Canadian Bioethics Society
Société canadienne de bioéthique

2024: Paula Chidwick

Dr. Paula Chidwick is an ethicist working on the traditional territories of the Haudenosaunee and Anishinabek nations, protected by the "Dish With One Spoon" Wampum agreement. She is passionate about and committed to building trusting partnerships with all communities to develop innovative, ethical solutions to the complex problems in healthcare. Dr. Paula Chidwick holds a PhD in Philosophy specializing in Bioethics from the University of Guelph and completed a fellowship with the University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics. She also holds certificates in Adaptive Leadership (Harvard) and Integrative Thinking (Rotman) and is a graduate of the Health Quality Ontario IDEAS Program. Dr. Chidwick is the first Director of Ethics at William Osler Health System (WOHS) and the first full-time ethicist at a community hospital in Canada. She is also the founding Director of the Ethics Quality Improvement (EQI) Lab (2017), an innovative approach to ethics quality improvement in healthcare and ethics that takes a patient-centred approach to safe, effective, and equitable care. Two projects in the EQI Lab have led to Accreditation Canada's leading practices: Checklist to meet Ethical and Legal Obligations (ChELO Checklist) and Prevention of Error-Based Transfers (PoET Project). Dr. Chidwick also founded the Clinical Ethics Internship Program at WOHS, a training program that offers mentorship and hands-on experience for emerging ethicists, emphasizing personalized learning approaches.

 

Dr. Chidwick's impact in bioethics has national and international reach – her work includes serving on COVID-19 advisory tables, bioethics groups, and leading projects through the EQI Lab, including receiving a grant from the World Health Organization (WHO). Dr. Chidwick has pioneered innovative approaches to ethics and patient care, with, for example, the publication she co-authored "Trust and conflict in death determination-reflections on the legacy of Taquisha McKitty," that addressed a case of brain death and encouraged a different approach to the ethical issues and working families through collaboration and knowledge of what was important to them. Dr Chidwick works with the Canada-US Coalition to Ending Race Correction, addressing the legacy of racism in medicine, and is a testament to her dedication to fostering an inclusive, respectful and just healthcare environment.

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2023: Jeff Kirby

Among Jeff’s many accomplishments are:

• Playing a key role in developing the Nova Scotia Health Ethics Network.

• Developing and applying the Deliberative Engagement Framework, still used to guide decision-making in Nova Scotia around disclosure of large-scale adverse events.

• Facilitating decision-making processes regarding a cancer care MRI machine in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, and a cardiac catheterization lab in Sydney, Nova Scotia.

• Being invited to join the Protocol Redevelopment Working Group to update the protocol to create the Nova Scotia Pandemic Critical Care Triage Protocol (2020).

• Contributing to a range of work related to the changes to Canada’s Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) legislation with regards to mental disorder as the sole underlying medical condition (MD-SUMC) for MAiD as:

  • an invited member of an informal Advisory Group for Senator Stanley Kutcher regarding future amendments to Bill C-14 (2020-21),

  • a presenter to the Standing Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs regarding the Senate review of Bill C-7, and

  • a member of the Expert Panel on MAiD and Mental Illness (2021-22).

• Consulting to the Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH) (2007-11).

• Providing an ethics review of national health frameworks, such as the National Advisory Committee of Blood and Blood Products: A Framework for Rationing of Blood during the Red Phase of a Blood Shortage for Massively Bleeding Patients (2011).

• Offering input to the National Framework for Advance Care Planning in Canada (2011).

• Promoting quality healthcare ethics practice locally through mentoring new members of the Department of Bioethics’ Ethics Collaboration Team, and nationally through his founding membership of Practicing Healthcare Ethicists Exploring Professionalization (PHEEP), now the Canadian Association of Practicing Healthcare Ethicists (CAPHE-ACESS).

You can see his full CV here: https://medicine.dal.ca/departments/department-sites/bioethics/people/Jeff_Kirby.html

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2021: Bartha Marie Knoppers

Accomplishments:

• Chair, International Ethics Committee of the Human Genome Organization (1996 to 2004)

• Canada Research Chair in Law and Medicine since 2001 (to 2022)

• Recipient of four honorary degrees (University of Waterloo – 2001 , University of Paris V – 2002, McMaster University – 2007 & University of Alberta – 2008)

• Fellow of American Association for the Advancement of Science (2002), Hastings Centre (2003), Canadian Academy of Health Sciences (2005), Royal Society of Canada, Academy of Social Sciences (2016)

• Officer of the Order of Canada in recognition for being "a world authority on the ethical aspects of genetics, genomics and biotechnology“– 2002

• Founder of the non-profit Public Population Project in Genomics (2006) and Society and CARTaGENE, a national biobank (2007)

• Prix Jacques Rousseau - 2011

• Officer in the Order national du Quebec – 2012

• Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, Governor General of Canada (2013)

• Co-founder, International Institute of Research Ethics and Biomedicine

• Chair of the Regulatory and Ethics Working Group of the Global Alliance for Genomics and Health

• Henry G. Friesen International Prize in Health Research - 2019

• Till and McCulloch Award for Science Policy - 2020

• Chair/member of national and international committees and working groups too numerous to list

• More than 400 publications!!

