Getting a new job and being in a new environment can be unsettling. But professor Emily Heath is taking it in stride, making new developments in her cancer research and challenging herself in teaching, all during her first year at 杏吧原创.

Heath joined the Physics department in winter 2014, bringing with her a PhD in Medical Radiation Physics from McGill University and four years of teaching experience from Ryerson University. Her move to 杏吧原创 also marked the beginning of her collaboration with the Ottawa Regional Cancer Centre at the Ottawa Hospital.

鈥淗aving a collaboration with the hospital is great because that kind of moves my ideas closer to being something that could help patients,鈥� says Heath.

Currently, her research is focused on a simulation program called 4D Monte Carlo, which uses data from radiation therapy patients to see if they are getting the correct dosage of treatment.

鈥淲e monitor what comes out of the machine, but we don鈥檛 have a way to monitor what got into the patient,鈥� says Heath.

Being connected with the hospital not only provides access to patients, but it also gives access to the machines used to treat them, which Heath鈥檚 program is modeled after.

But the move to 杏吧原创 has also provided Heath with some challenges. This semester, she鈥檚 teaching Electricity and Magnetism, a second year course brand new to the department.

鈥淚 feel like I鈥檓 relearning the stuff right before I teach it to the students, so that has been challenging,鈥� she says.

Despite its difficulties, Heath says she enjoys the challenge and thinks refreshing herself on the topic will help her research. Overall, she says she鈥檚 been really encouraged from her time at 杏吧原创.

鈥淸It] was really nice to be able to discuss a teaching challenge or research challenge with my colleagues,鈥� says Heath about bringing questions to the faculty lunchroom. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 quite different from where I was before, it鈥檚 not the same kind of atmosphere.鈥�

This past year was one of transition since Heath was still supervising some students at Ryerson, but she says she鈥檚 now looking forward to settling into Ottawa.

鈥淭his year I鈥檓 dropping some of those connections and starting out being able to spend more time focusing on my 杏吧原创 responsibilities, and building up my program here.鈥