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University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine

Coordinates: 43°39′39″N 79°23′37″W / 43.660770°N 79.393658°W / 43.660770; -79.393658
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Temerty Faculty of Medicine
The FitzGerald Building (foreground) and the Terrence Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research
Former names
Rolph's School of Medicine (1843–1851)
Toronto School of Medicine (1851–1887)
Faculty of Medicine (1887–2020)[1]
TypeFaculty (medical school)
Established1843; 182 years ago (1843)[1]
Parent institution
University of Toronto
Affiliation
DeanLisa Robinson
Location
Discovery District, Toronto
,
Ontario
,
Canada
Websitemedicine.utoronto.ca

The Temerty Faculty of Medicine (previously Faculty of Medicine) is the medical school of the University of Toronto. Founded in 1843, the faculty is based at the St. George campus in Downtown Toronto and is one of Canada's oldest institutions of medical studies, being known for the discovery of insulin, stem cells and the site of the first single and double lung transplants in the world.

History

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Frederick Banting joined by Charles Best in office, 1924

The University of King’s College Medical School, the precursor to the University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine opened in 1843. The University of Toronto itself formed in 1849 following the passage of the Baldwin Act which removed the University from the control of the Anglican Church.[2] In 1853, the United Provinces of Canada legislature, on the ostensible grounds of public sentiment, opposed state aid for the profession of medicine and abolished the medical school at the University of Toronto.[3] As a consequence of the Hincks University Bill, the University of Toronto was reduced to only having a supervisory role in medical education being responsible for administering examinations and conferring degrees.[4]

The decision on the part of the legislature opened the way for private medical schools called proprietary schools to develop in Toronto. In 1850, the Upper Canada School of Medicine formed.[5] In 1851, this school became the medical faculty of the University of Trinity College.[6] Trinity closed in 1856 and was reopened in 1871.[7] John Rolph opened a school in 1843 which was renamed the Toronto School of Medicine in 1851.[8] This would later become the Victoria University of Medicine in 1854.[9] The Victoria School of Medicine would collapse in 1874 and students would go to the new Toronto School of Medicine.[10] This version of the Toronto School of Medicine was re-opened by professors in 1856 without John Rolph and became affiliated with the University of Toronto.[11] The Women’s Medical College was founded 1 October 1883. It was affiliated with Trinity Medical College. In 1890, the institution moved and became connected with the University of Toronto with students being able to write exams at either institution.[12] Under the provisions of the bill of 1853, the University of Toronto was responsible for licensing the medical graduates of these colleges. The University of Toronto would administer examinations and confer a Bachelor of Medicine degree to those who proved competent.[13]

The two main proprietary schools that educated future physicians were the Toronto School of Medicine and the Trinity School of Medicine. Both schools were successful and were able to expand their facilities and attract more students.[14] However, a point of criticism from detractors was that these schools were not able to provide a proper education in the sciences. Science was at the forefront of the change in universities’ pedagogic shift to centres of research and knowledge dissemination.[15] Laboratories and experiments were integral to this shift and the expense associated with providing for these in a medical education was not something that the proprietary schools could bear.[16] In 1868, the government of Ontario cut off grants to medical schools. Reliant solely on tuition fees, the schools could not provide the necessary resources needed for the increasing focus on science.[17] In 1878, the University of Toronto Senate set more demanding standards for their examinations which led to a decline in students seeking their degrees at the University. In 1883, only ten students passed the exams.[18]

The University Federation Act of 1887 brought the medical faculty back to life. The Toronto School of Medicine amalgamated with University of Toronto to form the Faculty of Medicine.[19] While initially reticent, the Toronto School of Medicine was not able to offer the same level of scientific education and research abilities as the University of Toronto. Once the Toronto School of Medicine was absorbed its buildings were used by the University of Toronto and the Faculty of Medicine was established with 29 members from both institutions.[20] Under William Thomas Aikins, the Dean of the re-founded faculty from 1887 to 1893, rapid changes in education resulted in science being taught and new technologies being used in the education of medical students.[21] In 1889, the University of Toronto built a new biology building with it to also serve in the teaching of medicine. An 1891 expansion led to the top floor being used for the dissection of cadavers. Lectures were given in this building while clinical work was done at the Toronto General Hospital.[22] The Toronto General Hospital also featured laboratory facilities available to the medical students.[2]

Trinity School of Medicine became Trinity Medical College in 1888.[23] While successful, with laboratories and varied teaching facilities, the importance of research and inability for it to compete made its position untenable.[24] In 1902, Trinity began discussions to be absorbed in the University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine.[25] Talks were completed in July 1903 when the charter of the medical college was surrendered to Toronto.[26] At this time, a new medical building was constructed at the University of Toronto called the New Laboratories building that included laboratories with removable partitions to increase and decrease class sizes. When completed in 1904, a celebration was held to mark the occasion and the amalgamation of the University of Toronto and Trinity College.[27]

The Women’s Medical College was not included in the plans and continued as a separate institution. Following the report of the Royal Commission on the University the Women’s Medical College was absorbed into the University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine.[28]

Recruitment ad from 1906, showing course fees, subjects and other information.