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2019: Daryl Pullman

(Note: there were two award winners in 2019.)

Daryl Pullman is a Professor of Medical Ethics in the Faculty of Medicine at Memorial University and a Clinical Ethics Consultant with the Eastern Health Authority. His graduate degrees include an MA and PhD in Philosophy from the University of Waterloo.

 

He has broad and diverse research interests including research ethics, ethics and aging, privacy, issues related to genetic research and therapy, and human dignity and moral epistemology and has published widely. He has served on many national ethics committees including the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Stem Cell Oversight Committee, the CIHR Standing Committee on Ethics, the “Ethical, Legal and Social Issues” lead for the CIHR Institute of Genetics, and co-chair of the Ethics Advisory Committee for the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging.

 

Daryl has had a profound and transformative impact on ethics in Newfoundland and Labrador since his arrival in 1998 and is recognized nationally and internationally as an ethics scholar.

 

2019: Eugene Bereza

(Note: there were two award winners in 2019.)

Eugene Bereza is family physician with a background in literature, music therapy, palliative care and bioethics. He studied medicine and completed his residency at McGill University before pursuing a post-doctoral fellowship at the MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics at the University of Chicago.

 

Throughout his career, he has been actively engaged in academic medical ethics, clinical ethics, research ethics and health policy development across the spectrum of care in Quebec through his work at the CIUSSS du Centre-Ouest-de-l’Île-de-Montréal, the McGill University Health Centre, the Montreal Neurological Institute, as well as many provincial and national professional organizations.

 

His main area of interest has always been end-of-life care, with a special emphasis on palliative care and euthanasia, especially in Quebec’s multicultural context. He is widely recognized as a skilled educator and mentor to students across a variety of disciplines.

 

2017: Francoise Baylis

Françoise Baylis is a philosopher whose innovative work in bioethics, at the intersection of policy and practice, has stretched the very boundaries of the field. 

 

Her extensive publication record spans many topics, including research involving children, the role of bioethics consultants, women's health, human embryo research, and novel genetic technologies. Her work challenges readers to think broadly and deeply about the direction of health, science and biotechnology. 

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2016: Arthur Frank

Arthur Frank is professor emeritus of sociology at the University of Calgary, where he has taught since 1975. He currently is professor at VID Specialized University, Bergen, Norway, and core faculty at the Center for Narrative Practice in Boston.

 

Trained as a medical sociologist (Ph.D., Yale, 1975), he is the author of a memoir of critical illness, At the Will of the Body (1991; new edition 2002); a study of first-person illness narratives,The Wounded Storyteller (1995; expanded edition, 2013); a book on care as dialogue, The Renewal of Generosity: Illness, Medicine and How to Live (2004); and most recently, a book on how stories affect our lives, Letting Stories Breathe: A Socio-narratology (2010).

 

Dr. Frank has been visiting professor at the University of Sydney, Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto, Keio University in Tokyo, and the University of Toronto, and a visiting fellow in bioethics at the University of Otago, New Zealand. For many years he was book review editor of the journal health: an interdisciplinary journal and among other editorial board appointments, he is a contributing editor to Literature and Medicine.

 

Dr. Frank is an elected Fellow of The Hastings Center and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. He was additionally the 2008 recipient of the Abbyann Lynch Medal for Bioethics, awarded by the Royal Society of Canada.

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2014: William R C Harvey

• Designed and Directed an Interdisciplinary Sequence entitled “Theory, Method and Practice”, 1969-72 (on the ethical, metaphysical and epistemological bases of the natural and social sciences; teachers included a theoretical physicist, political economist, psychologist and philosopher of science).

• Began teaching bioethics in 1974 using casebooks with Canadian legal cases and legislation.

• First Subject Supervisor in Medical Humanities (Medicine I in the Faculty of Medicine (1986) and established the first graduate course in bioethics in Canada (1988).

• Co-Founder and Co-Director of the multi-disciplinary Competency Clinic at the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care (Psychiatry, Law and Philosophy).

• Principal Investigator, SSHRC Strategic Grant in Applied Ethics (1991-1995), “Ethical and Legal Aspects in the Assessment of Competency in the Elderly”.

