Award and Honours

Faculty Awards and Honours

Drs. Scott Garrison and Michael Klein invited to present at 2011 NAPCRG annual meeting

	Dr. Scott Garrison		Dr. Michael Klein

October 21, 2011 - Clinical Assistant Professor and Clinician Scholar, Dr. Scott Garrison, was selected to present a Distinguished Paper at the 2011 North American Primary Care Research Group (NAPCRG) annual meeting. He will present his study, "Nocturnal leg cramps and prescriptions that precede them: A sequence symmetry analysis." Dr. Garrison was supported in this study by Colin Dormouth, Richard Morrow, Greg Carney and fellow department faculty, Dr. Karim Khan.

Distinguished Papers are selected by the NAPCRG Review Subcommittee based on overall excellence, quality of research methods and writing, relevance to primary care clinical research, and overall impact of the research on primary care and/or clinical practice.

Dr. Michael Klein, Professor Emeritus, was chosen to present an Extended Paper at the 2011 annual meeting based on his study, "What are the attitudes and knowledge of Canadian women approaching their first birth towards birth technology and their roles in birth?"

The 39th NAPCRG Annual Meeting will be held in Banff, AB from November 12-16, 2011. For more information, visit www.napcrg.org.

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College of Family Physicians of Canada honour several DFP faculty with 2011 awards

September 13, 2011 - Many Department of Family Practice faculty members were honoured by the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC) in August 2011 for their extraordinary contributions to family medicine teaching, practice and research.

Recognition and Achievement Awards

Research Awards

Professional Appointments

The CFPC will recognize award recipients at the 2011 Family Medicine Forum, taking place November 3-5, 2011 at the Palais des Congrès in Montreal, Quebec.

The Department of Family Practice joins the College of Family Physicians in congratulating its members for their outstanding achievements.

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Dr. Maureen Piercey wins Award of Excellence in Medical Practice

July 29, 2011 - Clinical Instructor Dr. Maureen Piercey, received a 2011 Award of Excellence in Medical Practice from the College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia (CPSBC) on May 25, 2011. The awards were presented at the College's annual President's dinner. 

Dr. Piercey is a recently-retired deputy registrar of the CPSBC. During her tenure, she was responsible for a sensitive portfolio involving physician health and physician misconduct—often of the most serious nature. In her work, Dr. Piercey demonstrated immense skill and compassion, always willing to listen and seeking to understand individual circumstances.

For 20 years, Dr. Piercey was a practising family physician in Victoria. There she specialized in addiction medicine, providing counselling services at the Pemberton House Detox Centre, the Chemical Dependency Resource Team and the Dual Diagnosis Program of the Greater Victoria Hospital Society. Dr. Piercey is frequently invited to speak to physicians on issues related to professional boundaries, professional health/impairment, and alcohol and drug misuse.

The College’s Award of Excellence Program is an annual peer recognition program that honours individual physicians who have made an exceptional contribution to the practice of medicine in teaching, research, clinical practice, administration or health advocacy. Other criteria include character, integrity, and ethics beyond reproach, demonstrated leadership, and collegiality in all interactions with patients and colleagues.

(with contributions from the College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia)

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Dr. Janet McKeown named winner of 2011 Peter Grantham Award for Teaching Excellence

Dr. Peter Grantham (l) poses with Dr. Janet McKeown (r), winner of the Peter Grantham Award for Teaching Excellence.

June 24, 2011 - Dr. Peter Grantham presented Dr. Janet McKeown, Director of the UBC Health Clinic and Clinical Assistant Professor with the Department of Family Practice, with the 2011 Peter Grantham Award for Teaching Excellence during the department's Resident Research Day.

Dr. McKeown was recognized for her commitment, patience and ongoing contributions to the education and training of residents with the Greater Vancouver residency site.

The Teaching Excellence Award is given to a physician who encourages others in their efforts to teach family medicine and whose individual teaching style is clear, relevant, concise, conceptually sound, positive, and humorous. Recipients are nominated by their colleagues and selected by the Peter Grantham Award committee.