The 1910 Flexner Report on the state of medical education in the United States and Canada, which led to the closures of many medical schools across the continent, nonetheless singled out a select few medical schools for praise, among them Toronto's Faculty of Medicine. Flexner praised the "high quality of instruction" offered at Toronto and noted that its equipment was "among the best on the continent”.[29]

Curriculum

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The Medical Sciences Building is the administrative centre of the Faculty of Medicine
The McMurrich Building contains offices of medical faculty members and researchers.

In 2016, the Faculty of Medicine implemented the new Foundations Curriculum, moving away from the traditional lecture based style of teaching based on anatomy, physiology, pathology and pharmacology and into a case-based learning approach with early clinical exposure.[30]

The Doctor of Medicine program at the University of Toronto is a 4-year MD program with a total enrollment of about 850 students. For the 2026 admission year the Faculty of Medicine will admit 303 students.[31] The first two years are known as the preclerkship curriculum, during which M.D. candidates acquire the basic biomedical and human anatomy knowledge. The principles of medical ethics, professionalism and medical jurisprudence are also taught in preclerkship. The final two years form the clerkship curriculum that takes place in hospitals and ambulatory clinics. The core clerkship rotations cover the essential medical specialties: surgery and internal medicine, psychiatry, pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, family medicine, ambulatory experience, neurology, emergency medicine, anesthesia, ophthalmology, otolaryngology and dermatology. Additional rotations are devoted to elective clerkships that provide training in subdisciplines within the major specialities.

In 2018, the average accepted undergraduate weighted GPA was 3.96 (on the University of Toronto Weighted GPA (wGPA) Formula) and the median score in the numerically graded sections of the MCAT was 11.[32] In the 2023/2024 admission cycle the average cGPA (cumulative GPA) of accepted students was 3.95.[33] [34] The University of Toronto is one of only a few programs in Canada to accept international students through its admission process. The faculty also offers the MD/PhD degree jointly with University of Toronto doctoral programs, in addition to other degrees of Master of Science, master of public health, master of health science, doctor of philosophy, and post-doctoral fellowships.

Departments, hospitals and research

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The Faculty of Medicine is subdivided into 26 separate departments: Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Biochemistry, Biomedical Engineering, Institute of Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research, Family and Community Medicine, Immunology, Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, Medical Biophysics, Medical Imaging, the Institute of Medical Science, Medicine, Molecular Genetics, Nutritional Sciences, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences, Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, Paediatrics, Pharmacology and Toxicology, Physical Therapy, Physiology, Psychiatry, Radiation Oncology, Rehabilitation Sciences Institute, Speech-Language Pathology and Surgery.

The Faculty of Medicine is also the only medical school in the Greater Toronto Area and operates a health network that comprises twelve teaching hospitals with significant emphasis on tertiary care, including medical treatment, research and advisory services to patients and clients from Canada and abroad.[35] The Faculty houses Biosafety level 3 facilities.[36]

The faculty is associated with two level 1 adult trauma centres, a multi-organ transplant hospital, a pediatric hospital, a psychiatric hospital, a geriatric hospital, four rehabilitation institutes and several general hospitals.

The teaching hospitals are arranged in four hospital networks, which are the University Health Network, Unity Health Toronto, the Sinai Health System, the Trillium Health Partners, as well as three major teaching hospitals outside of the system, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Women's College Hospital and The Hospital for Sick Children.

Rotations may also involve community teaching hospitals, which include North York General Hospital, St. Joseph's Health Centre, Michael Garron Hospital, Scarborough General Hospital, Credit Valley Hospital and Markham Stouffville Hospital.

