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Dean's Alumni Awards

Our Temerty Medicine alumni network consists of more than 71,000 graduates of our life sciences, rehabilitation sciences, radiation sciences, Physician Assistant, MD and MD/PhD programs, as well as former U of T residents and clinical fellows. Together, they are contributing to better health and health care throughout Toronto, across Canada and around the world.
Every year we celebrate our Temerty Medicine alumni community's impact with the Dean’s Alumni Awards, as selected by a committee of volunteers including alumni. We highlight the contributions of our alumni as they advance clinical care, health research, medical education and more.
Recipients of the 2025 Dean's Alumni Awards

Rob Fowler (PGME Internal Medicine)
Humanitarian Award
Rob Fowler is the H. Barrie Fairley Professor of Medicine and director of the Interdepartmental Division of Critical Care Medicine at U of T, and chief of the Tory Trauma Program at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. In both his research and practice, he focuses on improving access to and outcomes of care for critically ill patients worldwide. A global leader in outbreak response, he has supported the World Health Organization and other non-governmental organizations during viral hemorrhagic fever outbreaks across Africa. His volunteer service — often at great risk to his own health — has earned him numerous awards, including the Meritorious Service Cross, Order of Ontario, and the Teasdale-Corti Humanitarian Award.

Peter Gill (PGME Paediatrics)
Emerging Leader Award
Peter Gill is a general paediatrician and scientist at the SickKids Research Institute, an associate professor of paediatrics and of health policy, management and evaluation at U of T, and a senior associate at the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine at the University of Oxford. He co-founded and is chair of the Canadian Pediatric Inpatient Research Network (PIRN), uniting hospitals nationwide to improve care for hospitalized children. His research has advanced the care and management of common and serious childhood infections and has earned him national recognition, including the Canadian Paediatric Society Young Investigator Award and the Paediatric Chairs of Canada Emerging Academic Leader Award.
Tara Kiran (MD ’02)
MAA MD Alumni of Distinction Award
Tara Kiran is the Fidani Chair in Improvement and Innovation at U of T and vice-chair of quality and innovation with the Department of Family and Community Medicine. A family physician and renowned primary care researcher at Unity Health Toronto’s St. Michael’s Hospital, Kiran investigates how changes in the health care system impact patients, particularly the most vulnerable. In 2022 she launched OurCare, a national initiative to engage the public in co-creating the blueprint for a stronger, more equitable primary care system in Canada. She is also the creator and host of Primary Focus, a podcast that shares stories and innovations from Canada and around the world to inspire a stronger primary care system.

Gareth Seaward (PGME Obstetrics & Gynaecology)
Lifetime Achievement Award
Gareth Seaward’s commitment to excellence in clinical practice and medical education have left an enduring legacy in obstetrics and gynaecology in Canada, as evidenced by the enthusiastic nomination support from his hospital and Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation colleagues. Seaward is a professor of obstetrics and gynaecology and of health policy, management and evaluation at U of T, as well as a distinguished obstetrician-gynaecologist and a globally recognized pioneer in maternal-fetal medicine. He served as the deputy director of the fetal medicine unit at Sinai Health’s Mount Sinai Hospital for 20 years. He also held leadership roles at the Provincial Council for Maternal Child Health for over a decade, where he supported the development of recommendations, tools and guidelines that continue to help health care professionals across Ontario provide high-quality and effective perinatal care.