• Co-Investigator, SSHRC Strategic Grant in Applied Ethics (Network) (1991-1993) whose Principal Investigator was Françoise Baylis. (A major result of the group’s consultations was the publication of The Health Care Ethics Consultant (Humana Press, 1994) edited by Francoise E Baylis.

• Included Baylis Profile of the Health Care Ethics Consultant a functional description of the active ethics consultant.)

• Research Director of a Review of the Security Management Program for the Mental Health Branch of the Ministry of Health (1992-1995).

• Acting Director of the Centre for Bioethics (1995) and Acting Director of the Collaborative Program in Ethics.

• Later the Director of the Collaborative Program in Bioethics (1995-1998).

• Devised, Co-Directed and taught in the MHSc in Bioethics (sponsored by the Institute of Medical Science) (1998-2001).

• Interim Bioethicist at Mt Sinai Hospital 1997-1998 and founding member of Ethics Committees at four local hospitals.

• Member, Community Advisory Board (appointed by the Ministry of Health) and Chair of the Board’s Quality Assurance and Patient Care Committee, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

• Areas of research: Moral and political philosophy, philosophy of law, philosophy of medicine, bioethics, and clinical ethics (focussing on the assessment of mental competency, consent and surrogate decision making, and end-of-life and critical care ethics).

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2013: Janet Storch

Dr. Storch’s focus on ethics commenced in the early 1980s with a focus on human rights, and the publication of her ground-breaking 1982 text, “Patient rights: Ethical and legal issues in health care and nursing.” In 1984 she joined the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta, Bioethics Committee. Since then her scholarly focus has remained on nursing ethics, bioethics, health ethics, and research ethics.

 

She has published 32 peer-reviewed articles related to ethics, 3 edited books, 5 monographs, and 26 book chapters directly related to ethics. Dr. Storch’s high profile in health care ethics has been reflected in 11 Canadian awards, and one international award.

 

She is a warm, caring, compassionate and visionary leader who does not seek out edification or praise for herself, rather her style is to help create a space where each person can contribute to the development of new knowledge.

 

Dr. Storch embodies the characteristics of a true leader in nursing and health care ethics; committing to the development of knowledge to improve patient care, acting as a scholar, advocate and change agent within the system, and providing advice and knowledge to students and health care providers she teaches. Her work has had an impact in the development of public policy that has benefited many Canadians. 

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2012: John Dossetor

Dr. John Dossetor, OC, BM, BCh, PhD, FRCPC – Professor Emeritus, University of Alberta. John Dossetor exemplifies scholarship and leadership in health care ethics in the areas of teaching, clinical ethics, and research.

 

As Director of the Division of Nephrology and Clinical Immunology at the University of Alberta and Professor of Nephrology, Dr. Dossetor’s interest in medical ethics sparked a career change that led to him become the first Professor of Bioethics at the University of Alberta in 1986. With several colleagues, he developed the Joint-Faculties Bioethics Project, creating teaching resources, courses, seminars and a newsletter that exist to this day. He became the first Director of the Division of Bioethics and Bioethics Centre in 1990. In January 1998, the Bioethics Centre was renamed the John Dossetor Health Ethics Centre in honour of Dr. Dossetor’s outstanding contributions to health and ethics at the University of Alberta and in Canada.

 

Dr. Dossetor is one of the founding members of the Canadian Bioethics Society, of which he was its first President, from 1988-1990. He was also a founding member and Executive Director of the Provincial Health Ethics Network in Alberta. His pioneering work and world-renown in the field of nephrology also created international opportunities for ethics education and dialogue.

 

Dr. Dossetor has penned 295 medical/scientific publications and authored or co-authored 10 books. His latest book, Beyond the Hippocratic Oath, published in 2005, is a memoir of the evolution of modern medicine and bioethics reflected through his own experiences.

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2011: Christine Harrison & Kathleen Glass

The CBS-SCB Lifetime Achievement Award is normally given to one individual each year. However In 2011, the Awards committee felt that there were two outstanding nominees and made an exception to honor both of them: Christine Harrison and Kathleen Glass.

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Christine Harrison receiving award from CBS-SCB President Sue MacRae

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Christine Harrison received her BA and Master's degrees in Philosophy from the University of Guelph, and her PhD in Philosophy from McMaster University. She is Associate Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Toronto, and a member of the University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics.

 

Dr. Harrison is the former Director of Bioethics at the Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto. She has served as President of the Canadian Bioethics Society and Chair of the Canadian Pediatric Society Bioethics Committee.Dr. Harrison has had a profound influence on the field of bioethics in general and pediatric bioethics specifically. She has published many book chapters and articles including a landmark work in clinical ethics on the topic of medical decision-making for children.

