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. The CREMS Program is only open to current University of Toronto students. 

Faculty submissions are due February 10, 2025. The CREMS 2025 Supervisor and Project Information Form can be found here: Supervisor & Project Information Form. Due to the overwhelming number of faculty submissions to the program we do not have the capacity to review more than one project submission per faculty therefore you may only submit 1 project per year.

• Interested faculty should complete a Supervisor Project and Information formand email it to crems.programs@utoronto.ca by February 10, 2025

• When saving your submission, please use the following format: Last Name, First Initial, Project Title.

• Submitted projects will be reviewed and scored by the CREMS adjudication committee.  We typically receive 150+ 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 review process and notify successful applicants that their project will be posted by 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. Interviews must occur after April 2, 2025.

• We only allow ONE student per project. Once the selection is made supervisors are to notify the CREMS office by April 30, 2025

• Once a student is selected and CREMS is notified of the selection, supervisors will be sent a Mentor Agreement Form to be signed by the supervisor and the student. This agreement outlines that the supervisor and student agree to work on the funded project, understand the expectations of the Program, and that the supervisor agrees to pay their portion of the CREMS stipend ($3250). Supervisors’ payments must be arranged through their own finance department. CREMS is not able to invoice or pay on a supervisor’s behalf. Please note, the Mentor Agreement Form is obtained by advising CREMS of your student selection. A template will not appear on the website.

• The Mentor Agreement Form, signed by the student and supervisor, must be sent to CREMS by May 15, 2025.

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

2025 CREMS Summer Program Project Catalogue

Baltzer, H - Development of a smart thumb prosthetic: sensate capacity with low-cost design

Berndl, A - Risk factors for preterm birth in people with spinal cord injury

Bhate, T - Evaluating the University Health Network Emergency Department Community Advisory Counci

Birken, C - Understanding the relationship between child family history of cardiometabolic diseases, child health and cardiometabolic risk, and education outcomes

Boulos, M - Strengthening Oropharyngeal Muscles as a Novel Approach to Treat Obstructive Sleep Apnea: A Randomized Feasibility Study

Browne, C - Decoding real-time neural activity data in a mouse model of addiction

Camp, M - Rod safe zones in spine surgery

Carcao, M - The effectiveness of sirolimus in Pediatric autoimmune cytopenias – a retrospective study

Chandrasekaran, N - Iron deficiency and breast-feeding rates – A prospective matched-cohort patient-engagement study.

Chauhan, V - Novel electrocardiographic (ECG) risk markers of sudden death to improve patient selection for implantable defibrillator therapy

Chung, F - Impact of cognitive impairment on the perioperative trajectory of frailty in older adults undergoing surgery

Clark, C - Black Maternal Mental Health: Capturing Data in Clinical Care

Covelli, A - Understanding the Lived Experience of Black Women with Breast Cancer

Davies, J - Predicting risk of contralateral nodal metastasis in oropharyngeal cancer

Davis, A - Community Attitudes Towards Exception from Informed Consent Research in Children

Deshwar, A - Characterizing a zebrafish model of a novel multiple malformation syndrome caused by a variant in MED8

Dimras, H - Development of a Biobank for Rare Pediatric Eye Cancers

Diskin, C - Integrating Adult Provider Perspectives to Strengthen Transition to Adult Care for Youth with Complex Chronic Conditions

Drewlo, S - Hypoglycemia as a First Hit in Placental Dysfunction – Protective Roles of GLP-1 Agonists & Metformin

Dunlop, K - Associated of irritability and suicidality in major depressive disorder: A fMRI Study

Farcas, M - Detecting Microscopic Hematuria through a Novel Point-of-Care Quantification Method

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

Fu, L - Comparative Evaluation of the Diagnostic Accuracy of the Point-of-care PlGF assay and laboratory sFlt-1/PlGF ratio test in Patients with Suspected Preeclampsia

Gallagher, L - "The overlap in reported genetic associations between psychiatric conditions and inflammatory response pathways

George, T - Effects of Extended Cannabis Abstinence in People with Major Depression

Goel, A - SCS-RESET: A De-Prescription, Placebo-Controlled Crossover Trial Evaluating Spinal Cord Stimulation in Chronic Neuropathic Pain

Guo, M - Safety First: Developing a Canadian consensus guideline on the safety of telerehabilitation across diverse patient populations

Hales, S - Medical assistance in dying (MAID) in the cancer context

Hayman, K - Formative evaluation of a Stabilization and Connection Centre (SCC) for stable patients using drugs and alcohol

Huang, V - Vaccinations, Infections, and Health outcomes in Infants born to Mothers with Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Huang, WY - Unveiling Genetic and Epigenetic Landscapes: ONT Sequencing of Primary and Metastatic Neuroendocrine Tumors

Hulme, J - Evaluating impact and efficacy of iterative changes in FAST-HIV testing in the Emergency Department

Jakeman, M - A 3D Model for Pediatric Syndactyly: Improving Teaching and Graft-free Surgical Approaches

Kam, A - Compassionate Concussion Care Map

Kim, RS - Acceptance of weight loss medication in women with atypical hyperplasia or carcinoma of the endometrium as part of the fertility preservation treatment: a qualitative study

Kirkham, A - A novel remote intervention to decelerate the age-related decline in older breast cancer survivors

Kives, S - Perspectives of patients and families on undergoing ovarian surgery in childhood: a qualitative study

