2022 Faculty Member Awards of Excellence Winners
Researcher of the Year – Biomedical
Emilio I. Alarcón
Dr. Emilio I. Alarcón is an associate professor in uOttawa’s Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, a scientist in the Division of Cardiac Surgery, director of the Bio-nanomaterials Chemistry and Engineering Laboratory at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute, and an associate editor for Journal Frontiers in Biomaterials. He has published over 83 articles in peer reviewed journals and has been a reviewer of over 450 articles. Since 2019, Dr. Alarcón has been spearheading a much-talked-about science outreach program known as BEaTS Research Radio. This radio program makes science information accessible in six different languages (French, English, Spanish, Arabic, Portuguese, and Mandarin) and is tailored for individuals without a science background.
Researcher of the Year – Clinical
Rodney Breau
Dr. Rodney Breau is a dedicated and thoughtful surgeon and researcher. He is a surgical oncologist, an assistant professor of urology, a scientist at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, and the Department of Surgery’s chair in Urologic Oncology Research. He has published 200 peer-reviewed articles. He is the assistant editor, and one of the only Canadian members, of the editorial board of the premier urology journal in the world – Journal of Urology. This year two clinical trials that Dr. Breau conceived of were completed: the Renal Hypothermia Trial and the Tranexamic Acid in Cystectomy (TACT) trial. These Canada-wide multicenter trials will change practice and are already affecting patients worldwide. He is also a member of the Society of Urologic Oncology and has been recognized nationally and internationally for research contributions in prostate, kidney and bladder cancer.
Researcher of the Year – Public Health and Epidemiology
Ian Colman
Dr. Ian Colman is a professor in the School of Epidemiology and Public Health at the University of Ottawa. Dr. Colman directs the Applied Psychiatric Epidemiology Across the Life course (APEAL) Lab and was the Canada Research Chair in Mental Health Epidemiology from 2011 to 2021. His research program investigates the epidemiology of common mental illnesses in the general population. His current focus is understanding longitudinal and life-course processes surrounding depression and anxiety, with a particular interest in identifying early-life factors that may predict depression and anxiety later in life. Dr. Colman has published widely and to date he has authored 183 papers. In the last year he was chosen as the winner of the Alex Leighton Award in Psychiatric Epidemiology, Canadian Psychiatric Association & the Canadian Academy of Psychiatric Epidemiology Research Chair.
Researcher of the Year – Innovation, Education and Medical Humanities
Kori LaDonna
Dr. Kori LaDonna is an assistant professor in the Department of Innovation in Medical Education and the Department of Medicine. She is developing a program of research that broadly explores non-technical skills training to explore the potential role of patients and family caregivers as health educators and assessors. She consistently publishes in the top journals of the field and in the last year alone, Dr. LaDonna published 2 book chapters (as senior author) and has 14 peer-reviewed articles published or in the press. The importance and caliber of her work has been recognized nationally and internationally for its relevance and rigour. She has published 49 peer-reviewed papers and her work has resulted in award-winning presentations and highly cited work in the top tier journals of her field. The research grants that she has received since joining the faculty in 2017 place her in the top 5% of Canadian researchers in medical education.
Early-Career Researcher of the Year – Biomedical
Baptiste Lacoste
Dr. Baptiste Lacoste is an associate professor with the Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, and recently promoted to senior scientist at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. His research focuses on the discovery of novel mechanisms of disease, with the goal of developing new treatments for neurological disorders. Since initiating his research program six years ago, Dr. Lacoste has established an internationally competitive research program in cerebrovascular research and has made significant contributions to both scientific and academic life in Canada. In addition, he has recruited and trained a stellar research team that was the first to unravel the role of cerebrovascular abnormalities in autism spectrum disorders (ASD).
