From housing to health advocacy: 2026 alumnae fellowships announced | Queen's Alumni - Queen's University

Two UBC Vancouver faculty members, Dr. Patrick Keeling and Dr. Rachel Scholes, have been awarded $1-million Wall Fellowships, the university’s highest-value internal research award. The fellowships will support a deeper exploration of hidden forces shaping human and ecosystem health, from toxic pollutants in urban environments to the largely unexplored microbial networks that sustain our oceans. “The Wall Fellowships are awarded annually to two of UBC’s most outstanding researchers and give them the freedom to pursue ambitious ideas with the potential for lasting impact,” said UBC President and Vice-Chancellor Dr. Benoit-Antoine Bacon. “Dr. Keeling and Dr. Scholes exemplify the breadth and ambition of research at UBC, and we are incredibly proud of the work they are leading. We are deeply grateful to Dr. Peter Wall for his transformative generosity and the enduring legacy he established in support of research and discovery at UBC.”

What if the human brain works in ways that Sigmund Freud began describing more than 130 years ago? A new scientific analysis suggests that some of his ideas about the mind share surprising similarities with one of the most influential theories in modern neuroscience. Published in the scientific journal Entropy, the paper explores connections between Freud's original theories, later developments in psychoanalysis, and a modern approach to brain research known as the prediction paradigm.

At CHEST 2026, Pourshahid argued for matching patients to center-based, hybrid, or virtual pulmonary rehab based on a structured assessment. Arguing the pro side of a debate at the American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST) 2026 Annual Meeting in Phoenix, Omid Pourshahid, MD, MPH, FCCP, Medical Director, Pulmonary Rehabilitation, Temple University Hospital, said pulmonary rehabilitation should be tailored to each patient’s clinical status and barriers to care rather than delivered through a single center-based model.¹The position builds on a long-standing gap in pulmonary rehabilitation uptake. In a retrospective cohort of 197,376 Medicare beneficiaries hospitalized for COPD in 2014, only 2721 (1.5%) initiated pulmonary rehabilitation within 90 days of discharge.² Initiation within the 90-day window was associated with a lower risk of death at 1 year (hazard ratio [HR], 0.63; 95% CI, 0.57-0.69; P <.001).

From daily step counts to exercise after a cardiac event, new guidance examines how doctors can tailor physical activity to individual needs and what patients should know about exercising safely. Exercise Prescriptions for Cardiovascular Health in Adults: 2026 ACC Scientific Statement: A Report of the American College of Cardiology. Image Credit: 19 STUDIO / Shutterstock