This article was originally posted in the Windsor Star on May 7, 2016 and is reposted with permission.
The Queen Elizabeth II Scholars (QES) Program is an innovative program for students with an interest in palliative care, and is managed through a valuable partnership between Universities Canada, the Rideau Hall Foundation (RHF), Community Foundations of Canada (CFC) and Canadian universities.
Samantha Kellam, a Masters student at the University of Windsor, was the first recipient of the scholarship and journeyed to England in January of this year to further her studies at Keele University. While at Keele, she has worked at two hospices – at Donna Louise Children’s Hospice and at Douglas Macmillan Hospice.
“Samantha was one of our undergrad students and she was also a Lancer,” says Dr. Kathy Pfa , an assistant professor in the Faculty of Nursing. “When she applied for this, it was clear she was the most stellar.”
Kellam committed to at least 90 days – a full semester – at Keele. The area of research she decided to undertake was in reflection, a practice commonly exercised in England but less frequently here.
“The health care team in hospice there fully reflect at the end of their work day,” explains assistant professor Dr. Laurie Freeman-Gibb. “She’s studying the benefi ts of reflection – how that impacts a team, or the individual.
“That’s typically not something we see here in Canada, and she wants to understand that. That’s the benefit of these programs – to learn from them what they do there that we don’t do here, and vice versa. It’s all about improving care.”
Students interested in applying for a scholarship to Keele University in England must meet the following requirements: scholars must enrolled in a Master’s or doctoral program in a health science or related field at the University of Windsor, while interns must be enrolled in an Honours undergraduate health science program at the University of Windsor and must travel to Keele University in the spring or summer between the third and fourth year of their undergraduate program. All applicants must be Canadian citizens or permanent residents and 35 years of age or under at the time of application.
All other requirements can be found at: http://www.uwindsor. ca/nursing/386/queen-