Kolker, S - Efficacy of an Interactive Online Platform Aimed to Provide Support and Encouragement to Exercise During Pregnancy (StEP-Trial): A Randomized Control Trial

Lay, C - Rejected Referral: Evaluating the Impact of a Primary Care Tip Sheet (P-CaTS) on Enhancing the Relationship Between Headache Specialists and Primary Care Practitioners

Lee, E - Safety and efficacy of penicillin allergy testing in patients with moderate-to-high risk penicillin allergy labels

Lincoln, M - Identifying causal mechanisms for multiple sclerosis through quantitative epigenetic analysi

Linn, SM - Biomarker Research for Evaluation of Airway Tests after allogeneic Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation to Explore its prediction to develop Bronchiolitis Obliterans Syndrome: BREATHE study

Lipa, J - Evaluation of Patient Exposure to Textured Breast Implants over 25 Years

Mah, L - EFFECTS OF NEUROMODULATION OF THE ANTERIOR CINGULATE CORTEX USING DEEP TRANSCRANIAL MAGNETIC STIMULATION ON COGNITION AND MOOD IN OLDER ADULTS AT RISK FOR ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE

Mallipatna, A - Bringing Equity to Ophthalmology: 3D-Printing and Validation of Diversely Pigmented Fundi

Masellis, M - Longitudinal trajectories of cognitive decline in Parkinson disease: Genetic, neuroimaging and biomarker correlates

McDonald, M - Evaluating associations between doses of rabbit anti-thymocyte globulin-based induction therapy and short- and long-term outcomes in heart transplantation patients.

Melamed, O - Using AI-Driven Motivational Interviewing to Elicit Change Talk in Smokers

Menzies, R - Risk of preterm birth after cerclage in twin and triplet pregnancies – a retrospective cohort

Mitchell, S - Leveraging AI for Enhanced Diagnostic Accuracy: Differentiating Neurodegenerative and Functional Cognitive Disorders Using the Clock Drawing Test

Mitchell, R - Exploring the Use of Trigger Warnings on Self-Harm and Suicide-Related Content on TikTok

Moreno Garijo, J - Reassessing Normative Cardiac Chamber Measurements: A Comparative Study of TTE and TEE under General Anesthesia.

Morris, S - Epidemiology and outcomes of viral respiratory infections in hospitalized in children

Mucsi, I - Electronic Patient Reported Outcome Measures to Guide Systematic Symptom and Distress Management among Solid Organ Transplant Recipients

Mulligan, K - Improving student wellbeing and addressing loneliness in postsecondary settings through social prescribing

Naganathan, G - Developing a culturally competent and safe tool for breast cancer education in diverse communities in East Toronto

Nnorom, O - Afrocentric Friendly Visits for Black seniors with Dementia in Toronto

Norris, M - Community Hypertension Outcomes Improvement by Computerized Education Seminars (CHOICES) for the Black Community

Orkin, J - Identifying and Addressing Immunization Gaps Amongst Children with Medical Complexity: A Multi-Phase Mixed Methods Protoco

Orser, B - The effects of general anesthesia and surgery on inhibitory neurotransmission

Roth, D - Variability and clinical utility of repeating temperature measurements during health worker assessments of young infants in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Rozenberg, D - Online Websites as a Source of Information and Instruction for Caregivers of Individuals with Advanced Cardiac and Pulmonary disease

Sharfuddin, N - Optimizing patient flow: Standardizing discharge processes to reduce time-to-inpatient bed (TIB) in Peel region hospitals

Shwaartz, C - Enhancing Surgical Training with Virtual Reality: A Scalable, High-Impact Solution for Hepatopancreaticobilliary (HPB) Surgery Education

Sierra, S - Polycystic Ovary Syndrome in Patients with Recurrent Early Pregnancy Loss: Prevalence, Management, and Reproductive Outcomes

Sinyor, M - Medical Illnesses and Suicide: A latent class analysis of Suicide Cases in Toronto, Canada (1998-2022)

Snelgrove, J - Social Identity, Social Position and Pregnancy Outcomes (SISPPO): Investigating the social determinants of maternal-perinatal health in hypertensive pregnancies

Swift, B - E-content educational innovation to enhance resident learning and workflow: Design and development of a Post Graduate high Yield GYNEcology ONCology resource website (PGY Gyne Onc)

Martinu, T - Detecting and preventing aspiration as a cause of allograft dysfunction after lung transplantation

Thorne, J - Developing a Digital CARE (Comprehensive Abortion Resource for Empowerment) Companion for Women Undergoing First- and Second- Trimester Procedural Abortions at Women’s College Hospital

Tu, K - Advancing Primary Care Delivery Research through the INTRePID Consortium: A Global Approach to Primary Health Care Research

Tyrrell, P - Applying Machine‐Learning Methods To Analyse and Classify Benign and Malignant Adnexal Mass Ovarian Ultrsound Data

Walsh, C - Usability Testing of a Celiac Disease Transition Guidebook for Youth

Wang, A - Improving access and timeliness to detection of skin cancer in a primary care setting through a rapid referral pathway

Wideman, A - Descriptive analysis of care provided to patients at an unattached family practice clinic

Woflman, W - The Menopause Quick 6 (MQ6) assessment tool validity and correlation with the current validated Menopause Rating Scale (MRS)

Wu, R - Validation of Fitbit measurements in hospitalized general medicine patients

Wytsma, J - Evaluating the Acute Care Echocardiography (ACE) Training Program 

Yao, C - 3D Segmentation of Oral Tumors

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.