Meet MI's New Vice Chair, CPD, Dr. Tanya Chawla
Earlier this month, Medical Imaging Assistant Professor and Division Lead, Abdominal Imaging, Dr. Tanya Chawla, began her new role as Vice Chair, Continuing Professional Development. As someone who’s been informally mentoring through most of her career, this new position was apt for Dr. Chawla.
Having grown up in the United Kingdom with a passion for the creative, Dr. Chawla went in a different direction for her career at the behest of her parents, who encouraged her to go into medicine. This worked well for her as a lifelong people person who loved interacting with others and wanted to help people as much as she could.
“There was a lot of things about medicine that really intrigued me beyond the scientific aspect, including the human interaction,” Dr. Chawla says. “I have an intellectually curious mind, and I think a lot of medicine is about problem solving, which is an aspect I really enjoy.”
Having initially pursued a pathway to general practice and specializing in pediatrics and obstetrics, Dr. Chawla was inspired by a radiologist she met while working. After learning her colleague had taken a similar career path before going into radiology, Dr. Chawla was inspired by this and the type of work done in radiology, and ultimately decided to pursue an abdominal imaging fellowship at the University of Toronto.
“Whilst I think it ironic that I have less patient contact in medical imaging than I did in general practice, I think I had advanced in my knowledge as much as I could in that area of healthcare and was looking for a different challenge ,” Dr. Chawla explains. “I wanted to do something that pushed me and my intellectual boundaries a little bit further, which it definitely has.”
Since making the pivot to radiology, Dr. Chawla has continued to challenge herself in her work, becoming the department’s Division Lead for abdominal imaging and continuing to provide informal mentorship to trainees and faculty, including a recent event she co-hosted to provide guidance to faculty pursuing senior academic promotions.
This ongoing desire to help people in the department navigate their career development made Dr. Chawla a perfect candidate for the Vice Chair, Continuing Professional Development (VC, CPD) role. Having perceived a need for a formal framework for providing and sharing expertise among colleagues, Dr. Chawla felt inspired to apply for the position as a first step to developing that framework.
“The challenges of an academic career pathway have continued to evolve and particularly in this post-pandemic era when colleagues are already stretched to capacity I think there’s a lot of effort involved in finding a mentor, navigating promotion pathways, and even just making contacts for informal advice,” she says. “I felt that if I could make some contribution, however small, to help people access resources and guidance, then I should, which is why I pursued this role.”
Looking ahead to her first year as VC, CPD, Dr. Chawla is focused on first developing infrastructure to institutionalize the aspects of mentorship that are already happening across the city, which would prioritize giving adequate tools to and empowering faculty who have existing mentee-mentor relationships in place as well as creating a network for those looking for guidance.
“On top of providing resources to mentors, I also think developing a framework will help those who are seeking mentorship by opening up full access to willing mentors and connect them with the right people,” Dr. Chawla explains. “I think there’s a lot of work we can do, I am optimistic given the wealth of expertise we have in our department that there are colleagues willing to share their experience with others. I am mindful of competing demands on everyone’s time and want to keep this engagement as fulfilling as possible for all parties.
In addition to this, Dr. Chawla remains an involved member of the department, she is engaged in multiple educational activities including leading the advanced medical imaging center (AIEC) at the JDMI. She is also the current chair of the scientific planning committee for the Canadian association of radiologists (CAR) annual meeting. She was honored to be awarded the fellowship to the CAR in 2023.
Dr. Chawla received her MBBS from Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School, University of London in the UK before completing a comprehensive clinical education in multiple specialties including a higher diploma in internal medicine (MRCP) as well as pediatrics and obstetrics. She completed her residency training in Southampton University hospitals (UK). Dr. Chawla currently holds numerous appointments including Examiner-Diagnostic Radiology, (RCPSC); board member for the Ontario Association of Radiologists; and President, Canadian Society of Abdominal Radiologists (CSAR), among others.
While her clinical and academic commitments are enough to keep anyone busy, Dr. Chawla explored new heights in her career all the while navigating the demands of being a single mother. “Juggling a full-time career, being on-call and staying involved in my education and job with a young child was challenging for both myself and my son, but it’s been equally rewarding in different measures,” she says, noting her always present creative side that likes to indulge her artistic passions like photography, dancing or watching a new movie at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
Dr. Chawla spent many of her formative years as a radiologist juggling motherhood and work, often taking her son to rowing practice at four in the morning before going to work. Always harboring a desire to help people meet their potential, Dr. Chawla has helped nurture her son’s interests in sports and academics on top of her own career growth while continuing to inspire and encourage those around her.
Congratulations on your new position, Dr. Chawla!