Early-Career Researcher of the Year – Clinical
Thais Coutinho
Dr. Thais Coutinho is an assistant professor of Medicine at the University of Ottawa, the chief of the Division of Prevention and Rehabilitation and chair of the Canadian Women’s Heart Health Centre. Dr. Coutinho has addressed audiences at many national and international meetings and has published several high impact manuscripts in the field of Cardiovascular Diseases. She has received numerous awards, including the Ottawa Hospital Department of Medicine 2021 Jeff Turnbull Healthcare Advocacy Award, the University of Ottawa Heart Institute 2019 Global Achievement Award and the University of Ottawa Heart Institute Academic Medical Organization Academic Award for Public Education, to name a few. Dr. Coutinho’s research program focuses on arterial health, with a special emphasis on arterial stiffness and its role on the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases. To pursue these investigations, she has secured over $2.7M in competitive research grants including funding from the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada.
Early-Career Researcher of the Year – Public Health and Epidemiology
Sarina Isenberg
Dr. Sarina Isenberg is the Bruyère chair in Mixed Methods Palliative Care Research and an assistant professor in the Department of Medicine and the School of Epidemiology and Public Health at the University of Ottawa. She also holds positions at the University of Toronto and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Dr. Isenberg’s research focuses on evaluating access to palliative care provincially and nationally and on designing studies to improve access to and the quality of palliative care transitionally across care settings and for non-malignant and marginalized populations. Dr. Isenberg received two highly prestigious awards in 2020: the U of T Department of Family and Community Medicine Award of Excellence in Research – New Investigator, and induction into the American Association of Hospice Palliative Medicine Research Scholars Program.
Early-Career Researcher of the Year – Innovation, Education and Medical Humanities
Warren Cheung
Dr. Warren Cheung is an associate professor with the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Ottawa, and a senior clinician investigator with the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. He previously held the position of junior clinical research chair in medical education with the Faculty of Medicine. His research focuses on improving the quality of trainee assessments within a competency-based framework, with particular interest in studying workplace-based assessments and direct observation of performance. Dr. Cheung was the recipient of the Resident Doctors of Canada Mikhael Award for Medical Education in 2019 for his work on improving the quality of workplace-based assessments for emergency medicine trainees.
Publication of the Year – Biomedical
Jean-François Couture
Dr. Jean-François Couture is a professor and chair of the Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Ottawa. He was selected for this award for his publication “The histone H3.1 variant regulates TONSOKU-mediated DNA repair during replication,” published in the top journal, Science, in March 2022. The paper is the result of an outstanding collaboration involving the laboratories of Drs. Dr. Emilio Alarcón (University of Ottawa Heart Institute) and Yannick Jacob (Yale). A PhD student working under Dr. Couture, Hossein Davarinejad, is a co-author of the Science article.
Publication of the Year – Clinical
Michel Le May
Dr. Michel Le May is the director of the University of Ottawa Heart Institute (UOHI) Regional STEMI Program and a professor of medicine at the University of Ottawa. Dr. Le May pioneered the concept of a dedicated ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) room, which has enabled paramedics to triage STEMI patients directly to the UOHI for primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and has resulted in a 50% reduction in mortality in STEMI patients in the Ottawa region. As a recognized clinical researcher, Dr. Le May has over 100 peer-reviewed manuscripts and 200 presentations at national and international meetings. He has been selected for this award for his publication of the “CAPITAL CHILL Trial,” published in the medical journal JAMA in October 2021. The purpose of the trial was to study the effect of moderate versus mild therapeutic hypothermia on mortality and neurologic outcomes in comatose survivors of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.
Publication of the Year – Public Health and Epidemiology
Deshayne Fell
Dr. Deshayne Fell is an associate professor in the School of Epidemiology and Public Health at the University of Ottawa, a scientist at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) Research Institute, and an adjunct scientist at ICES. Dr. Fell is an international expert in perinatal research, epidemiology and surveillance. She is a leader in the use of the provincial birth registry in Ontario (BORN Ontario) and other large health administrative databases to investigate infection and immunization during pregnancy and the relationship between health outcomes of mothers and their babies. Particularly noteworthy is her work examining these relationships in the context of COVID-19. She has been selected for this award for her publication, “Association of COVID-19 Vaccination in Pregnancy with Adverse Peripartum Outcomes”, published in JAMA on March 24, 2022.
