Dr. Christopher Hicks is an Education Research Scientist in the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael’s Hospital. He is an emergency physician and trauma team leader at St. Michael’s, as well as a Clinician-Educator in the Department of Medicine at the University of Toronto. His program of research focuses on resuscitation team performance, including psychological skills training (PST), design ergonomics and knowledge translation.
Recent research projects include stress inoculation training for high acuity events, the role of mental practice in team-based trauma resuscitation, and a collaboration with human factors engineers to identify process, logistical and personnel-based latent safety hazards in the trauma bay.
Dr. Hicks is an avid speaker and lecturer, with invited lectures both nationally and internationally. He has developed simulation-based PST curricula for emergency medicine (CREW) and trauma (TNT-2) that are firsts for post-graduate medical education in Canada and have been modelled internationally. Dr. Hicks is a strong supporter of the Free Open Access Medical Education (FOAMEd) movement, and has an active social media profile both through Twitter and as a guest blogger and podcaster on several high-profile emergency medicine blogs.
Dr. Hicks served as the Assistant Program Director for the FRCP Emergency Medicine Residency Program at the University of Toronto from 2013-2016, and continues to chair the division’s simulation committee. He is the director of the Simulation and Health Sciences for the Emergency Department (SHRED) fellowship program, launched in 2016, which blends resuscitation science and simulation scholarship. Chris is a member of several local and regional trauma and education committees, and has been the recipient of numerous medical education and curriculum awards, including the Faculty of Medicine Award for Excellence in Postgraduate Medical Education, Development/Innovation in Postgraduate Education.