On Jan 23 the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada (AFMC) announced the recipients of its 2015 awards celebrating excellence in medical education in Canada. Amongst the recipients were Dr. Gurdeep Parhar, Executive Associate Dean, Clinical Partnerships and Professionalism in the Faculty of Medicine who was awarded the May Cohen Equity, Diversity, and Gender Award.
“We had several strong candidates in each category and we are very proud of this year’s winners,” said Dr. Geneviève Moineau, President and CEO of AFMC. “They truly represent excellence in medical education.”
In addition to his role at the Faculty of Medicine, Dr. Parhar serves as the Acting Associate Vice President, Equity and Inclusion for UBC. “This award is a fabulous honour, not just for me personally, but for all of my colleagues in the Faculty of Medicine that have been working diligently on initiatives and programs to increase diversity in our faculty members, staff and health professional students.” Parhar adds “Equity and diversity success includes policy and process revisions, optimal respectful and inclusive work environments and the development of pipeline programs. There is certainly more we need to do going forward, but this type of recognition is positive reinforcement for the accomplishments to date.”
The 2015 AFMC award recipients are:
- AFMC President’s Award for Exemplary National Leadership in Academic Medicine: Dr. Aurel Schofield (Université de Sherbrooke)
- AFMC Award for Outstanding Contribution to Faculty Development in Canada: Dr. Sandra Jarvis-Selinger (University of British Columbia)
- AFMC Young Educators Award: Dr. Brian Wong (University of Toronto)
- AFMC – John Ruedy Award for Innovation in Medical Education: Dr. Roland Grad (McGill University)
- AFMC – May Cohen Equity, Diversity, and Gender Award: Dr. Gurdeep Parhar (University of British Columbia)
- AFMC Clinical Teacher Award: Dr. Jeffrey Schaefer (University of Calgary)
The first recipient of the newly created AFMC – Charles Boelen International Social Accountability Award will be announced in the coming weeks.
The recipients will be presented with their awards during the Presidential Address and Awards Ceremony at the Canadian Conference in Medical Education (CCME) on April 26.
The Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada (AFMC) represents the country’s 17 faculties of medicine and is the national voice for academic medicine. The organization was founded in 1943 and functions to support individually and collectively Canada’s medical schools through promotion of medical education, research, and clinical care.