Clinical Educator Awards showcase Michener’s clinical partners

Crystal Apple and Values-in-Action awards recognize Michener’s clinical partners for their positive impact on students

Michener’s clinical placements are often the first opportunity that students have to interact directly with patients and put knowledge learned in the classroom to practice in the clinical setting. Clinical Educators facilitate this process, providing hands-on guidance to the next generation of healthcare professionals.

For Radiological Technology student Desmond Chau, his clinical placement at Lakeridge Health in Oshawa transformed his perspective of his education and his future career, thanks to Clinical Coordinator Gail Sharko.

Gail’s commitment to her students goes above and beyond, says Desmond. “Many of the staff were, at one point, one of her students,” he wrote in his nomination for Gail’s Crystal Apple Award. “It is clear that she has left a lasting impression on all of them.”

Desmond’s nomination was inspired by Gail’s focus on patient-centred care, he wrote. “She was less critical about the technical aspects of our profession and focused on the humane aspects of our profession.”

“We’re going to have better professionals in the future if we can keep to the original roots of patient-centred care,” Gail believes.

Equally important for Gail is that students understand the true impact of their education and continue to learn. “It’s a sense of purpose to continue on with the academics,” Gail states. “You’re going to go back and all that physics stuff that you didn’t think you needed, now you know you need it. There is a purpose because there’s a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.”

Michener students nominate Clinical Coordinators and Educators for the Clinical Recognition Awards to thank them for the invaluable mentorship they received during the clinical phase of their program.

For many Clinical Coordinators, the recognition that Clinical Educators receives from their students is more meaningful than professional recognition. “I’m passionate about teaching, so I was thrilled when I got a Crystal Apple,” says Ann-Marie McLaren, Clinical Coordinator at St. Michael’s Hospital Foot and Wound Clinic.

She remembers what it was like when she was a student at Michener and she brings that to her teaching. Jason Liu, a recent graduate from Michener’s Chiropody program, nominated Ann-Marie for the Crystal Apple Award for her refreshing approach to teaching. “She finds ways to challenge the way you think about foot and wound care,” he wrote in the nomination.

“You always think about what it’s like to be a student, and what they’re all going through, and I try to really think about that when they’re in a clinical setting with me,” Ann-Marie says.

Ann-Marie and Gail are two of eight Clinical Coordinators and Educators who received Crystal Apple Awards for their excellence in teaching and supervision at this year’s Clinical Educators’ Day at Michener on November 13. Over 180 attendees gathered for clinical education-focused sessions along with Michener’s annual Clinical Recognition Awards.

Nine additional Clinical Coordinators and Educators received Values-in-Action awards to celebrate their dedication to Michener’s values and two Clinical Coordinators received the Team Innovation in Clinical Education Award.

“The awards recognize our clinical educators for the outstanding contribution to the clinical education of our students,” says Cathy Babiak, Michener’s Clinical Liaison Officer.

Says Gail, “I look in that room and I see people who are committed to patients and students, and I know we’re all doing the right thing.”

Find out more about clinical education at The Michener Institute and how to become a clinical partner