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Kathleen Glass receiving award from CBS-SCB President Sue MacRae 

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Throughout the course of her career, Dr. Kathleen Glass has worked assiduously to advance the profile of bioethics and bioethicists. She served as the Acting Director of the National Council on Ethics in Human Research, and as a member of the National Placebo Initiative. She made substantial contributions to the Canadian Bioethics Society as a member of the Executive Committee and as a member at large.

 

Until her recent retirement, Kathleen was a professor in the Departments of Pediatrics and Human Genetics at McGill University. She also held a position as Clinical Ethicist at the Montreal Children's Hospital. Her research interests include ethical and legal issues relevant to children, the elderly, psychiatric patients, and research subjects.

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2010: George Webster

George Wester receiving award from CBS-SCB Past-President Paddy Rodney

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George Webster has worked as a Clinical Ethicist with the Health Care Ethics Service at St. Boniface General Hospital in Winnipeg, Manitoba since 1997, where he is engaged in ethics consultation, ethics education, policy review and development, and research ethics with 12 health care facilities affiliated with the Catholic Health Corporation of Manitoba. From 1982 to 1996, he was Director of the first full-time hospital-based Ethics Service in Canada at St. Michael's Hospital, St. Joseph's Health Centre and Providence Centre in Toronto. He completed his Doctoral studies at the Toronto School of Theology, University of Toronto.

 

He is a member of the Canadian Bioethics Society and the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities. He holds an appointment in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Manitoba.

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2009: Michael McDonald

Michael McDonald receiving award from CBS-SCB Past-President Paddy Rodney

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Michael McDonald was the founding Director of the W. Maurice Young Centre for Applied Ethics at the University of British Columbia. He received an Honours BA in Philosophy from the University of Toronto and an MA and PhD in Philosophy from the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. McDonald has been involved in research projects on governance and human research protection, business ethics, transplantation, political philosophy, and ethics.

 

Dr. McDonald is currently a member of the Canadian Blood Services Research Ethics Board. He also serves as ethics education consultant to the Certified General Accountants of Canada. He served as the Canadian Bioethics Society representative to the Canadian Council on Animal Care. As well, he was a member of the Royal Society of Canada's Expert Panel on the future of Health Canada's Non-Human Primate Centre.

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2008: Nuala Kenny

Nuala Kenny was born in New York and entered the Sisters of Charity of Halifax in 1962. She received her BA from Mount Saint Vincent University in 1967 and an MD from Dalhousie University in 1972.

 

After an extensive career in pediatrics and medical education, Dr. Kenny founded the Department of Bioethics at Dalhousie University in 1996. She is currently a professor in the Departments of Bioethics and Pediatrics at Dalhousie. She was a founding member of the National Council for Bioethics in Human Research. She is Past President of both the Canadian Pediatric Society and the Canadian Bioethics Society.

 

Her research interests include professional character formation, ethics in health policy and public health, pediatric ethics, and end-of-life care.

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2007: Susan Sherwin

Susan Sherwin holds a Dalhousie University Research Professorship and has served as Chair of the University's Department of Philosophy.

 

Internationally, she is considered one of the world's foremost feminist ethicists, and she serves on committees for numerous organizations such as the Royal College, UNESCO, and Health Canada on the Advisory Group on Reproductive and Genetic Technologies.

 

Dr. Sherwin has been recognized with the Killam Prize in the Humanities from the Canada Council for the Arts in 2006 as well as a fellowship in the Royal Society of Canada.

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2005: Hubert Doucet

Hubert Doucet (BA, Université de Montréal; MA, University of Ottawa; Doctorate, religious studies, Université Marc Bloch Strasbourg) chairs the Bioethics Committee, University Hospital Sainte-Justine in Montréal and is a member of its Clinical Ethics Unit. He is Associate Professor of Bioethics at the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Montreal. 

He serves on the Ethics Commission, Science and Technology of Québec and the Scientific Committee of the Institut national d’Excellence en Santé et en Services Sociaux (INESSS). Throughout his career, his research has sought to promote dialogue within the field of bioethics, whether between health professionals and patients, researchers and research subjects, members of multidisciplinary teams, citizens and those promoting technological development, particularly in genomics.

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2004: Abbyann Lynch

Abbyann Lynch has been a leader in laying the foundations for the field of bioethics in Canada. She was a founder of the Canadian Bioethics Society and a charter member of the National Council in Bioethics in Human Research. Dr. Lynch has also served as Director of the Bioethics Department of the Hospital for Sick Children, President of Associated Medical Services providing support to initiatives in the History of Medicine and in Bioethics, and founder and Director of Ethics in Health Care Associates, a Toronto consulting group. She has been a board member with the Advocacy Centre for the Elderly, the Toronto Grace Health Centre, and Senior Peoples Resources in North Toronto.

 

She has been awarded the Order of Canada and the Order of Ontario.

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