

Expanding our reach:
Celebrating rehabilitation medicine growth
As I look back on the past year in the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, I am filled with deep gratitude. Our Faculty community has once again come together in so many ways to show its passion and dedication to research, teaching and partnerships that will improve the lives of the communities we serve.


Looking ahead:
A message from interim dean Esther Kim
As we say farewell to Dr. Tammy Hopper and celebrate in this report so many of our Faculty’s achievements and milestones over the past year of her tenure, I am very pleased to introduce myself to those of you who may not yet know me.
Highlights
Celebrating our impact 2024-25
We educate future physical, occupational and speech-language therapists and rehabilitation scientists, advancing fields like neuroscience and children's health. Our clinics serve the community, providing vital care and student training, especially for those facing barriers to access. We are the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine.
$2,467,414
This year, through gifts, grants, sponsorships, pledges and bequests, donors gave $2,467,414 to the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine. Your generosity changes lives through education, research and rehabilitation!
- 1,049 graduate students
- 39 administrative + support staff
- 54 excluded academic staff
- 42 faculty members
- 32 academic teaching staff
- 48 research support staff
- 3 research associates
- 7 post-doctoral fellows
- 6 clinicians
- 1 Endowed Chair
- 1 Tier 1 Canada Research Chair
- 1 Tier 2 Canada Research Chair
The Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine drives innovative research in neuroscience and mental health, children’s health and development, language and literacy, and chronic disease prevention and management — advancing knowledge to enhance quality of life for individuals and communities.
$8.05M
total research revenue in the last year
204
peer-reviewed research publications
231
active research grants
54
new research grants in the past year

Dementia missing incidents research could boost safety measures
"Critical wandering" in dementia poses severe risks, with disorientation leading to missing incidents. A U of A project, led by Antonio Miguel-Cruz, is analyzing diverse Canadian data to understand this phenomenon. Researchers aim to develop targeted prevention strategies for police, first responders and communities. Despite the fact that missing incidents affect nearly 40 per cent of dementia patients, data is fragmented, hindering effective responses. By consolidating information from police, rescue teams and health-care records, this study seeks to create vital tools to safeguard vulnerable individuals. This project offers a new perspective by analyzing comprehensive sets of Canadian data with the aim of developing more effective tools and strategies to prevent people with dementia from going missing.
Get to know some of our newest faculty members
Rehab Med Research News
Education is at the heart of everything we do. Our students thrive thanks to the expertise, dedication and passion of our outstanding faculty and teaching staff.
Thank you to our wonderful clinical educators who volunteered 342,138 hours to provide our students with invaluable hands-on learning in 2024-25. Learn about mentoring a student!

Can you really collaborate with a robot? This PhD grad is working on it
Adam Parker wasn’t always an A student, but his passion for technology led him from gaming to groundbreaking research in bionic limbs. Now having earned a PhD in rehabilitation science from the U of A, Parker’s work explores how artificial intelligence can help prosthetic limbs collaborate with users, improving their functionality.

For people with Parkinson’s, moving is a mental challenge as well as a physical one
PhD candidate Kathryn Lambert shows that Parkinson’s disease affects motor imagery — the mental planning of movement. Lambert found that individuals with Parkinson’s imagine movements less accurately when the action involves their more affected side, which may contribute to physical difficulties.
Get to know a few of our newest academic teaching staff
Meet Our Students

Rehabilitation medicine student researches new treatments for spinal cord injuries
Aysha Khan, a PhD student, left Pakistan to study spinal cord injuries at the U of A. In the Neuro-Recovery Lab under Keith Fenrich, she researches how interneurons in the cervical spine influence arm and hand movement. Experiential learning and donor support help drive her groundbreaking work forward.

From lecture halls to lab coats
Sami Al Sufi Mohammed focused his research on enhancing graduate admissions in rehabilitation programs. Under Mary Roduta Roberts in the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, he explored how traits such as empathy and resilience can complement academic achievements in admissions decisions, refining the selection process and fostering a more inclusive and diverse healthcare workforce.

