Physician of the Year Award

The Physician of the Year Award honours a physician who has demonstrated exceptional dedication to the clinical care of patients living with Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis.

This award recognizes a clinician whose expertise, compassion, and unwavering commitment have profoundly impacted the lives of their patients and families.

Recipients embody the highest standards of patient-centered care, advocating tirelessly for their patients, offering guidance and support, often beyond normal “office” hours, and consistently going above and beyond to ensure the best possible outcomes. Their leadership and devotion strengthen the quality of care across the inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) community and elevate the standard of support patients rely on every day.

The Physician of the Year recipient will be recognized at the annual Meeting of the Minds conference in Toronto.

Nominations for this award close on August 14, 2026, 5:00 pm ET. The recipient will be notified by the end of September.

Nomination Criteria

Open to IBD physicians in Canada
Nominations may be submitted by patients or fellow clinicians

Past Recipients

2025 Dr. David Schaeffer, Vancouver, BC
2024 Dr. John Marshall, Hamilton, ON
2023 Dr. Farhad Peerani, Edmonton, AB
2022 Dr. Adam Weizman, Toronto, ON
2021 Dr. Premysl Bercik, Hamilton, ON
2020 Dr. Remo Panaccione, Calgary, AB
2019 Dr. Kerri Novak, Calgary, AB
2018 Dr. Ian Epstein, Halifax, NS
2017 Dr. Jennifer Jones, Halifax, NS
2016 Dr. Tony Otley, Halifax, NS

Nomination Form

Nominee's Name:

Nominee's Role/Title:

Nominee's Organization:

Nominee's Email:

Nominee's phone number:

( ) -

Name:

Name of person nominating an individual

Relationship to Nominee:

e.g. Patient

Organization:

Organization of person nominating an individual

Email:

Email of person nominating an individual

Phone number:

( ) -

Phone number of person nominating an individual

Exceptional contributions to clinical care:

Describe how the nominee has exceptionally contributed to the delivery of clinical care to patients with Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. (max 250 words)

Patient advocacy:

Describe how this individual has advocated for their patients and has been a hero for them, often going "above and beyond" what is expected from a physician. (max 250 words)

Additional Information:

Please upload any information you believe will be of assistance to the Selection Panel as it considers this nomination. If you have any additional supporting materials (e.g. letters of support), you may attach them as a pdf document below. (max 250 words)

Upload support file 1:

Upload support file 2:

Security code:

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Contact

For questions about Crohn's and Colitis Canada research grants or awards, please contact:

Research Grants Administrator
Tel: (416) 920-5035 ext. 252
Email: research...crohnsandcolitis...ca

Quick FactFaits en bref

Canada has among the highest incidence rates of Crohn's and colitis in the world.
1 in 140 Canadians lives with Crohn’s or colitis.
Families new to Canada are developing these diseases for the first time.
Incidence of Crohn’s in Canadian kids under 10 has doubled since 1995.
People are most commonly diagnosed before age 30.

Other Areas of Interest

Awards