June 24, 2011 - Several preceptors were lauded for excellence in teaching during the Department of Family Practice's 2011 Resident Research Day. The award winners for this year are:

Site faculty are nominated and selected each year by the residents they teach. Congratulations to all winning  members and thank you for your energy, effort and commitment to providing quality medical education.

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Dr. Ezra Kwok named CMBES 2011 Outstanding Canadian Medical Bioengineer

Dr. Ezra Kwok (right) receiving the 2011 CMBES Outstanding Canadian Biomedical Engineer Award from CMBES Awards Chair Timothy Zakutney (left).

June 22, 2011 - The Canadian Medical and Biological Engineering Society named Dr. Ezra Kwok as its Outstanding Canadian Biomedical Engineer for 2011. Dr. Kwok is an Associate Professor with the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and is an associate member of the Department of Family Practice. He operates his own practice in Vancouver and teaches clinically for the Greater Vancouver and St. Paul’s Hospital Residency training sites.

In addition to his clinical teaching and practice, Dr. Kwok is engaged in research at UBC. His current research interests include:

• development of implantable blood glucose sensors
• computer modeling and control of blood glucose for diabetes
• rheological analysis of synovial fluid for osteoporosis

The CMBES Award was established in 1989 and is presented to a Canadian biomedical engineer who has made outstanding contributions in the field of biomedical engineering. Such achievements can be in the form of scientific or technical developments as well as a broad-spectrum of areas such as leadership, service and organizational skills that contributed to the improvement of health care delivery in Canada, or prominence in organizations concerned with biomedical engineering at the national or international level. 

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Dr. Verity Livingstone named YWCA 2011 "Woman of Distinction"
June 1, 2011 - Dr. Verity Livingstone, Associate Professor and Medical Director of the Vancouver Breastfeeding Centre, was recognized by the YWCA as its' 2011 Woman of Distinction in the "Health and Active Living" category at a ceremony held on May 31, 2011.

Internationally recognized as a leader in breastfeeding medicine, Dr. Livingstone has over 25 years of experience in facilitating optimal breastfeeding practices through her unique expertise in the art of breastfeeding and the science of lactation. Dr. Livingston founded the British Columbia Breastfeeding Society, a non-profit organization that focused on promoting the positive effects of breastfeeding. 

Additionally, Dr. Livingstone represented Canada in the UNICEF/World Health Organization’s Baby Friendly Initiative, where she helped to develop curricula for health professionals in breastfeeding management. She continues to sit on local and international committees and is dedicated to implementing this initiative.

Photo courtesy of YWCA

Dr. Gurdeep Parhar receives 2011 Killam Teaching Prize

April 27, 2011 - Dr. Gurdeep Parhar, Associate Dean, Equity and Professionalism and Clinical Associate Professor, was honoured with the 2011 UBC Killam Teaching Prize in the Faculty of Medicine. Dean Gavin Stuart noted in a congratulatory letter that the prize is "a tangible expression of the high regard in which [Parhar] is held for [his] teaching activities."

The UBC Killam Teaching Prize is a prestigious award conferred upon faculty who demonstrate teaching excellence in medical and science undergraduate programs, residency programs, school and graduate programs within the Faculty of Medicine.

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Dr. Janusz Kaczorowski’s paper selected for distinguished presentation honour at 2010 NAPCRAG annual meeting 

April 6, 2011 - Dr. Janusz Kaczorowski’s submission for the November 2010 Annual Meeting of the North American Primary Care Research Group (NAPCRG) was rated one of the top papers at the gathering. He was subsequently invited to give a distinguished presentation about his study,  “Improving Cardiovascular Health At The Population Level: A 39 Community Cluster-randomised Trial of The Cardiovascular Health Awareness Program (CHAP).” Kaczorowski conducted the study along with co-authors Larry Chambers,  Lisa Dolovich, Cheryl Levitt, William Hogg, Lehana Thabane, Karen Tu, Michael Paterson, Tina Karwalajtys, Tracy Gierman, and Barbara Farrell. The study was subsequently published by the British Journal of Medicine in February, 2011.

The NAPCRG distinguished presentation honour recognizes the top six papers of the annual meeting. At the 2010 session, there were over 500 presentations, including three poster sessions as well as a Resident/Fellow works-in-progress poster session.

