The Department of Otolaryngology at Mount Sinai Hospital continues to focus on four areas — General Otolaryngology, Communication Disorders, Head and Neck Oncology and Rhinology. The attending staff is comprised of four full time and three part time otolaryngologists.

The outpatient department remains the focus for all patients entering the hospital Departmental stream. The outpatient department gives a venue for referral for general problems from the community as well as allowing an excellent academic platform for fellows, post-graduates and medical students to acquire an approach to the management of general problems within the discipline.  The clinic also serves to allow an entree for patients with tertiary and quaternary problems in the field of head and neck oncology, communication disorders and rhinological problems.

There are two residents and a fellow in head and neck oncology as well as a fellow in rhinology rotating through the system at any time.  The head and neck fellow is under the aegis of  the American Head and Neck Society Advanced Training Council program;  he/she is also part of a partnership with the University Health Network.  This is one of seventeen programs in North American under the auspices of the American Head and Neck Society and as such is recognizes teaching excellence in the field of head and neck surgery.  Our fellowship trainees obtain a solid foundation with respect to management of head and neck oncological problems in addition to gaining valuable experience in research aspects in the field—the vast majority of graduates from this program have gone on to hold important academic positions around the world.

The main focus in the head and neck program at Mount Sinai is endocrine and salivary disorders and the hospital has gained a provincial and international reputation in management of difficult problems within this scope.  The generosity of the Albert Latner Family in establishing the Temmy Latner/Dynacare Chair in Head and Neck Oncology has allowed many research and teaching initiatives to go forward.

• Ms. Krista Riko and Dr. Martyn Hyde continue to maintain an active and productive program in communication disorders.  They have assumed a leadership role in implementation of a universal newborn hearing program in the province. 

• Drs. Kris Conrad and Jerry Chapnik provide excellent teaching and service in the Facial Cosmetic and Reconstructive area within our program.

• Dr. Ian Witterick has established a national and international reputation in the management of rhinological and sinus problems.  In his capacity as Director of Post-Graduate Education, he has consolidated and strengthened the residency program.  In his capacity as Director of Continuing Medical Education he has established a series of visiting professorships and courses that covers the length and breadth of the specialty further enhancing a strong teaching program at the University and the Hospital.

• A number of Hospital based continuing medical education initiatives are underway including our award winning biennial course in the Management of Thyroid Nodular Disease and Cancer, directed by Dr. Freeman.  This course was held in May 2006 and now stands as one of the premier endocrine symposia world-wide.  Preparations are now underway to hold the “World Congress on Thyroid Cancer” in Toronto in 2009.  This is a joint multidisciplinary academic venture with Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, Harvard University, Boston, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, and the University of Toronto.  This is the first such meeting and promises to be the benchmark gathering of world renowned authorities on thyroid cancer.

• In addition, Dr. Arnold Noyek continues his world-class work using the Canadian International Scientific Exchange Program in Otolaryngology as a vehicle for academic collaborative efforts with several countries in the Middle East.

• Active participation within the labs of Drs. Paul Walfish and Suzanne Kamel-Reid continues to result in major breakthroughs in molecular biology of the thyroid and the upper aerodigestive tract. 

• Collaboration with a variety of Departments and Divisions (surgery, dentistry, ophthalmology, radiation oncology, medical oncology, and endocrinology) in a multidisciplinary fashion continues to allow optimal management of patients, as well as teaching and research.

• Through the kindness of the Joseph Sonshine Family and the Frederic Waks Family and the confidence of the Mount Sinai Hospital in the Department, an additional large new space has been awarded to the Department; it will be renovated to allow for the recruiting, patient care and teaching needs of the Department. The unit will be named the Joseph and Mildred Sonshine Centre for Diseases of the Head and Neck.  The recruitment into the unit of Dr. Daniel Drucker, a world class Clinician/Scientist, in the Department of Medicine, will enhance an already strong endocrine oncology program.

• The unit will also be amalgamated with the existing Freeman Centre for Endocrine Oncology further strengthening the endocrinology presence.

• This year a gala was held for thyroid cancer research honoring Leslie and Anna Dan—proceeds from this will be used to fund the activities of the new unit.

• Preparations are underway to create a centre for laryngology in the new unit.

• A clinic for Diseases of the Oral Cavity has been established as a multidisciplinary program; this endeavor is headed by a new recruit, Dr. Everton Gooden who is working with Dr. Iona Leong, from the Department of Dentistry.  The program has already attained a profile with referrals from all of metro Toronto and beyond.

• The Department is pleased to announce the recruitment of Dr. Allan Vescan. Dr. Vescan is a graduate of our post-graduate program.  He has spent a year in Pittsburgh learning skills as an endoscopic skull base oncologic surgeon.  He will joint the MSH staff as a joint appointment with the UHN.

• Finally, through the generosity of the Albert and Temmy Latner Foundation, a scholarship has been established for a resident, fellow or junior faculty to spend a year in the Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute working toward a degree on a molecular biology project.