A laboratory at The Centre for Applied Genomics of the Hospital for Sick Children
Interior of the MaRS Discovery District research park facility
University of Toronto fully affiliated teaching hospitals
Institution Main specialty Affiliated research arm
Princess Margaret Cancer Centre (University Health Network) Medical Oncology, Radiation Oncology, Surgical Oncology Ontario Cancer Institute
Toronto General Hospital (University Health Network) Cardiology, Multi-Organ Transplant, Cardiac Surgery, Thoracic Surgery Toronto General Research Institute
Toronto Western Hospital (University Health Network) Neurology, Neurosurgery, Ophthalmology, Rheumatology Krembil Research Institute
Holland Bloorview Kids Rehab Paediatric rehabilitation Bloorview Research Institute
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health Psychiatry, Addiction Medicine
Mount Sinai Hospital (Sinai Health System) Multispecialty: Inflammatory bowel disease, High Risk Pregnancy, Orthopedic Oncology Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute
Hospital for Sick Children Paediatrics, Paediatric Surgical Specialities SickKids Research Institute
St. Michael's Hospital (Unity Health Toronto) Trauma Surgery, Inner City Health, Gastroenterology Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre Multispecialty: Oncology, Trauma Surgery, Burn Injuries Sunnybrook Research Institute
Toronto Rehabilitation Institute (University Health Network) Physiatry
Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care Geriatrics, Neurophysiology Research Centre for Aging and the Brain
Women's College Hospital Obstetrics and Gynecology, Women's Health, Dermatology Women's College Research Institute

Mississauga Academy of Medicine

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Terrence Donnelly Health Sciences Complex at U of T Mississauga

The Faculty, in partnership with the University of Toronto Mississauga and Trillium Health Partners[39] opened the Mississauga Academy of Medicine (MAM) in August 2011 with 54 first-year students. As of 2014, the academy has a total of 216 students enrolled in the four-year program. The facility is located across two floors inside the Terrence Donnelly Health Sciences Complex at U of T's Mississauga campus and provides brand new classrooms, seminar rooms, computer facilities, learning spaces and laboratories.[40] Students are provided with fully equipped student lounge and outdoor terrace to relax and socialize. Students are able to share lectures and learning experiences both inside and outside the classroom through advanced technologies.[40]

Scarborough Academy of Medicine and Integrated Health

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In 2022, the Ontario government announced that University of Toronto Scarborough would provide medical training. Starting in 2026, the campus will offer 30 undergraduate seats and 45 postgraduate positions in the new Scarborough Academy of Medicine and Integrated Health (SAMIH).[41][42]

Collaborations with industry

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MaRS Discovery District is an affiliated corporation that was established to help commercialize the faculty's life science and medical research through partnerships with private enterprises.

On April 7, 2022, the University of Toronto announced a partnership with American biotechnology company Moderna intended to develop new tools to prevent and treat infectious diseases, collaborating with researchers in the fields of molecular genetics, biomedical engineering, and biochemistry.[43][44] The collaboration is a joint venture across U of T's Faculties of Applied Science and Engineering and Medicine.

Reputation

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In 2023 the school was ranked 4th in the world for clinical medicine and surgery by U.S. News & World Report.[45] It was also ranked 5th in the world for pre-clinical, clinical and health by The Times Higher Education in its 2022 listings.[46]

Historically, it was ranked 13th in the world for medicine by the QS World Ranking.[47] In 2020 the school was ranked 15th in the world Academic Ranking of World Universities for clinical medicine.[48]

While not exclusively regarding the Temerty Faculty of Medicine, in 2023, NATURE ranked the University of Toronto 3rd in the world for Health sciences [49]

Notable alumni

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Notable past or present faculty