Publication of the Year – Innovation, Education and Medical Humanities
Kori LaDonna
Dr. Kori LaDonna is an assistant professor in the Department of Innovation in Medical Education and the Department of Medicine. Her work focuses on the timely topics of imposter syndrome and burnout in health professionals, leading to a deeper understanding of some of the most important challenges currently facing the healthcare workforce. Her 2022 article “Wrestling with the invincibility myth: Exploring physicians’ resistance to wellness and resilience-building interventions” was selected as a “Med Ed must read” by the Division of GIM at John Hopkins School of Medicine and highlighted by one of the leading medical education podcasts, KeyLIME (episode 332).
Educator of the Year – Pre-Clerkship
Jean Chen
Dr. Jean Chen is an assistant professor in the Department of Medicine. Through outreach, Dr. Chen has brought joy to numerous preclerkship students with her enthusiasm, leading to several productive student projects and research efforts. As the undergraduate program director for the Department of Emergency Medicine, she took over a recently implemented simulation curriculum. In addition to her leadership role for the Emergency Medicine Undergraduate Program, Dr. Chen has taken on the position of program director for the Transition to Clerkship block. Dr. Chen’s passion for education, her enthusiasm for her students’ success and her stamina as a leader and advocate make her a highly regarded mentor.
Educator of the Year – Clerkship/Residency/Fellowship/Continuing Education
Daniel Vincent
Dr. Daniel Vincent is the lead physician of the Orleans Palliative Care team and the medical director of Hospice Care Ottawa. Dr. Vincent is an exceptional teacher, and most importantly he provides education on emerging topics and in community settings. Bedside ultrasound-guided procedural skills are a novel area for many areas of medicine, and they have great potential to enhance community-based palliative care. As one of only few palliative care physicians with certification in bedside ultrasound, his contributions are critical in distinguishing the Palliative Medicine Residency Program as one of the foremost palliative care training centers in Canada. Dr. Vincent also integrates point-of-care ultrasound into his community-based palliative care practice, which allows our trainees to apply these skills to help keep palliative care patients at home.
Educator of the Year – Basic Sciences
Adam Rudner
Dr. Adam Rudner is an associate professor in the Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, in the Faculty of Medicine. Dr. Rudner has been invaluable in the development and execution of the Faculty’s Translational and Molecular Medicine (TMM) undergraduate BSc program. Since the launch of the TMM program in September 2016, Dr. Rudner has coordinated and demonstrated countless student-directed experiments, provided detailed and practical feedback on dozens of student assessments, and has facilitated several course-related events involving the BMI and CMM departments. Dr. Rudner’s dedication to enhancing the overall student learning experience is highlighted through his introduction of the SEA-PHAGES program, an intensive, discovery-based laboratory training experience for undergraduate students to learn how to conduct basic research and discovery in a supportive learning environment.
Mentor of the Year – Clinical
Alexander Sorisky
Dr. Alexander Sorisky is a professor of Medicine and of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, and chair of the Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism at the University of Ottawa. He is a senior scientist and director of the Chronic Disease Program of the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. Among his many roles, he also serves as the director of mentorship in the Department of Medicine. Over the past 6 years he has not only recruited more than 130 mentors, but he has also created a database of all mentors. Dr. Sorisky set up a department-wide computerized system of checks and reminders to ensure that mentorship meetings were taking place. This mentorship program is now a signature piece of the onboarding process in the Department of Medicine.
Mentor of the Year – Basic Sciences
Monique Potvin Kent
Dr. Monique Potvin Kent is an associate professor in the School of Epidemiology and Public Health and is the program director of the Master of Public Health (MPH) program. She is a multi-disciplinary applied public health researcher who focuses on the prevention of obesity and other chronic diseases by examining food and nutrition policies and the commercial determinants of health. As the inaugural director of the MPH program, Dr. Potvin Kent established a mentorship program for all students. The program involves linking students with faculty mentors for the duration of their degree. She also serves as a mentor for many students. Further, she worked closely with students in the MPH program to develop a peer mentoring program whereby senior students learn to support junior students. As a faculty member, Dr. Potvin Kent is committed to mentoring the next generation of scholars, having already supervised 30 students, from undergraduate to post-doctoral levels.