Chloe Korade’s unique journey in speech-language pathology
Chloe Korade’s research explores alternative language assessments for bilingual children to prevent misdiagnoses of language disorders. A PhD student and speech-language pathologist, she studies how less English-dependent tests can better gauge language abilities, ensuring more accurate diagnoses for children from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

Second-year MSc student in physical therapy has a plan to make physical therapy more accessible
Erin Morgan, a former national judo athlete, turned a career-ending injury into a passion for physical therapy. Now an MScPT student at the U of A, she aims to integrate technology into rehabilitation by developing apps that improve patient care, accessibility and physiotherapy equipment for better outcomes.

OT Placement Student Spotlight:
Maxine Oco
Maxine Oco, a second-year occupational therapy student, discovered her passion for OT after witnessing its impact on her stepfather’s recovery. During a placement at St. Mary’s Hospital, she gained hands-on experience in post-operative rehabilitation, stroke recovery, interdisciplinary patient care and cognitive assessments, strengthening her clinical skills.
With a total of 3,855 registrations across credit and non-credit programming, Continuing Professional Education continues to provide accessible learning opportunities for healthcare professionals across the country and beyond. A significant highlight is the 97 per cent increase in non-credit micro-course registrations, reaching 856, demonstrating strong interest from the clinical community. For 2025-26, we are expanding our specialized offerings with new online micro-courses in Chronic Pain Management, Pediatric Wheelchair Seating, and Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing.
New Courses
Learn more about all of our professional development programs »3,855
people participated in a Continuing Professional Education course or program in 2024-25.
We offer rehabilitation services to patients close to home and offer students robust necessary clinical experience. We support communities facing barriers to access through our clinics, programs and research. Patients include military members and veterans, rural residents, Indigenous communities and Edmonton’s underserved populations.
8 clinics and camps
serving the community
Corbett Hall Speech-Language Clinic (Corbett Clinic)
Corbett Hall Early Education Program (CHEEP)
Corbett Hall Student Physical Therapy Clinic
Cancer Rehabilitation Clinic / ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ Cancer Exercise Program
¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ Aphasia Camp
Augmentative and Alternative Communication Camp
Corbett Aphasia Rehabilitation and Education (CARE)
2,440 community members benefited
from our clinics and camps
1,782 Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine student placements
in ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and beyond
9 clinics and camps serving the community
- Corbett Hall Speech-Language Clinic (Corbett Clinic)
- Corbett Hall Early Education Program (CHEEP)
- Corbett Hall Student Physical Therapy Clinic
- Cancer Rehabilitation Clinic / ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ Cancer Exercise Program
- Institute for Stuttering Treatment and Research (ISTAR)
- ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ Aphasia Camp
- Augmentative and Alternative Communication Camp
- Corbett Aphasia Rehabilitation and Education (CARE)
1,298
community members benefited from our clinics and camps
1,757
Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine student placements in ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and beyond
Rehab Med In Action
The Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine is proud to be part of a dynamic and engaged alumni and philanthropic community. We celebrate the remarkable contributions of our graduates and committed donors, who continuously improve lives across ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and beyond. Thank you for your dedication to advancing rehabilitation medicine and making a lasting impact.
10,098
total alumni
3,772 alumni live in Edmonton
1,889 live in Calgary
4,437 live all over Canada and around the world, including the USA, U.K., Australia, China and more!
Now more than ever, rehabilitation is essential to enhancing lives. .
Let Us Know
Did this report help you better understand the research, teaching and community impact of the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine? Email: frmcomms@ualberta.ca
This report highlights achievements from the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine’s 2025 fiscal year: April 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025
Contact
To support research, teaching and service in the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, contact Shannon De'Aeth, Assistant Dean, Development, Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine at sdeaeth@ualberta.ca or 780-492-3771.
For general inquiries, contact frmcomms@ualberta.ca