Steffanie Strathdee (PhD Epidemiology ’94)
Impact Award
Steffanie Strathdee is the Harold Simon Distinguished Professor at University of California San Diego and co-founder and co-director of the Center for Innovative Phage Applications and Therapeutics, the first of its kind in North America. She earned her PhD in 1994 from the Department of Community Health within U of T’s Faculty of Medicine (now the Temerty Faculty of Medicine). The department became the Dalla Lana School of Public Health in 2008. A renowned infectious disease epidemiologist, she has led groundbreaking work in HIV prevention and antimicrobial resistance. Her efforts to revitalize phage therapy in the West earned her a place among TIME’s 50 Most Influential People in Health Care in 2018.
Nominate Outstanding Alumni
Help us recognize exceptional alumni and share their achievements with the Temerty Faculty of Medicine community. Nominations for the 2026 Dean's Alumni Awards will open in early 2026.
Award Categories
Lifetime Achievement Award
This award recognizes alumni who have demonstrated a lifetime of exceptional professionalism through leadership, research, teaching, clinical care, administration or public service.
Open to all Temerty Medicine alumni
Impact Award
This award recognizes research and health science education alumni who have significantly impacted their profession and/or field through research, innovation, extraordinary care or other remarkable contributions. The impact of their work should be seen as influential. The recipient may be recognized for a specific achievement or a body of work.
Open to Temerty Medicine MSc, MHSc, MScBMC, MScOT, MScPT, MHSc and PHD alumni who do not hold an MD from U of T or any other institution
MAA MD Alumni of Distinction Award
In honour of the Medical Alumni Association, this award recognizes MD and MD/PhD alumni who have made exceptional contributions to the medical profession and/or health care field through research, innovation, clinical care or other remarkable contributions. The impact of their work should be seen as influential. The recipient may be recognized for a specific achievement or a body of work.
Open to Temerty Medicine MD and MD/PhD alumni
Humanitarian Award
This award honours alumni who have provided extraordinary volunteer service, demonstrating leadership through local or global work. Recipients have enriched the lives of others through their volunteerism in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine or through their work with civic, charitable and social causes beyond the scope of their clinical or academic responsibilities.
Open to all Temerty Medicine alumni
Emerging Leader Award
This award is presented to alumni early in their career who have completed their training in the past 15 years. Recipients will have demonstrated outstanding service to Temerty Medicine, their local medical/healthcare community, or a scientific or academic achievement. The recipient can receive this award for a specific achievement or a body of work.
Open to all Temerty Medicine alumni
Nominee Eligibility and Criteria
In addition to candidates meeting the specific award criteria above, nominations must also adhere to the following criteria:
- Nominations may be submitted by any individual, independently or on behalf of a group or institution. Self-nominations will not be accepted.
- Posthumous nominations will not be accepted.
- Nominees can only be nominated in one category per year.
- Nominees should exemplify professionalism in keeping with Temerty Medicine's core values and must be in good standing with their regulatory body as applicable.
- Nominees can be from programs that were affiliated with the Temerty Faculty of Medicine at the time of their graduation but are now affiliated with a different division (see note re: Dalla Lana School of Public Health below)
- Individuals who only completed post-doctoral research fellowships are not eligible for nomination.
Please be sure to include with your submission:
- A letter of nomination highlighting the nominee's achievements and explaining why the nominee should receive the award. Maximum 250 words.
- One letter of support from an individual familiar with the nominee's work (who is not the nominator nor the nominee’s spouse or relative).
- A current copy of the nominee's curriculum vitae.
- Optional: Supplementary documents (maximum two) that convey the importance of the nominee’s work. These can include notices and reviews, media coverage, abstracts, etc.
Please note, nominations will be kept on file for three years for future consideration.
With the establishment of the Dalla Lana School of Public Health (DLSPH) in 2013, some programs historically affiliated with the Temerty Faculty of Medicine are now affiliated with DLSPH. Alumni from these programs are now also considered DLSPH alumni and are therefore eligible for both Temerty Medicine and DLSPH alumni awards and other benefits. These programs include: 1) MHSc – a) Health Administration; b) Medical Science (Joint Centre for Bioethics); c) Public Health Science; 2) MSc – a) Public Health Science; b) Health Administration; c) Community Health; 3) PhD – a) Public Health Science; b) Health Administration; c) Community Health; d) Health Policy, Management & Evaluation. Please visit the DLSPH alumni awards website or contact Daniel Downey, DLSPH Alumni Engagement & Annual Giving Officer, at daniel.downey@utoronto.ca to learn more about awards to nominate and recognize the contributions of DLSPH alumni.
Selection Committee Eligibility
Each award has its own committee of three to seven alumni who review the nominations and select the award recipient. If space allows, members may choose to serve on more than one award selection committee. Please note, we seek diversity of representation and thought in our selection committees.
If you would like to participate on an awards selection committee, please email Katrina Heisz at katrina.heisz@utoronto.ca.
All committee members:
- Must be part of the U of T Temerty Faculty of Medicine community of alumni, students, faculty or staff.
- Cannot be nominated in the current award year.
- Cannot nominate or provide letters of support for current award candidates.
- Be available to attend virtual committee meeting(s).
Previous Award Winners
Lifetime Achievement Award
- 2024: Dafna Gladman
- 2023: Elizabeth Inness
- 2022 (International Impact): Herbert Dele Davies
- 2022 (National/Community Impact): Bonnie Kirsh
- 2021 (International Impact): Sharon Straus
- 2021 (National/Community Impact): Emerita Judith Friedland
- 2020 (International Impact): Anthony Lang
- 2020 (National/Community Impact): The Honourable Rosemary Gay Moodie, Senator
- 2019 (International Impact): Murray B. Urowitz
- 2019 (National/Community Impact): Catherine Zahn
- 2018 (International Impact): Ronald Zuker
- 2018 (National/Community Impact): Gary Levy
- 2017: Laurence Klotz
- 2016: Bernard Langer
- 2015: Sandra Black
- 2014: Jack Laidlaw
- 2013: Henry Barnett
Impact Award
- 2024: Akiko Iwasaki
- 2023: Shaf Keshavjee
Humanitarian Award (formerly Volunteerism)
- 2024: Anna Banerji
- 2023: Anju Anand
- 2022: Meb Rashid
- 2021: Mark Bernstein
- 2020: Naheed Dosani
- 2019: Adrienne Chan
- 2018: Donald Payne
- 2017: Mohammad Alsuwaidan
- 2016: Fiona Wallace
- 2015: Gordon Squires
- 2014: Barnett Giblon
- 2013: Donald Cowan
Emerging Leader Award (formerly Rising Star)
- 2024: Nathan Stall
- 2023: Nir Lipsman
- 2022: Monica Farcas
- 2021: Brian Wong
- 2020: Mark Sinyor
- 2019: Mohammad R. Akbari
- 2018: Fahad Razak
- 2017: Kelly Metcalfe
- 2016: Sharon Cushing
- 2015: Stephanie Nixon
- 2014: An-Wen Chan
- 2013: Samir Sinha
MD 25th Anniversary Award
- 2020: Christopher Chan
- 2019: Sandro Galea
- 2018: Vicky Lee Ng
Insulin 100 Emerging Leader Award (2021)
- 2021: Kim Connelly and John Sievenpiper
We seek diversity of representation and thought in our selection committees and, over time, to achieve a balance across disciplines and backgrounds with our Dean’s Alumni Award recipients. For more information about the Dean's Alumni Awards program, please contact Katrina Heisz at katrina.heisz@utoronto.ca.