Chair's Awards

The following awards are presented to faculty members of the ob-gyn department on behalf of the department's chair.

Awards based on trainee evaluations, reviewed by undergrad and postgrad directors

• Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching
• Excellence in Integrated Undergraduate Teaching
• Excellence in Postgraduate Teaching
• Excellence in Integrated Postgraduate Teaching

Awards nominated by ob-gyn faculty members

• Outstanding Research Potential
• Sustained Research Excellence
• Excellence in Research Facilitation
• Excellence in Postgraduate Program Development and Innovation
• Excellence in Continuing Medical Education Teaching
• Excellence in Continuing Medical Education Course Coordination
• Quality Improvement and Patient Safety

Non-annual award by chair's discretion

• Emeritus Contribution Award (2024 winner: Harold Drutz)

How to nominate

A call for nominations will go out by email in early fall. Nominations must come from faculty members, and nominees must have a primary appointment with the ob-gyn department. Awards are presented in early November at the department's annual FPPD.

List of awards

Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching

This award, in recognition of Excellence in Undergraduate Medical Education, is presented to a faculty member, who, in the first 10 years of his/her appointment, has demonstrated a sustained interest in undergraduate education and has made a significant contribution to the department’s undergraduate education program. The recipient is selected based on the Year Three Clinical Clerks' evaluations of their core rotation in obstetrics and gynaecology for the previous academic year and input from Chiefs.

2024 winner: Louise-Helene Gagnon

Excellence in Integrated Undergraduate Teaching 

This award, introduced in 2012 in recognition of Excellence in Undergraduate Medical Education, is presented to a faculty member who is based at a community-affiliated hospital and has demonstrated excellence in teaching or has made a significant contribution to the overall undergraduate program. The recipient is selected based on the Year Three Clinical Clerks' evaluations of their core rotation in obstetrics and gynaecology for the previous academic year and input from Chiefs.    

2024 winner: Cici Zhu

Excellence in Postgraduate Teaching 

This award, in recognition of Excellence in Postgraduate Medical Education, is presented to a faculty member who, within the first 10 years of their faculty appointment, has demonstrated a sustained interest in postgraduate education, has been recognized by the residents as an excellent teacher, and has made a significant contribution to the department’s postgraduate education program. The recipient is selected based on the residents' and fellows' evaluations of his or her teaching effectiveness during the previous academic year and input from Chiefs.  

2024 winner: Michelle Jacobson

Excellence in Integrated Postgraduate Teaching

This award, introduced in 2012 in recognition of Excellence in Postgraduate Medical Education, is presented to a faculty member who is based at a community-affiliated hospital and has demonstrated excellence in teaching or has made a significant contribution to the overall postgraduate program. The recipient is selected based on the residents' and fellows' evaluations of his or her teaching effectiveness during the previous academic year and input from Chiefs.  

2024 winner: Salikah Iqbal

Outstanding Research Potential 

The award is presented to a junior faculty member who, within 10 years of his or her first faculty appointment, has demonstrated outstanding dedication, ability and research potential in the field of obstetrics and gynaecology. When selecting the recipient, the following criteria will be used to evaluate the candidate's research potential: advancement of knowledge; impact of research on clinical practice; novelty, originality, and new concepts in research work; national or international recognition as supported by awards, invitations to organize or address symposia, etc; and demonstrated excellence supported by receipt of peer-reviewed grants and a strong publication record. 

2024 winner: Shiri Shinar

Sustained Research Excellence 

This award is presented to a faculty member who has demonstrated sustained excellence in research in the field of obstetrics and gynaecology and has not received this award in the last 10 years. When selecting the recipient, the following criteria will be used to evaluate the candidate's research potential: advancement of knowledge; impact of research on clinical practice; novelty, originality, and new concepts in research work; national or international recognition as supported by awards, invitations to organize or address symposia, etc; and demonstrated excellence supported by receipt of peer-reviewed grants and a strong publication record. 

2024 winner: Ann Kinga Malinowski

Excellence in Research Facilitation 

This award is presented to a faculty member who has demonstrated leadership and sustained commitment to participation in clinical research in the field of obstetrics and gynaecology – this includes encouraging patients in their own practice to enrol in clinical research studies ongoing in the department and/or encouraging their colleagues to do so.

2024 winners: Sarah Ferguson & Stephane Laframboise

Excellence in Postgraduate Program Development and Innovation 

This award is presented to a faculty member who has exhibited excellence in postgraduate program development and/or innovation through outstanding contributions to the education of medical residents and/or fellows. These contributions can include, but are not limited to, leadership and organizational skills, course/curriculum development, the development of evaluation tools or new instructional methods/modules, restructuring of teaching/evaluation components or workshops.

2024 winner: Michael Chaikof

Excellence in Continuing Medical Education Teaching 

This award is presented to a faculty member who has demonstrated excellence in teaching in Continuing Medical Education in the field of obstetrics and gynaecology. 

2024 winner: Rachel Kupets

Excellence in Continuing Medical Education Course Coordination 

This award is presented to a faculty member who has demonstrated excellence in Continuing Medical Education Course Coordination with respect to a University of Toronto-sponsored Continuing Education course. Criteria according to which the nominee is evaluated include course design, promotion, organization, achievement of objectives, relevance to the needs of course participants, and others. 

2024 winner: Lindsay Shireff

Quality Improvement and Patient Safety

This Chair's Award is presented to a faculty member who has demonstrated impact in quality improvement and patient safety in the field of obstetrics and gynaecology. The recipient may not have received this award in the previous 10 years. When selecting the recipient, the following criteria will be used to evaluate the candidate's impact in QuIPS:

• Novelty, originality, and new concepts in QuIPS projects
• Impact of quality improvement and patient safety activities on clinical practice
• Leadership in QuIPS
• National or international recognition in the area of QuIPS
• Knowledge translation of QuIPS scholarly activity.

2024 winner: Amanda Cipolla