Announcing the 2021 Sunnybrook Excellence in Education Awards

The 2021 Sunnybrook Excellence in Education Awards honours seven champions of education.

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 have gone above and beyond to build and empower future generations of health care in a year that has challenged us like never before,” says Dr. Ari Zaretsky, Vice President of Education. “Despite the challenges, these recipients – and all of our faculty – have embraced their role as teachers and modelled professionalism, patience, kindness and grace in ways that make Sunnybrook the world-renowned academic health sciences centre it is today.”

Congratulations to all of the 2021 Sunnybrook Excellence in Education Award recipients:

The Allan Knight Lifetime Achievement in Teaching Award

Dr. Mark Cheung

Dr. Mark Cheung, a general internal medicine physician and medical biochemist, joined Sunnybrook in 1993 and has since gained a reputation as an engaging and dedicated teacher who “highlights the importance of getting to know patients beyond their illness, and also of getting to know colleagues who share in this process.”

Nominators say he has made a lasting impression on over 400 internal medicine trainees, many of whom he has inspired to pursue successful careers in internal medicine.

Dr. Cheung uses his background in biochemistry to help learners understand the “why” in medicine by offering “field trips” to Sunnybrook’s laboratories that provide “unique insight into the hard-working individuals behind the scenes, and the intricacies on how tests get processed…and what they would ultimately mean for our patients.”

In addition to his mentorship, Dr. Cheung became a source of comfort for residents and colleagues during the COVID-19 pandemic, sharing his experiences when he was diagnosed with SARS in 2003 and highlighting the improvements in medicine and infection prevention over the years.

“Dr. Mark Cheung cultivates an environment that encourages learning and celebrates trainee engagement. He does everything within his power to make sure his trainees are getting the best experience possible, and to make sure that they succeed,” says one nominator.

Dr. Cheung has received numerous teaching awards and, for the past 10 years, has been a member of the Internal Medicine Examination Board at the Royal College of Physicians & Surgeons of Canada.

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Teaching Award

Dr. Morgan Hillier

Dr. Morgan Hillier is an emergency medicine physician and one of the most highly sought-after mentors. He is described by his residents as “a great instructor who provides a safe yet stimulating learning environment.”

As the academic director of the emergency medicine resident rotation in pre-hospital care, Dr. Hillier strives to continuously improve the resident experience and increases engagement and interest in the field with his “contagious” enthusiasm.

Dr. Hillier provides unique observer opportunities for junior medical students, often offering these learners their first opportunity to work in a clinical environment.

“He has a very kind way of talking with patients, it makes them satisfied and also taught me the importance of communication skills,” says one resident.

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Student Experience Award

Dr. Aaron Izenberg, Neurology

Dr. Aaron Izenberg, neurologist and neurology education site lead, is described by his nominators as a knowledgeable, approachable, empathic, and encouraging supervisor who goes “above and beyond to support residents while fostering independence and teaching."

Dr. Izenberg leads interactive rounds aimed at simplifying complex material and building student confidence by creating a safe, respectful environment among staff and residents at all levels. From being involved in the design and implementation of the monthly call schedule to discussing important clinical and workflow issues, his residents are given an active voice in helping shape neurology service at Sunnybrook.

Dr. Izenberg has received multiple University of Toronto teaching awards in 2013-2014, 2017-2018 and 2019-2020, as well as the John Edmeads Mentorship Award in 2014-2015 and 2018-2019.

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Educating Sunnybrook Award

Dr. Jerome Leis

Dr. Jerome Leis is the medical director of infection prevention and control whose nominators say that during the COVID-19 pandemic “has educated us towards the safest paths forward with logic, vision, urgency, caring, and empathy.”

“Dr. Leis instills a sense of calm and confidence…He is capable of understanding the most complex scientific aspects of this pandemic and translating it into very simple, understandable explanations that both clinical and non-clinical staff can understand,” says one nominator.

Dr. Leis has provided numerous COVID education sessions, impromptu urgent gatherings on wards and hospital-wide town hall information sessions to help staff understand not only how best to protect their patients, but also themselves.

Nominators say he responds to questions and concerns in a “transparent and reassuring manner” – “[sharing] facts when they are known, and is not afraid to say, ‘we don’t know,’ when they are not.”

