Global Outreach

Dr. Tanya (Tetyana) Martin, Co-Director

Dr. Martin is a radiologist at BC Cancer Vancouver with fellowship training in Breast Imaging and ER/Trauma. She is a Clinical Assistant Professor at the UBC department of Radiology and a breast imaging education lead at BC Cancer Vancouver. Dr Martin has been collaborating with Medecins sans Frontieres (MSF), Radiology Across Borders (RAB) and Blue Heron Foundation, and is thrilled to be part of the growing radiology community with interest in global health.

Dr. Petter Tonseth, Co-Director

Dr. Tonseth is a Radiologist and Nuclear Medicine physician who currently has a full time appointment in the Functional Imaging Department at BC Cancer.

Global medicine has been a long-standing interest and he has had the opportunity to teach in South Africa, Kenya, the Philippines, and Vietnam. Most recently, he has been involved in the development of the International Certificate in Radiology Fundamentals in collaboration with Radiology Across Borders.

He currently holds clinical academic appointments at UBC and Memorial University in Newfoundland and is the Co-Director of the UBC Radiology Global Outreach Program.

Dr. Kieran Lacey

I was born and raised primarily in St. John’s, NL, and thus far, have completed all of my post-secondary education at Memorial University of Newfoundland. Beginning with a Bachelor of Science in cell and molecular biology and a Minor in psychology, I then completed a Doctor of Medicine. Currently, I am a second-year resident in Diagnostic Radiology.

Throughout medical school, I had the opportunity to avail myself of additional educational experiences in global health. The first was via the InSIGHT program, a summer-long elective in Kathmandu, Nepal, focusing on public health and disparities in care. This inspired me to obtain a Certificate in Local and Global Health Equity, which aimed to bridge the social determinants of health to professional practice.

My prior involvement in global outreach started with the MUN Mentors, a program for helping incoming international students adjust to their new home and academic setting. I soon joined the Gateway Clinic to conduct initial medical visits for refugees and help pair them with a local family doctor. As my interest in radiology increased, I worked with the Canadian Association of Radiologists Global Outreach in Radiology Network to promote interest in medical students and residents.

Currently, I am working steadily with Radiology Across Borders (RAB) to provide online access to an International Certificate in Radiology Fundamentals. This certificate educates those in developing nations to improve local healthcare outcomes.

As for the future, I am eager to engage in more projects with the RAB, and to begin this new endeavour with the UBC Radiology Global Outreach Committee. I am in the early stages of my radiology training and career, although I plan to continue with global outreach initiatives for many years to come.

Dr. Corree Laule

Dr. Laule is an MR physicist, a Professor in the Departments of Radiology and Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, Vice-Chair of Research in Radiology, and an Associate Director of the International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries (ICORD) at the University of British Columbia. She is also an associate member of the Department of Physics & Astronomy, where she is actively involved in the Medical Physics program. Dr. Laule heads an interdisciplinary research program in multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injury spanning technical innovations to clinical translation. Her research on human brain and spinal cord MRI and histology is funded by NSERC, the MS Society of Canada, the Craig Nielsen Foundation and ICORD. With an h-index of 35, 98 publications and 250+ conference presentations, she has been cited more than 5000 times. She is an elected Senior Fellow of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine and serves on many UBC and international committees each year, including the Radiology Awards Committee (co-chair) and the Radiology EDI committee. Dr. Laule is passionate about science communication and leads initiatives to increase diversity in Science-Technology-Engineering-Math including the ICORD Summer Research Program for Indigenous Youth.

Dr. Bruce Forster

Dr. Bruce Forster is Professor at the University of British Columbia, Department of Radiology, recently finishing his 11.5 year term as Department Head on Dec 31, 2021. Previously he was Director of Diagnostic Imaging for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics/Paralympics Games and is currently the lead Radiologist for the International Olympic Commission Medical and Scientific Games Group. As an Associate Member of the Allan McGavin Sports Medicine Centre, he has been involved in the clinical, education, and research aspects of sports imaging for 25 years, and is Associate Editor of the “British Journal of Sports Medicine” and Senior Deputy Editor of the Journal of the Canadian Association of Radiologists. Dr. Forster has delivered over 500 invited lectures, many internationally, and has served as a Visiting Professor in Canada, the United States, Indonesia, Singapore, Japan, Russia and the Middle East. He is the author of over 150 peer-reviewed scientific publications, and 140 educational exhibits, and has served on the Board of Directors of the Canadian Association of Radiologists and as President of the Canadian Radiologic Foundation. He has led outreach work in UBC Radiology, and serves on the Executive Steering Committee for the International Certificate for Radiology Fundamentals with Radiologists Across Borders. In 2019 he was awarded the Gold Medal of the Canadian Association of Radiologists, and in 2022, the Haughton Medal from the Faculty of Radiologists in Ireland, to which he was elected an Honorary Member.

Dr. William W.Y. Siu

Dr. William Siu is a Staff Radiologist at Royal Columbian and Eagle Ridge Hospitals and at a community imaging clinic in Metro Vancouver, British Columbia.

William received his Medical Degree from the University of British Columbia. He completed an internship year at Royal Columbian Hospital, then performed his Radiology Residency at UBC. After his residency training, he obtained fellowship training in Neuroradiology at Vancouver General Hospital.

In his current practice, William is active in a variety of imaging modalities, including CT, MRI, ultrasound, mammography, fluoroscopy and radiography. In addition, he provides subspecialty services in Neuroradiology and Interventional Radiology. He is a Clinical Associate Professor with UBC and is active in teaching and research with University of British Columbia, University of Victoria and Simon Fraser University.

William has keen interests in participating in global outreach activities. He has been involved with the UBC International Outreach program since 2017. In 2019, as a representative of the UBC International Outreach program and in collaboration with Radiology Across Borders, William and Dr. Pete Tonseth visited Hanoi University. William delivered several lectures on Interventional Oncology to the Hanoi faculty and reviewed clinical cases with the Hanoi Radiology residents.

William has continued communications with Radiology Across Borders and is scheduled to make a presentation on Acute Stroke Imaging in 2023 as part of the RAB program. He is seeking future global outreach opportunities and is open to providing lectures, in-class teaching, hands-on demonstrations, clinical services in the field of diagnostic and interventional radiology.

Dr. Helena Bentley

Dr. Bentley is a PGY-3 resident physician in diagnostic radiology at the University of British Columbia. She completed her MSc at McGill University and she is finishing her PhD at the same institution. She has completed graduate research work focussing on healthcare resource allocation, healthcare data collection and registry development in resource challenged settings. Dr. Bentley has previously volunteered with Habitat for Humanity International in multiple capacities, including in Cambodia, Haiti, and El Salvador.

Radiologists Without Borders is a volunteer, non-profit organization based in the USA., focusing on work with communities in underdeveloped countries to improve health and livelihood by supplying diagnostic imaging equipment, services, training, and support.

In 2022, USA-based Blue Heron Foundation, led by Dr. Horia Vulpe, launched its most complex project to date, helping displaced Ukrainian cancer patients to access cancer care abroad. Dr. Vulpe has assembled a team of experts from across multiple countries to deliver potentially life-saving treatment to these patients in Moldova and Romania at no cost to the patient. Frequently complex oncologic imaging can be reviewed by a radiologist remotely via a Medicai platform, adding an invaluable contribution to the multidisciplinary management effort.