Announcing the 2019 Sunnybrook Excellence in Education Awards
The 2019 Sunnybrook Excellence in Education Awards honoured seven champions of education at an awards ceremony on May 7.
The Excellence in Education Awards are designed to recognize the education achievements of Sunnybrook’s staff, physicians or volunteers, and their passion for teaching and learning.
“Our award recipients are finding innovative and better ways to teach; they are empowering our patients and families; and are going above and beyond to give our students the best possible experience,” said Dr. Ari Zaretsky, Vice President of Education. “I am very proud to say that together we are inventing the future of health-care education.”
Congratulations to all of the 2019 Sunnybrook Excellence in Education Award recipients and all those who were nominated.
The Allan Knight Lifetime Achievement in Teaching Award
Dr. Mary Bell
Dr. Mary Bell, Staff Physician, Division of Rheumatology is a numerous award-winning educator who has developed a reputation over her 28-year career at Sunnybrook as “a master teacher who is personally invested in the success and wellbeing of patients, students and colleagues.”
Dr. Bell’s teaching career began during her undergraduate medical training, taking on roles as a lecturer, seminar leader, facilitator of problem-based learning and simulation workshops and Chief Medical Resident. She served as the Director of Continuing Education, Knowledge Translation and Exchange at the University of Toronto, Department of Medicine from 2006 to 2011.
One of her many successes is her “Getting a Grip on Arthritis” guideline knowledge translation and implementation program, which is said to have “changed Canadian primary care practice and had a demonstrated impact on the practice patterns of rheumatologists and patient outcomes.” The work has been adopted throughout Canada, as well as in the United States, Taiwan and Saudi Arabia.
Teaching Award
Leng Tsao
Leng Tsao, cytotechnologist in Laboratory Medicine and Molecular Diagnostics, is described as passionate, patient and engaging, with an amazing ability to explain basic concepts using catchy analogies and easy-to-remember algorithms.
Throughout her near 20 years at Sunnybrook, Leng has built an extensive cytology teaching slide collection containing 1,200+ cases and is highly sought after by residents preparing for their Royal College exam.
The Student Experience Award
Trish MacAulay
Patricia (Trish) MacAulay, Music Therapist, is described by her nominators as a caring, respectful and compassionate mentor who pushes the boundaries of the standard curriculum to ensure her students are getting a valuable, personalized learning experience.
One nominator says, “[Trish] did not want to just see me pass my internship, she wanted to see me succeed in every area. I feel that as I result, I was better prepared, learned faster, and had a strong desire to improve.”
Sally Bean
Sally Bean, Director, Health Ethics Alliance & Policy, is described as kind and welcoming, with an infectious passion for ethics. Every Friday morning, Sally brings ethicists and students together to discuss over coffee the challenging cases and key lessons from the week. Her nominators say, “She always displays respect for each and every voice at the table, giving space for the shy and vulnerable to contribute, and establishing a respectful atmosphere for differing opinions.”
Educating Sunnybrook Award
Guna Budrevics
Guna Budrevics, performance improvement specialist, was instrumental in the creation of the award-winning iLead Quality & Patient Safety Certificate Programs at Sunnybrook. As a principal faculty member, Guna has taught thousands of staff across Sunnybrook and receives countless accolades for her ability to engage learners in thoughtful, applicable exercises to build their confidence and encourage changes in their every day practice.
Education Beyond Sunnybrook Award
Dr. Karen Fleming
Dr. Karen Fleming is the Division Lead for Family Medicine Obstetrics at Sunnybrook and the interim chief of Sunnybrook’s Department of Family and Community Medicine.
As an advocate for early intervention, Dr. Fleming introduces women, their physicians and health policy makers to the importance of pregnancy related conditions as a marker for future disease. She has partnered with primary care providers in underserviced Toronto areas like Don Mills, to better serve the needs of newcomers to Canada who are at risk for pregnancy complications.
Innovative Curriculum Award
Dr. Natalie Coburn
Dr. Natalie Coburn, general surgeon at the Odette Cancer Centre, recognized a gap in the surgical practice in Canada for treating gastric cancer. To close the gap, Dr. Coburn developed the first surgical course on the life-saving D2 Lymph Node Dissection surgery in Canada, bringing to Toronto renowned surgical experts from Japan and South Korea.
Dr. Coburn also established the Canadian Gastric Cancer Association; providing a platform for researchers and clinicians to share information and build collaboration across the country, with the ultimate goal of improving outcomes for patients with the rare cancer.
