Stanley Academy - Medical English Course

Dr. Gerard Ponsford is a recently retired orthopaedic surgeon who has completed the CELTA program. Dr. Ponsford was born and educated in England. For the past 20 years he has been working at Surrey Memorial Hospital in British Columbia. Because he has worked in the medical field as a surgeon, he knows a great deal about medicine and the Canadian healthcare system. He has taken the students on tours of local medical hospitals and introduced them to other Canadian medical professionals. We feel that he is the perfect candidate to teach our Medical English Language course at Stanley Academy. The students that he has taught have expressed that they enjoy his sense of humour, the energy he brings into the classroom and his teaching style. Dr. Ponsford works hard to create the curriculum with the students and gets them excited about learning medical English
Dr. Nazia Ashraf is a graduate of one of the most renowned medical schools in Pakistan. After her MD degree, she did a 2-year internship in the speciality of OB/GYN, general surgery and internal medicine. During her internship, she developed special interest in OB/GYN and eventually did her post-graduation in the same field. She achieved the highest degrees in the medical faculty and holds the position of member, as well as, fellow of the College of Physician and Surgeons of Pakistan (MCPS/FCPS). Currently, she is going through the steps to become a licensed doctor in Canada. Her aim is to specialize in reproductive medicine. In addition to being a medical terminology instructor at Stanley Medical English Academy, she performs allergy tests in a famous allergy clinic, and volunteers at St. Paul’s Hospital. Her vast experience of the medical field and excellent communication skills, have made her a well-liked teacher at the school. She enjoys teaching and puts every effort to make her lectures interactive, informative, and interesting.
Dr. Daniel Mitroi is a physician from Romania, currently in the process of obtaining his Canadian Medical Licence. After graduating the Medical Doctor Program at the University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Cluj Napoca, Daniel embarked on a North American odyssey that included New York and Portland, OR, before settling in Vancouver, BC. Dr. Mitroi’s professional interests include bioethics and clinical research in emergency medicine. He is currently involved in clinical research within the Emergency Department at St. Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver. Dr. Mitroi contributed to the design and implementation of a various array of research initiatives, both clinical and statistical/quality improvement projects. Since 2005, Dr. Mitroi has been a collaborator with the Department of Bioethics of the Medical University of Cluj Napoca Romania. He contributed to the development of the elective course of Bioethics for students of the Medical Doctor Program. Dr. Mitroi’s current professional endeavours are geared toward becoming a Community and Family Medicine specialist, while continuing to work in the fascinating field of clinical research in emergency medicine.

Dr. Siavash Jafari is a medical doctor from the Shiraz University of Medical Sciences in Iran. He has also received his Certificate of Sports Medicine from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in England. He has 5 years of clinical medicine experience working in hospitals and private medical clinics, over 6 years teaching experience in Biology, as well as research experience in Biomedicine. Dr. Jafari is presently working as a research assistant at BC Children’s and Women’s Hospital in the Department of Urological Surgery. His work focuses on Urology, Sports injuries and depression. As well, he is an author of several articles regarding physical fitness and health issues for a local magazine. Dr. Jafari enjoys working with students and sharing with them his knowledge of both medicine and interpersonal communications. At present, he is also working on compiling a book for the Stanley Academy on History Taking and the Physical Exam, especially designed for foreign trained physicians. Dr. Jafari provides students with access to local educational facilities, access to hospital tours, updated information on medical practice and research, as well as medical technology and software programs. His interest in teaching, access to Canadian educational facilities and strong knowledge of patient-physician communication makes him a wonderful addition to our teaching staff.

Teaching Staff

Medical English Teachers