Outstanding Service Award
Kendall Noel
Dr. Kendall Noel is a community family physician affiliated with the Monfort program. He has been a continuous innovator in the Department of Family Medicine (DFM) and has been involved with both the College of Family Physicians of Canada and the Ontario College of Family Physicians. Dr. Noel serves as the DFM’s director of evaluation, and in his short time in this role, he has completely revamped the position and has adopted a scientific approach to resident evaluation. His first innovation was to convert data from action-oriented In-Training Evaluation Report (ITER) feedback forms to numeric equivalents, which can be used to quickly determine the norms for resident performance at different levels of training. Another major innovation of his has been to use data from the program’s mandatory “resident confidence surveys” to correlate with resident performance in the programs. Dr. Noel has been able to track the impact of the pandemic on resident confidence in different graduating cohorts. These and other innovations that he has brought forth in his role demonstrate his significant value as a designer, innovator and colleague.
Award for Leadership in Wellness
James Chan
As vice chair of wellness in the Department of Medicine (DoM), Dr. James Chan has been extremely effective implementing wellness initiatives in the areas of advocacy, mentorship, professional development, and peer support. Dr. Chan oversees and works closely with the DoM director of wellness research to ensure adherence to an evidence-based approach in wellness measurement and intervention implementation, and with the DoM director of equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) to ensure maintenance of an equitable and socially accountable work environment. In addition, Dr. Chan represents the DoM at the Ottawa Hospital where he works tirelessly to address the many systemic factors that can impact physician wellness. Throughout his term he has strived to improve the work environment by identifying and addressing common systemic barriers, as well as the unique challenges faced by smaller groups and individuals.
Award for Leadership in Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
Camille Munro
Dr. Munro was appointed the first director of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in the Department of Medicine (DoM) in September 2018. Since then, she has undertaken several important and successful advocacy and education EDI initiatives. She created and disseminated the DoM survey on medical staff diversity, which is now in its third year and, due to her efforts, has become a mandatory part of the hospital reappointment process within the department. The DoM now has diversity data to allow for future initiatives and measurement of change and progress in the fostering of diversity within the department. Dr. Munro has also been instrumental in revising the University Medical Associates’ (UMA) maternity leave policy to create a modern and inclusive parental leave policy. At the Ottawa Hospital, she created a position statement for physicians with disabilities that delineates principles that value these physicians and outlines recommendations to promote their accommodation and ensure equitable opportunities.
Social Accountability Award
Jason McVicar
Dr. McVicar is an assistant professor in the Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine. As a Métis anesthesiologist and scientist, Dr. McVicar has developed a research program that is leading the way in the understanding of health inequities related to surgery and perioperative care for Indigenous peoples in Canada. In addition to this important work, Dr. McVicar is active in global health, as a trustee and lead with the Canadian Anesthesiologists’ Society’s International Foundation, an active member of Médecins Sans Frontières, and the fellowship lead for uOttawa’s Global Health Fellowship in Anesthesiology. Working with Médecins Sans Frontières, Dr. McVicar has worked clinically in the Central African Republic to facilitate safe surgical care for large, at-risk and underserved populations. Together, these activities and leadership positions demonstrate Dr. McVicar’s commitment to social accountability and his active role in serving populations in need.
Professionalism Award
Jolanda Turley
Dr. Turley works as an assistant professor in the Department of Family Medicine and as an academic family physician at the Bruyère academic family health team Primrose Family Medicine Centre (the Centre). She has helped many residents in her capacity as a preceptor and as the post-graduate unit director at the academic teaching site at the Centre, all while maintaining the utmost professionalism, adherence to confidentiality, and compassion. She has also provided guidance to her colleagues as to how best they could support their residents and offer strategies to help them succeed.
