MANITOULIN—The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO) recently announced that Mindemoya general practitioner Doctor Andrew Stadnyk would be the recipient of a 2015 Outstanding Physician Council Award.
“The criteria for selecting a physician for the Council Award are based on the eight physician roles identified by ‘Educating Future Physicians of Ontario,’ in 1993,” the CPSO’s website explains, adding that “these roles reflect the many needs and expectations of our society and outline an archetype of the ‘ideal physician.’
“This is a campaign that was first started a couple of years ago,” said Dr. Nick Jeeves who, along with Dr. Maurianne Reade, spearheaded the nomination of Dr. Stadnyk for the award. “When you are talking about 20,000 plus doctors in Ontario, and the (CPSO) is the governing body for this profession, the council meets four times a year and presents a similar award at each meeting, so only four doctors receive this award yearly—it is a significant honour.”
In his typically modest response, Dr. Stadnyk said, “I just find it a little awkward when there are so many other doctors across the Island and province that are more deserving. It’s a little funny to be singled out for this award.”
That is a sentiment belied by the many letters of support that came in response to his nomination from the Island’s broader community. “We went to people to supply supporting letters for the nominations, from doctors, the hospital CEO support staff, the hospital and community members,” recalled Dr. Jeeves. “The nomination supporting letters were sent by a mixture of people in the community who know Andy’s history in health care, his work and involvement in the community.”
“This is precisely why he’s getting this type of award,” said Dr. Jeeves of Dr. Stadnyk’s response, describing his colleague as “a person so humble, who has set such a high standard of care for his patients, is a good parent and family man, faithful to his church, plays hockey and is so involved in the community and is a nice guy. In all his dealings with people, he does it with compassionate, thought and care.”
Dr. Stadnyk pointed out he and his family moved to the Island in the summer of 1982 and that he started at the Mindemoya hospital at the beginning of August of that year. He had previously gone to medical school in Saskatchewan on a rotating internship. He then fulfilled a family practice residency in Michigan, was an assistant director of the family practice residency in Battlecreek, before moving to Manitoulin. A decision he said he has never looked back on.
“Oh yes, Manitoulin has been a good place for my wife and I and our kids to live in,” said Dr. Stadnyk.
The Manitoulin medial community has felt much the same about their arrival here.
“One of the core features of practice at our small, five physician hospital has been our daily, multi-disciplinary patient rounds, something that Andy has championed over the years,” said Dr. Jeeves. “This has enabled practitioners the opportunity to share information around patient care while affording a venue for ongoing case-based peer teaching and learning. It has also been an effective patient safety measure. The care of individual patients is frequently enhanced by the ability for others to contribute new ideas, research-based information or professional experience that add to the management or help to identify the potential for adverse outcomes. It further adds to the cohesion of the team and the sense of mutual respect. Lastly, it has been a valuable and enjoyable learning venue for our students and residents.”
Dr. Stadnyk will be presented with his award at a September meeting of the CPSO council.