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See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ a b "U of T Chronology". University of Toronto Libraries. Retrieved June 15, 2025.
  2. ^ a b Shorter (2013, p. 18)
  3. ^ Shorter (2013, p. 19)
  4. ^ McKillop (1994, p. 60)
  5. ^ Harris (1976, p. 65)
  6. ^ McKillop (1994, p. 60)
  7. ^ Harris (1976, p. 67)
  8. ^ McKillop (1994, p. 60)
  9. ^ Friedland (2002, p. 41)
  10. ^ Gidney & Millar (1994, p. 58)
  11. ^ Harris (1976, p. 67)
  12. ^ Shorter (2013, p. 19)
  13. ^ Shorter (2013, p. 19)
  14. ^ Gidney & Millar (1994, p. 60)
  15. ^ Gidney & Millar (1994, p. 65)
  16. ^ Friedland (2002, p. 128)
  17. ^ Gidney & Millar (1994, p. 69)
  18. ^ Friedland (2002, p. 126)
  19. ^ Friedland (2002, p. 129)
  20. ^ Friedland (2002, p. 129)
  21. ^ Shorter (2013, p. 22-23)
  22. ^ Friedland (2002, p. 132)
  23. ^ Harris (1976, p. 161)
  24. ^ Gidney & Millar (1994, p. 70)
  25. ^ Shorter (2013, p. 13)
  26. ^ McKillop (1994, p. 75)
  27. ^ Friedland (2002, p. 136)
  28. ^ Friedland (2002, p. 138)
  29. ^ Abraham Flexner (1910). "Medical Education in the United States and Canada" (PDF). Retrieved November 3, 2023.
  30. ^ "Frequently Asked Questions". University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine. University of Toronto. Archived from the original on October 18, 2015. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  31. ^ "ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS OF CANADIAN FACULTIES OF MEDICINE For Admission in 2026" (PDF). afmc.ca. The Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada. Retrieved May 10, 2025.
  32. ^ Henheffer, Tom. "Canada’s Best Professional Schools: Where did you go, Marcus Welby?". MacleansSeptember 17, 2009
  33. ^ "ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS OF CANADIAN FACULTIES OF MEDICINE For Admission in 2026" (PDF). afmc.ca. The Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada. Retrieved May 10, 2025.
  34. ^ "Admission Statistics". University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine.
  35. ^ "Hospital Partners". Experience Research. Office of the Vice-President, Research, University of Toronto. 2008. Archived from the original on February 17, 2012. Retrieved March 15, 2009.
  36. ^ "Combined Containment Level 3 Unit". Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto. Retrieved February 4, 2021.
  37. ^ "Toronto General Hospital". Archived from the original on October 5, 2006. Retrieved November 30, 2008.; "Princess Margaret Hospital". Archived from the original on October 4, 2006. Retrieved November 30, 2008.; "Toronto Western Hospital". University Health Network. Archived from the original on October 4, 2006. Retrieved November 30, 2008.
  38. ^ "BioDiscovery Toronto – Hospital for Sick Children". BioDiscovery Toronto. 2006. Archived from the original on May 13, 2006. Retrieved November 30, 2008.
  39. ^ "Mississauga Academy of Medicine". University of Toronto Mississauga. Retrieved March 27, 2012.
  40. ^ a b "Mississauga Academy of Medicine". University of Toronto. Archived from the original on March 28, 2012. Retrieved March 27, 2012.
  41. ^ "Ontario Training More Doctors as it Builds a More Resilient Health Care System". Government of Ontario. Retrieved March 19, 2022.
  42. ^ "About the Scarborough Academy of Medicine and Integrated Health (SAMIH)". University of Toronto Scarborough. Retrieved June 14, 2025.
  43. ^ Kalvapalle, Rahul (April 7, 2022). "U of T partners with Moderna to advance research in RNA science and technology". University of Toronto News. Archived from the original on April 30, 2022. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
  44. ^ Terry, Mark (April 8, 2022). "Everybody Wants a Piece of Moderna. Next Up: University of Toronto". BioSpace. Archived from the original on April 30, 2022. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
  45. ^ "University of Toronto in Canada". US News Best Global Universities. Retrieved August 10, 2023.
  46. ^ "World University Rankings 2022 by subject: Clinical and health". September 10, 2021.
  47. ^ "Medicine 2020".
  48. ^ "ShanghaiRanking's Global Ranking of Academic Subjects 2017 - Clinical Medicine | Shanghai Ranking - 2017". www.shanghairanking.com. Archived from the original on July 1, 2017.
  49. ^ "2023 tables: Institutions - health sciences | Annual tables | Nature Index".
  50. ^ "Pashby, Thomas Joseph". College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario. 2001. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  51. ^ "Dr. Tom Pashby". Canada's Sports Hall of Fame. 2000. Retrieved October 26, 2022.
  52. ^ "高橋 利匡 (Toshimasa Takahashi) - マイポータル - researchmap". researchmap.jp. Retrieved May 13, 2025.
  53. ^ "スタッフ紹介｜大阪大学 老年・総合内科学". www.med.osaka-u.ac.jp. Retrieved May 13, 2025.
  54. ^ Takahashi, Harumi; Shibasaki, Tadao; Park, Jae-Hyung; Hidaka, Shihomi; Takahashi, Toshimasa; Ono, Aika; Song, Dae-Kyu; Seino, Susumu (April 2015). "Role of Epac2A/Rap1 signaling in interplay between incretin and sulfonylurea in insulin secretion". Diabetes. 64 (4): 1262–1272. doi:10.2337/db14-0576. ISSN 1939-327X. PMID 25315008.

References

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Further reading

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43°39′39″N 79°23′37″W / 43.660770°N 79.393658°W / 43.660770; -79.393658

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