CMA Awards and Nominations

Sir Charles Tupper Award for Political Advocacy

After operating on three of the victims of the Danforth mass shooting in July 2018, Dr. Najma Ahmed knew something had to change. She brought together a grassroots group of physicians that became Canadian Doctors for Protection from Guns (CDPG). The group engages with policy-makers to advocate for limiting access to guns.

Dr. Léo-Paul Landry Medal of Service

Dr. France Légaré has been a passionate advocate for patient engagement and empowerment over the course of her career — a tough fight at times. “There were times when it was difficult to sustain the motivation while we waited for society and the medical profession to catch up.”

Owen Adams Award of Honour

For many Canadians, the name “André Picard” signifies a trusted perspective on health care. Through his articles, columns and books, he has raised awareness of pressing health issues, shared important medical research findings and educated the public on how health care is funded and delivered.

F.N.G. Starr Award

Early in his career, Dr. Vladimir Hachinski teamed up with a colleague, Dr. John W. Norris, and they devoted themselves to caring for and studying stroke patients, establishing what would become the world’s first successful acute stroke unit. “It’s all connected. There is no health without brain health.”

Dr. Brian Brodie Medical Learner Leadership Award (Resident)

As a first-year medical student at the Université de Montréal, Dr. Claudel Pétrin-Desrosiers read a study showing climate change is the greatest threat to health in the 21st century. "From that moment on, I knew I couldn't be a doctor without taking an interest in the issue.”

Dr. William Marsden Award in Medical Ethics and Professionalism

“What would Dr. Parhar do?” That’s the question thousands of health professionals around the world probably ask themselves when confronted with a difficult ethical dilemma. It speaks to the impact Dr. Gurdeep Parhar has had as a mentor and teacher of medical professionalism over the past 15 years.

May Cohen Award for Women Mentors

Dr. Vanessa Maclean has always been committed to “paying forward” the mentorship and support she received in the early days of her career, encouraging young physicians — especially women — to take on leadership positions. “So often, one of the biggest parts of mentoring is just helping people realize they’re already leaders.”

John McCrae Memorial Medal

During his career, Dr. Ian Anderson was appointed to a number of NATO study groups to help improve body armour and protect soldiers from landmines. He brought to the table many of his own experiences and those of other surgeons, from Bosnia, Somalia and Afghanistan. “Nothing is more important than reducing these types of injuries.”

Dr. Brian Brodie Medical Learner Leadership Award (Student)

Elisa Levi sees a close connection between her background in nutrition and medical school: both are mechanisms for upstream investment to improve the health of people. Up until now, she has focused on supporting the health of Indigenous populations. “There is significant opportunity to improve health equity that is grounded in Indigenous world views.”

CMA Award for Young Leaders (Early Career)

“I realized that when it comes to palliative care access for the homeless and vulnerably housed, there’s a huge equity gap.” To address that gap, Dr. Naheed Dosani helped launch PEACH, a program that delivers community-based, trauma-informed palliative care 24/7 — at shelters and on the streets — using a first-of-its-kind mobile unit.

CMA Award for Young Leaders (Resident)

It’s probably not surprising that Dr. Kimberly Golding Williams is a community builder. From an early age, she watched her mother, a social worker, advocate for children and other vulnerable members of the community. “If we want to build strong communities, we need to take care of each other and make sure those who are struggling get the help they need.”

CMA Award for Young Leaders (Student)

When Vivian Tsang was growing up in Vancouver, adults and peers alike warned her to stay away from the Downtown Eastside. Instead, she developed an interest for that neighbourhood and others like it. “It’s a privilege to work with and be an advocate for people whose voices are seldom heard.”

CMA Award for Young Leaders (Early Career)

As one of only a few specialists in reproductive infectious diseases, Dr. Vanessa Poliquin is often the first one colleagues turn to for answers or advice. This was highlighted during COVID-19, when she was busy educating prenatal care providers on obstetric and gynecologic management during the pandemic. “I am grateful to support my colleagues and patients through this crisis.”

CMA Award for Young Leaders (Resident)

Advocating for patient empowerment is a particular area of focus for Dr. Anthea Lafreniere, and one that led to her involvement in the development of MyPathologyReport.ca — an online resource to empower patients to understand their own diagnoses and pathologies. “It was an opportunity to make a bigger difference for patients than I could by spending a day at a microscope.”

CMA Award for Young Leaders (Student)

“I realized there are so many factors that affect population health and that Northern communities face different factors than other communities do,” says Niharika Shahi. “It inspired me to go into medicine — with a focus on targeting those determinants to improve health in the North.”

Posthumous Singular Award of Merit

On Jan. 8, 2020, Ukraine International Airlines flight 752 was shot down outside of Tehran after being mistaken for a cruise missile. Mohammad Asadi-Lari and his sister Zeynab were two of the 176 people on board. Colleagues remember the second-year University of Toronto MD/PhD student as an exceptional young leader with a passion for population health, science education and innovation in health care.