Sat Somers appointed chair of McMaster Department of Radiology

CAR FORUM 1998;42(6): 8

© 1998 Canadian Association of Radiologists

On July 1, 1998, Sat Somers was appointed chair of the Department of Radiology at McMaster University, Hamilton, Ont.

Somers left his hometown of Durban, South Africa, at the age of 17, travelling alone by ship to England. After completing two years of pre-med in Norwich, he was accepted at the University of Sheffield, graduating MB, ChB in 1968. Six stressful but educational months of surgical internship in Uganda confirmed his decision to become an internist, and his second postgraduate year saw him on the way to this goal. However, a combination of factors — lack of room at the top and an aversion to disrupted sleep patterns — led to a career change.

In 1970 Somers joined McMaster University's radiology residency program, then in its infancy. He became chief resident in his final year, and looked around for a job to satisfy his increasing interest in academia. After a year in Saint John, NB, Somers returned to McMaster as the first gastrointestinal fellow in radiology, working with the renowned Igor Laufer.

Bitten by the G.I. bug, he entered enthusiastically into the quest for the perfect image of the gut. His extensive participation in undergraduate and postgraduate education may have fuelled his subsequent interest in assessment and evaluation. In 1977 appointment as assistant professor in radiology began Somers's climb up the academic ladder, leading to appointment as full professor in 1990.

Along the way, Somers published extensively in radiological journals and textbooks. His enjoyment of travel was fed by two sabbaticals overseas — in England and Australia — and by participation in academic conferences in the US, Europe, Australia and New Zealand. Always keen to advance his knowledge, he added computed tomographic scanning, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and ground-breaking interventional techniques to his skills. Each sabbatical was accompanied by receipt of a Royal College Detweiler Scholarship.

McMaster University offered Somers courses in academic and business leadership, statistics and epidemiology, and education methods. These gave him a firm foundation in his educational and administrative roles.

After a period as director of the radiology residency program at McMaster, Somers became a member of a Royal College committee to develop a new objective examination in diagnostic radiology. During this time he was instrumental in expanding the assessment methods used by the College to include an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) in the Royal College Comprehensive Objective Examination in diagnostic radiology.

An international reputation in the gastrointestinal field has meant that his calendar always includes invitations to be on faculty at the meetings of the North American and the European Societies of Gastrointestinal Radiology, as well as many other commitments as visiting professor throughout Canada as well as in the US, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand and England.

He and his wife (an expatriate of Sheffield, England) have two sons, now in the final years of high school. When possible, Somers's spare time interests include riding, fly fishing, cycling and going to movies. Three spoiled cats and two horses complete the Somers family. Somers's interest in horses led to a unique "house call" to the Ontario Veterinary College, to pass a very long endoscope into a valuable thoroughbred foal that had an obstructed esophagus due to edema, as a result of a gastric ulcer at the cardia! The obstruction was relieved with a large angioplasty catheter. Although Somers is a gastrointestinal radiologist, his research interests are quite wide. They currently include the genital tract, the role of MRI in diagnosis of breast cancer, and education and evaluation.

During his career, Somers has received many research awards from diverse organizations, including the Ontario Ministry of Health, the Medical Research Council of Canada, and the Dynasty Equine Trust at the Ontario Veterinary College. He is head of gastrointestinal radiology at McMaster University — a position he has held since 1989 — and for the last year has also filled the position of department head.

In spite of his busy professional life, the challenge of department chair is one that Somers is looking forward to with confidence and enthusiasm.