Tips for Preparing Peter Warren
History of Medicine Essay Prize
Submissions
The Peter Warren History of Medicine Essay Prize is presented to the author of the best scholarly
essay pertaining to the history of medicine (HOM). This is an annual prize of $1,500, open to
residents in Royal College residency programs, or Fellows who have completed their training
within the past two years. The submission deadline is the Friday following the Labour Day
holiday in September.
General Guidelines
 Read the Terms of Reference carefully. Be careful to follow the guidelines for submission
length, eligibility, co-authorship, and more.
 Papers that have been previously published, or have been accepted for publication, are not
eligible for this prize.
 Keep in mind the factors the committee will be examining when they adjudicate submissions
(see Terms of Reference for additional detail):
 Relevance and originality (30%)
 Quality of literature review (20%)
 Quality of historical analysis (40%)
 Presentation (10%)
Topic Selection
 While any topic related to History of Medicine will be accepted, particular consideration will be
given to essays pertaining to the history of Royal College specialties, the history of the Royal
College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, and/or the history of Post-Graduate Medical
Education in Canada
 Once you have selected your topic, make sure you have narrowed the scope appropriately.
The Chair of the History and Heritage Advisory Committee, Dr. Dawna Gilchrist, offers this
advice for narrowing a HOM topic: “The starting point is most critical. It is important that a
clear question is asked. And, that the research is ‘doable’ in terms of time frame and available
resources. For example, you shouldn’t consider ‘alternative medicine’ a researchable topic
unless you are prepared to write a book (or several). As in the vast majority of any research
projects, one needs to be focused on a specific aspect of the area of interest.” Dr. Gilchrist
recommends a ‘differential diagnosis’ approach to focusing a history of medicine research
project: “Start with the tree trunk – ‘alternative medicine’. Major and intermediate branches
can be constructed in many ways – temporal followed by geography (or vice versa). One can
then look at specific practitioners or movements e.g. Mesmerism, naturalism. One may then
focus on specific small branches or leaves of the tree.”
Get help!
 Your paper does not need to be a solo project. In fact, the adjudication committee
encourages you to seek out mentorship in identifying your topic and developing your paper.
If you are having difficulty locating a mentor, let the Royal College know, and we will try to
assist.
 Royal College staff can be reached at [email protected] – don’t hesitate to reach out if
you have any questions.