. Andrew Feifer - "Development, multi-institutional validation, and algorithmic audit of PRISM – an artificial intelligence-based model to predict the presence of clinically significant prostate cancer predict the presence of clinically significant prostate cancer"

130. Adele Changoor - Clinical Evaluation of an Electroarthrography-based Device for Measuring Cartilage Quality

134. Claire Jones - Shift Work as a Potential Risk Factor for Diminished Ovarian Reserve: A Study of Fertility Patients

136. Andrea Simpson - Development of Educational Tools to Enhance the Family Planning Education of Medical Trainees

137. Gideon Hirschfield - Validation of the ICD-10 code for hepatorenal syndrome in the GEMINI project – understanding the burden of cirrhosis and its complications

138. Andrea Kassner - Assessing structural and functional changes in obese children with obstructive sleep apnea using MRI

139. Joan Wither - Urinary cyto/chemokines levels as prognostic biomarkers for renal outcomes in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

140. Lindsay Jibb - Building parent mhealth capacity to manage pain in young children: a pilot randomized controlled trial

142. Karim Ladha - The Use of Psychedelics for Chronic Pain: A Prospective Preference Assessment Study

Faculty submissions for the 2023 CREMS Summer Research Program are due February 17, 2023. The CREMS 2022 Supervisor and Project Information Form can be found here: CREMS 2023 - Supervisor and Project Information Form

• Projects must be remote-capable (in case of new restrictions) or have an alternative remote option outlined.  “The decision about where the project occurs (remote or in a lab) will be decided by the supervisor based on the policies in place at the supervisor’s institution during the time of the placement, and the specific circumstances of the lab.” 

• Interested faculty should complete a CREMS 2023 - Supervisor and Project Information Form email it to crems.programs@utoronto.ca by  February 17, 2023. 

• Submitted projects will be reviewed and scored by the CREMS adjudication committee.  We typically receive 100-120 applications and can fund around 40-50 projects. CREMS positions will be offered to the supervisor/projects with the highest scores.  We expect to complete the adjudication process by mid to late March.  

• Accepted projects will then be posted below on the CREMS website and medical students will be invited to apply directly to the supervisors. Supervisors should interview at least 5 interested applicants and select one student to work with. In the interest of fairness, we require that supervisors do not pre-select a student to work with. Supervisors are required to list all the students that were interviewed along with the name of the selected student.

• We only allow ONE student per project. Once the selection is made you will notify the CREMS office by May 1, 2023.

• If a project is selected, the supervisor is agreeing to cover half of the student stipend.  Students will receive a total of $5,500 for the 10–12-week period.  Half of this ($2,750) is paid by CREMS, and the remaining half ($2,750) will be paid by the supervisor. 

• Write to us at crems.programs@utoronto.ca if you have any questions or require further details.

Requirements for successful completion

Upon completion of the Summer Program, students will be required to submit via email to Lisa at crems.programs@utoronto.ca. A call for these deliverables will go out the first week of September and will be due the first week of October. 

1. Formal Project Abstract fit for publication

2. Supervisor and CREMS Program Evaluation Form

3. One-page Informal Report outlining the student’s research experience

A call for these deliverables will go out in September

Students are required to participate in the annual Medical Student Research Day held in February of the following year, by submitting an abstract and presenting a poster of their findings. Successful completion of the Summer Program will be evaluated by the CREMS Program Director and Coordinator.