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Dr. Michael Klein receives CFPC award for
Lifetime Achievement in Family Medicine Research

April 6, 2011 - The College of Family Physicians of Canada conferred its 2010 Lifetime Achievement in Family Medicine Research award on Dr. Michael Klein, Professor Emeritus and Director, Clinician Scholar Program. Klein was honoured for his achievement at the 2010 Family Medicine Forum held in Vancouver, BC.

Klein began his research career as a medical undergraduate student, publishing his first two papers about rickets in Ethiopia before he graduated from Stanford. It was during his elective in Ethiopia that Klein developed his passion for maternal care research. He observed and worked with Ethiopian midwives and learned a great deal about maternal and newborn health before ever setting foot in an obstetrics ward.

During his residency, Klein treated a young child for lead poisoning, a case that puzzled him because of the child’s middle-class background. Lead poisoning was more commonly observed in lower income families – how had this child who lived in the suburbs contracted this condition? Further exploration and research revealed that the young patient had been exposed to lead contained in pottery. This discovery led to a ground breaking paper in the New England Journal of Medicine that eventually resulted in the modification of pottery glaze standards and practices in North America. “I was hooked [on research],” says Klein, “it was almost impossible for me to see a patient and not ask myself ‘is there something broader that’s causing this [condition]’?”

Klein was surrounded by clinician researchers during his early years of practice and felt very supported by his colleagues in the pursuit of his research. Although he began his professional career as a pediatrician, it was his work with a series of neighbourhood health practices in Rochester, NY that led him into family practice. In the mid-1980s, he began his most important research project – a study on the effect of episiotomy on maternal health outcomes. “That study was difficult to publish because we were challenging the paradigm of the health system [at that time],” he mused, “Episiotomies were commonly thought to be necessary for normal birth. When we finally got the paper published and the evidence was presented and tested, the rates of episiotomies lowered considerably.”

Klein has retired from clinical practice but continues to teach both midwives and residents as well as mentor young researchers in his role as Director of the Department’s Clinician Scholar program. He is still actively conducting research and is currently investigating and presenting on the attitudes of family physicians and obstetricians towards intrapartum care and childbirth.

Dr. Klein’s experiences with publishing his episiotomy study are chronicled in the Spring 2010 issue of the Bear Bones, the newsletter of the Research Office of the Department of Family Practice.

Staff Awards and Honours

Please check back soon for information about staff awards for Department workers.

Student and Resident Awards and Honours

2011 College of Family Physicians of Canada resident and student awards

September 13, 2011 - Several UBC family medicine residents and medical students were recently recognized by the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC) for their educational and leadership achievements:

Leadership

Leadership Award for Family Medicine Residents
Dr. Steve Yau
Leadership Award for Medical Students
Dr. Diala El-Zammar

Scholarship

Family Medicine Resident Award for Scholarship
Dr. Venetia Mah
Medical Student Award for Scholarship
Ms. Shahana Nathwani

The CFPC will recognize award recipients at the 2011 Family Medicine Forum, taking place November 3-5, 2011 at the Palais des Congrès in Montreal, Quebec.

The Department of Family Practice joins the College of Family Physicians in congratulating residents and medical students for their outstanding achievements.

2011 Peter Grantham Resident Teaching Awards

June 24, 2011 - Dr. Peter Grantham was pleased to recognize the following residents for their extraordinary work and contributions:

2011 John J. Zack Award

Dr. Cornelia Popa (r) with Dr. Phil Zack (l)

June 24, 2011 - The 2011 John J. Zack award was presented at the Department of Family Practice's Resident Research Day to resident, Dr. Cornelia Popa. Residents Drs. Megan Kelly, Erik Coatta and Nicole Pewarchuck, were the runners-up for this prize.

The John J. Zack Award is presented to a resident who plans to practice full-service family medicine, including obstetrics, upon completion of his/her residency. Successful candidates must also demonstrate leadership skills and be interested in the CFPC.

2011 Dr. Morten Dodek Award in Family Practice

June 24, 2011 - The second Dr. Morten Dodek Award in Family Practice was awarded at the DFP's 2011 Resident Research Day to Dr. Angela Nguan. Residents Drs. Yasmin Garcia and Dan Pare were runners-up for this prize.