International Impact Award (English)
Alison Krentel
Dr. Krentel is an assistant professor in the School of Epidemiology and Public Health at the University of Ottawa, a scientist at Bruyère Research Institute, and an honorary research fellow at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. She is a senior research fellow at the World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Knowledge Translation, Technology Assessment for Health Equity. Dr. Krentel is one of the founding members and the current chair of the Canadian Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases. She has worked extensively on disease prevention and control as a researcher and consultant in global public health, working in over 14 countries. More recently, her research has drawn attention to the burden of female genital schistosomiasis, a much-overlooked condition affecting millions of women in Africa and Asia, which is associated with significant reproductive health consequences and stigma. She is currently one of the lead principal investigators for a study understanding the transition to scale of proven interventions to address female genital schistosomiasis in Ghana and Madagascar.
International Impact Award (French)
Marc Carrier (with Dr. Grégoire Le Gal et Dr. Aurélien Delluc)
Dr. Carrier is head of the Division of Hematology in the Department of Medicine at the Ottawa Hospital, a professor in the Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa and a senior scientist in the Clinical Epidemiology Program of the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. He leads a team that is highly devoted in promoting Francophonie, internationalization, education in research, and Francophonie in research. The team’s work is based on the faculty’s strategic plan. Many members of Dr. Carrier’s team have signed international partnership agreements on thrombosis research. Some are part of an international research network in a francophone environment. Dr. Carrier and his team have demonstrated great leadership and have largely contributed internationally during the COVID-19 pandemic. Their findings and many publications (more than 20 publications for Dr. Carrier alone) have proven to be of even more significant value when it was established that thrombosis was one of the most common complications for COVID patients, and a possible complication associated to some vaccines.
Award for Leadership in Global Health
Dylan Bould
Dr. Dylan Bould is widely known as a leader in global anesthesia and perioperative care. He holds many roles such as full professor in the Department of Anesthesiology with a cross-appointment to the Department for Innovation in Medical Education. He is a staff pediatric anesthesiologist at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) and a clinical investigator at the CHEO Research Institute. Dr. Bould has worked tirelessly to advocate for vulnerable populations and to build capacity through educational initiatives impacting many lives in Zambia, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Guyana and beyond. His activities in global health have included numerous trips to teach anesthesia, the development of educational programs, establishing and running partnerships to develop and support residency training, teaching in global health in Canada and the US, speaking at national and international conferences, supporting junior researchers from low-and middle-income countries in collaborative research and quality improvement projects, mentorship of both trainees and peers, co-chairing the Bethune Round Table conference, and leadership positions in global health at the national and international levels.
Award for the Promotion of the Francophonie
Michelle Anawati
Dr. Anawati is a dedicated family doctor who has been practising for close to ten years in the Ottawa-East area. She has a large practice within a francophone family health team where she is adored by her patients and the office personnel. She previously practised hospital medicine at the Montfort Hospital for many years. Dr. Anawati has also been the clerkship director for the Francophone stream for more than 3 years. Dr. Anawati is an innovative and hard-working leader who had to overcome many challenges at the beginning of her academic career. She effectively advocated for enhanced Francophone clerkship groups that Francophone students now benefit from. Although the pandemic presented many challenges, she worked hard to adapt the internships to ensure the best experience.
Francophilie Award
Clare Liddy
Dr. Clare Liddy is the chair and a full professor at the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Ottawa. She is also a clinical investigator at the C.T. Lamont Primary Health Care Research Centre, senior researcher at the Bruyère Research Institute and a practising family physician at the Ottawa Hospital Academic Family Health Team. Dr. Liddy is a strong advocate for her francophone colleagues within the department. She listens to the issues they raise, encourages them in their efforts, and stands by them during challenging times. She gives a fair and equitable voice to all, reinforces ties within the department and creates a sense of belonging for all. She defends the interests of the francophone programs as much as possible, at every level, when required.