The Pediatric Graduate Program welcomed its first students in September 2024, under the Max Rady Faculty of Health Science, in partnership with CHRIM and the Department of Pediatrics and Child Health. The program was designed to provide students with a unique, inter-disciplinary learning opportunity to increase the understanding of pediatric health research and help create the next generation of child health researchers. The program focuses on four pillars; clinical research, basic science, population health and practice and policy. Students choose a pillar, and then build a customized degree track. Students also take courses in two of the three other pillars, to help broaden understanding of different areas of medical research. Recently, the program celebrated its first graduating student, Mason Hollebeke.

Miss Hollebeke was supervised by CHRIM Investigator, Dr. Kelly Russell and Dr. Kerstin Roger. Her research focused on sport related concussions in girls and how they experience recovery. Her MSc. thesis, titled Adolescent girls’ experiences of mental health and recovery following sports-related concussions was successfully defended in August. Throughout her time in the program, Miss Hollebeke received several awards including the Dean of Rady Faculty of Health Sciences Graduate Student Achievement Prize as well as The Celebrating Women in Sport Scholarship from True North. Mason is now continuing her academic journey as a PhD student in Health and Rehabilitation Sciences as Western University.

Child health research is important to me because it provides an opportunity to better understand and support a uniquely vulnerable population. In particular, studying adolescent girls has been incredibly rewarding, as they remain underrepresented in both pediatric and sports research. – Mason Hollebeke

The pediatric grad program was excited to welcome three new students this fall, all supervised by CHRIM investigators. Currently, there are nine students enrolled, studying a variety of child health research topics from human milk to oral health. Learn more about the program here.