Sopman Humanitarian Awards Recipients
Those who attended last month's event included, (Back, L to R): Dr. Mali Worme, Michele Wright, Dr. Joel Moktar, James Barlen, Dr. Matthew Lenardis; (Front, L to R): Michael Sopman, Dr. Anne-Sophie Laliberte, Judy Sopman, Dr. Mena Gewarges, Jasqueen Suen, Dr. Michael Bonares. (Photo: Adam Sopman)

Being a healthcare professional is an extraordinary achievement, but being an exceptional one – one who shows unparalleled empathy, compassion and kindness – is truly a gift.

Michael and Judy Sopman, longtime friends of UHN, last month welcomed guests to their home to celebrate the 38th Annual Sopman Humanitarian Awards, an evening that showcases dedication to the care and service of humanity at UHN.

Unique to UHN, the awards were established by the Sopman family nearly four decades ago to recognize emerging physicians, surgeons and nurses who, in addition to their academic and clinical excellence, have demonstrated profound compassion toward their patients and colleagues.

"The Sopman Humanitarian Awards is a particularly special event for UHN," says Dr. Ed Cole. "We often get so busy that we can forget why we're here: to offer compassionate care to our patients."

At this year's awards ceremony, Dr. Joy Richards presented awards to those from the Department of Nursing, Dr. George Oreopoulos presented awards to recipients from the Department of Surgery, and Dr. Ed Cole, also MC of the event, presented awards to the recipients from the Department of Medicine.

Special remarks were made by Dr. Kieran Murphy, an interventional neuroradiologist at the Krembil Neuroscience Centre and Joint Department of Medical Imaging at UHN. Dr. Murphy highlighted his personal experience with humanitarian care and the importance of incorporating compassion into our jobs and everyday life.

The Sopman Awards underscore that UHN is fortunate to be able to continuously attract the best and the brightest young stars who are not only knowledgeable and talented, but who exemplify core values of the UHN Purpose, Values & Principles by operating with compassion and putting patients first.

"These awards remind us of the most important aspect of healthcare and reward those trainees who are our best practitioners," says Dr. Cole. "The list of past winners is full of many who have moved on to have outstanding and meaningful careers."

Congratulations to this year's Sopman Humanitarian Award recipients:

Nursing
James Barlen
Jasqueen Suen
Michele Wright

Surgery
Urology – Dr. Matthew Lenardis
Orthopaedic Surgery – Dr. Joel Moktar
Thoracic Surgery – Dr. Anne-Sophie Laliberté

Department of Medicine
Dr. Mena Gewarges
Dr. Michael Bonares
Dr. Mali Worme​

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