“[H]is balance of optimism and realism has allowed our Sunnybrook teams to be confident in their understanding of the current situation – even when that situation seems to change by the hour.”

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Education Beyond Sunnybrook Award

Dr. Sam Radhakrishnan

Dr. Sam Radhakrishnan, interventional cardiologist in the Schulich Heart Program, is an internationally renowned leader in transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). He established the TAVI program at Sunnybrook in 2009, which has grown to the largest program in Ontario and second largest in Canada.

He directly impacted the training and certification of more than 70 Canadian and international physicians to begin or expand TAVI programs at many national and international sites in the USA, Japan, India, Israel, and Saudi Arabia.

Nominators say, “[Dr. Radhakrishnan] has shown learners how to shatter ageism biases, advocating for this vulnerable patient population at provincial and national levels. As a global TAVI proctor, he taught adult learners masterfully to develop confidence and technical proficiency through didactic/simulation sessions and side-by side direct case supervision. They attest his ‘patience and kind teaching qualities inspire those around him to excel.’ ”

Dr. Radhakrishnan has worked as an advisor to the Cardiac Care Network (now CorHealth) and the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care to redevelop health-care policy in aortic valve treatment. He was also one of the key members of the Canadian Association of Interventional Cardiology working group that worked to successfully obtain Royal College certification status for interventional cardiology in Canada.

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Innovative Curriculum Award

Dr. Nisha Andany, Infectious Diseases

Dr. Nisha Andany joined the infectious diseases team at Sunnybrook in 2018, and in a short time has made a spectacular impact in elevating the quality of education of infectious diseases.

Dr. Andany, along with her colleagues in the infectious disease division at Sunnybrook, launched COVIDEO, a virtual care program for outpatients with COVID-19, that has since cared for more than 8,300 patients. Nested within COVIDEO, she developed an innovative teaching curriculum to enable trainees to contribute to the pandemic response.

The curriculum development involved the creation of an orientation package and standardized assessment tools, delivery of a formal one-hour orientation session on COVID and virtual assessment, a repository of educational resources, and multiple weekly teaching sessions.

To help prevent disruption in clinical training, Dr. Andany integrated trainees into “an innovative virtual care model,” where they had an opportunity to learn about the spectrum of COVID clinical care…and gained experience collaborating with other professionals.”

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Team-Based Interprofessional Teaching Award

Alternate Models of Care Working Group

The Alternate Models of Care Working Group was formed at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic to help Sunnybrook continue safe, quality care during a period of high pressures and significant staffing reductions. Since its onset, the Alternate Models of Care Working Group has educated and mentored more than 350 staff moving into temporary roles to support COVID-19 as alternate care providers, safety officers and clinical externs across all settings and campuses.

Staff and students have been armed for success through an intensive curriculum that incorporates diverse learning methodologies like simulation, e-learning, case studies, lectures, demonstration and even tours and scavenger hunts to support integration into clinical teams. Working with Organizational Development and Leadership, learning has extended beyond clinical scope to incorporate concepts such as change management, psychological safety, and interprofessional collaboration.

The Alternate Models of Care Working Group includes the following members: Laline Anthony, Kathy Carothers, Emily Chen, Isabella Cheng, Nicole Cooper, Caitlin Cornish, Nicole Cross, Susan DeSousa, Karelin Martina, Erin Munro, Maria Parzanese, Laura Rashleigh, Agnes Ryzynski, Sarah Smart, Emily Stairs, Sidiqah Tseung, and Humdan Yarkhan.

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Congratulations to all our nominees:

Individuals

Teams

• Alternate Models of Care Working Group
• Anita Au & RTBC Team
• Best Possible Medication History Team: Patti Madorin, Vincent Teo, Carlo DeAngelis, Alia Thawer & Julia Maslikowska
• Canadian Simulation Centre: Agnes Ryzynski, Susan DeSousa, Nicole Cross, Tracey DasGupta & Fatima da Costa
• Sharon Domb & Eden Manley
• Occupational Therapy Inpatient Stroke Unit
• PARTY Program Team
• STEADY Program
• SRI Student Network