The Royal College is delighted to share that its Past-President Richard Reznick, MD, FRCSC, FACS, FRCSEd (hon), FRCSI (hon), FRCS (hon), has been appointed as an Officer of the Order of Canada for his contributions to medical education over his 30-year career.

“A true renaissance educator, surgeon and mentor to so many, Dr. Reznick has had and continues to make tremendous contributions to our Canadian health care and health education systems,” said Dr. Ian Bowmer, interim CEO of the Royal College. “As a leader who has shaped our national clinical licensing exams and surgical simulation, among numerous other accomplishments, Richard is so deserving of this honour for his outstanding achievements.”

A graduate of McGill University, Dr. Reznick completed a general surgical residency at University of Toronto, before pursuing a master’s degree in medical education at Southern Illinois University and a fellowship in colorectal surgery at University of Texas.

His passion for medical education contributed to the founding of the Wilson Centre, a renowned health profession education research institute where he was the inaugural director. In 1999, he was appointed Vice President, Education of the University Health Network.

He is a former R. S. McLaughlin Professor and Chair of the Department of Surgery at the University of Toronto. He is the former dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences at Queen’s University.

Dr. Reznick has been active in medical education research and development for his entire career. He was instrumental in developing the OSCE that was used for medical licensure in Canada. He ran a research program on assessment of technical competence for surgeons and supervised a fellowship program in surgical education. He championed the introduction of competency-based medical education for all residency programs at Queen’s University.

His seminal work as an educator has been recognized by organizations such as the Medical Council of Canada, the National Board of Medical Examiners, the Karolinska Institutet and by honorary fellowships in the Royal Colleges of Edinburgh, Ireland and England.

Dr. Reznick has been actively involved with the Royal College for nearly three decades in various leadership capacities, including recently as the Royal College’s President.

We also wish to also congratulate the following Fellows who were appointed to the Order of Canada:

• Haissam Haddad, MD, FRCPC, for his contributions to medicine, notably with the University of Ottawa Heart Institute and the University of Saskatchewan;
• Joseph Louis Pater, MD, FRCPC, for his outstanding contributions to the fields of cancer research and treatment, and for his leadership in cancer clinical research in Canada;
• Jeffrey Ian Weitz, MD, FRCPC, for his outstanding contributions to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of clotting disorders, and for his leadership in the fields of thrombosis and hemostasis;
• John Andrew Fleetham, MBBS, FRCPC, for his pioneering work in sleep disorder medicine and for his mentorship of the next generation of sleep scientists, and
• Keith Robert Walley, MD, FRCPC, for his innovative and translational research in the field of sepsis and septic shock.