The Dr. Morten Dodek Award is given to a resident who demonstrates care, competence and compassion. This award was created to honour Dr. Morton Dodek, a graduate of UBC's first medical class in 1954. Dr. Dodek spent many years as a full-service family physician and exemplified commitment to family medicine.

2011 Arthur Edamura Prize in Family Practice

June 24, 2011 - The second Arthur Edamura Prize in Family Practice was awarded to Dr. Emily-Kate Higgins, a resident at the St. Paul's Hospital site. This prize is given to a resident who shows exceptional consideration of and disposition towards diligent investigation, diagnosis and treatment of a chronic ailment, disease or condition which eludes diagnosis and/or occurs rarely.

This prize was established by a patient of Dr. Edamura in recognition of the doctor's successful investigation and treatment of a chronic condition.

2011 Patricia Janssen Research Prize

Dawn Henderson (r) with Dr. Ruth Elwood Martin (l)

June 24, 2011 - The inaugural Patricia Janssen Research Prize for undergraduate Midwifery research  was awarded to Dawn Henderson. Her project, "Neonatal resuscitation and umbilical cord status: A systematic review of the evidence" was presented at the Department of Family Practice's2011 Resident Research Day.

The Patricia Janssen Research Prize, supported by the Midwifery Association of BC, is awarded to the student with the most publishable senior research paper.

2011 Lloyd Jones Collins Awards

June 24, 2011 - Five resident presentations were recognized for excellence by the Lloyd Jones Collins Awards selection committee at the department's Resident Research Day:

The Lloyd Jones Collins Foundation awarded its first Resident Research Awards in 1999. Since then, the Foundation has continued to generously support family medicine residency research and faculty development.

The Department of Family Practice thanks the Lloyd Jones Collins Foundation for its ongoing generous support for Family Practice Research Day

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2011 BC College of Family Physician Prizes

June 24, 2011 - Dr. Jim Thorsteinson, representative for the BC College of Family Physicians (BC CFP), awarded prizes to the following exemplary resident projects during the department's Resident Research Day, held on June 17, 2011:

The BC CFP enjoys taking an active role in supporting family medicine residents. It advocates for the central role of the family physician in primary health care, promotes life-long learning, encourages medical students to consider family medicine as a rewarding career and recognizes excellence in BC.

The Department of Family Practice thanks the BC College of Family Physicians for its generous ongoing support of Family Practice Research Day and family medicine residency.

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UBC medical student, Allison Mariko Nakanishi, part of winning team for Health Innovation Award

May 19, 2011 - Fourth-year UBC pharmacy student, Frank Ka-Shing Leung, and first-year UBC medical student, Allison Mariko Nakanishi, won the first place team prize in the Health Innovation Award contest hosted by the Health Council of Canada.

Leung and Nakanishi’s winning entry – Virtual Patient Teaching Tools: An Innovative Model to Enhance Canada’s Health Care Education – presented the benefits of virtual teaching tools to help health sciences students improve gaps in their knowledge and apply their training in a clinical practice setting.

Leung and Nakanishi’s project was derived from a larger, community-needs-based, inter-professional, student-driven collaboration entitled UBC CARES: Computer-assisted Reproductive Health Education for Students. This project – which seeks to enhancing family planning health care professional education through web-based delivery of training modules and use of ‘virtual patients’ – received input from many UBC health sciences faculty, including the following Department members: principal investigator, team lead and clinical professor, Dr. Wendy V. Norman; associate professor, Saraswathi Vedam; and clinical instructor, Dr. Unjali Malhotra.

The Health Innovation Award is an opportunity for Canada’s future health leaders to contribute to the discussion on health care renewal. This year’s contest challenged Canadian students to identify a best practice that deserved to be a model for the rest of the country.

Leung and Nakanishi will receive $1,000 and will attend the Health Council of Canada’s awards ceremony in Ottawa on May 30, 2011. Their project will be featured on the Health Council of Canada’s web site and e-newsletter, Taking the Pulse.

For more information, download the full news release here.

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Click here for a listing of 2010 awards