Dr. Cathy Scrimshaw
Pincher Creek, AB
2016

cathy-scrimshawWorking as a rural family doctor in Pincher Creek Alberta for the past 24 years, Dr. Cathy Scrimshaw is passionate about implementing the medical home and integrating primary care within the health care system as a whole. Her practice received funding to develop a culturally sensitive and appropriate rural generalist primary care program. Dr. Scrimshaw and her fellow physicians are leaders in developing interdisciplinary teams in community practices, as well as integrating primary and acute care services in their community.

Dr. Scrimshaw graduated from medical school at the University of Calgary in 1987. In 1989 she completed the family medicine residency program at Memorial University of Newfoundland.

Dr. Scrimshaw’s decision to enter family medicine was influenced by an elective conducted in a small northern Alberta town. While there, she met family doctors doing everything from deliveries to surgery, from emergency work to clinics. For her, family medicine provides the opportunity to practise to the full breadth of her training, and it constantly challenges her. The strong relationships that she has with her patients have been one of the most rewarding aspects of her career.

 

Jean-Pierre Despins Award

 
This award is named in memory of Dr. Jean-Pierre Despins, past CFPC president (1995–1996) and past chair of the Board of the CFPC’s Research and Education Foundation (1999–2000)(now the Foundation for Advancing Family Medicine). The award is presented annually to honour a CFPC family physician member who has been identified as an outstanding advocate and public spokesperson for both family medicine and family physicians and their patients.