<a href="https://www.med.ubc.ca/news/spring-graduation-2021/" target="_blank">Spring Graduation 2021 - UBC Faculty of Medicine</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<font color="#6f6f6f">UBC Faculty of Medicine</font>

Spring Graduation 2021 - UBC Faculty of Medicine - UBC Faculty of Medicine

The University of British Columbia

MD/PhD candidate at The University of British Columbia

Cedars-Sinai

Resident Physician

After I graduated medical school, I was inspired by the book "The Cochrane Collaboration: Medicine's Best Kept Secret" to expand my skillset to include systematic reviews of clinical studies believing these reviews and the guidelines they provide are some of medicine's
most important innovations for improving patient care. As a contributor, I am working to publish two reviews. The first review is evaluating the evidence of thiazide and thiazide-like diuretics compared to other classes of anti-hypertensives for primary hypertension. The second review is evaluating hydrocholothiazide compared to other diuretics for primary hypertension. The choice in treatment for patients with high blood pressure with respect to drug class is important for both health outcomes and costs. There is a need for new reviews of the latest evidence to bring this issue back to the attention of the clinical community. These projects are also useful in strengthening my communication, team work, and leadership skills.

Cochrane (formerly known as The Cochrane Collaboration)

Research Contributor

I volunteered as a simulation training assistant for the UBC Anesthesiology Residency Program. The program uses core simulation training for anesthesia residents and a bootcamp for new interns. I assisted with staff anesthesiologists and senior residents in designing scenarios, participating as an actor, and facilitating debriefing sessions.

UBC Department of Medicine

Simulation Center Volunteer

Scoping review assistant for a patient-facing educational platform for pain management.

The British Pain Society

Volunteer Research Assistant

After graduating medical school, I joined the Therapeutics Initiative (TI), a group that provides the public with up-to-date, independent, and evidence-based information on health care interventions. Thanks to my training in underserved communities, responsible pharmacologic management of pain thats avoids over-prescription of narcotics has become my passion. To pursue this passion, I joined on a systematic review of the evidence regarding non-opioid pharmacologic management of chronic non-cancer pain. The review evaluates the use of anti-epileptics, anti-depressants, and muscle relaxants in chronic pain. Further, we used this review to produce a guide for practical decision making by primary care physicians in approaching prescribing, titrating, and discontinuing these medications for chronic pain.

The Therapeutics Initiative

After completing medical school, I worked COVID-19 immunizer for the Fraser Health Authority during the vaccine rollout. My roles included immunizing, screening clients for risk factors, providing patient education, clerking patient information, and serving as a first aid provider.

Fraser Health Authority

Employee

I spent time as a consultant for Side Door Ventures Inc., a global venture capital firm investing in companies across technology, life sciences, logistics, media, gaming, and financial services. My consulting role was aimed at medical technologies. I have consulted on deals involving a wide variety of biomedical applications. My work required review of potential clients' product, the research and development supporting their product's intended clinical use, and communicating my review findings to the investment team from a clinical and scientific perspective.

Side Door Ventures

Independent Consultant

For the matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) family of extracellular proteases, proteomics screens have led us to realise that many proteins with characterized intracellular roles are secreted by non-classical means to perform novel functions that may be modulated by MMPs. Where it was once thought MMPs only degraded extracellular matrix (ECM), they are now known to process an array of substrates including chemokines, leading to a shift in interest from ECM turnover to roles in signaling. It is important to understand what MMPs cleave, as novel substrates may carry out beneficial roles and thus should not be blocked by drugs, evidenced by the failure of MMP inhibitor drug trials. 
Interesting multifunctional targets of MMP processing are “moonlighting” proteins, that shuttle between the intracellular and extracellular compartments exhibiting different functions in each. Surprising members of this group of proteins include DNA binding protein high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) and histone 2B (H2B). Our proteomic screens have also identified tRNA synthetases as moonlighting proteins cut by MMPs: secreted lysyl tRNA synthetase is proinflammatory, a fragment of tryptophanyl tRNA synthetase is angiostatic, and fragments of tyrosyl tRNA synthetase act as cytokines. Based on proteomic screening of secretomes, cell culture and in vivo models, we hypothesize that MMPs play pro- or anti- inflammatory roles by processing tRNA synthetases. My research investigates MMP processing of tRNA synthetases that have attributed extracellular functions to shed light upon MMP function.

MD/PhD Student

A year's worth of experience in Chris Overall's Lab in UBC, experience in protein and protease biochemistry, animal models, tissue culture, a wide and comprehensive array of biochemical, chemical and biotechnological techniques. I am completing an Honors Thesis in my final semester of my four year degree at UBC.

Research Intern

CIR Pollutions to Products Project- Experience as research assistant at the Centre of Research and Innovation of Grande Prairie Regional College (working in a Biosafety level 2 lab) as part of an NSERC research grant, collecting and analyzing data for Pollutant to Product Study in collaboration with private research and development (2011)
Technical Skills
Lab equipment and protocol- Experience with equipment and methodology encountered in chemistry, biochemistry, and microbiology including autoclave equipment, scales and pipettes, microscopy, and diagnostic testing (PCR, gel electrophoresis, SDS Page, culture preparation, plating, assays, and media and buffer preparation)
Software- Experience with programming including Microsoft Office and Internet research

Parker Jobin