When we think of advocacy and the effort required to ensure our profession can thrive, our thoughts turn to Dr. Walter Rosser, who sadly passed away earlier this month.
Dr. Rosser was President of the Ontario College of Family Physicians from 1998-1999 and while our organization and our members were fortunate to have benefited from his leadership, we would be remiss if we did not remind members of his contributions to the profession.
Dr. Rosser practiced medicine for more than a half century, and aside from being known for his dedication to the patients he cared for in the Kingston community, Dr. Rosser was a researcher, teacher and the Chair of Family Medicine at four different universities in Ontario, including University of Ottawa, McMaster University, University of Toronto and Queen’s University.
For his dedication to family medicine and research, Dr. Rosser was presented with a lifetime achievement award from the CFPC in 2008, being recognized as a trailblazer and leader in the field, and in 2015, he was recognized as one of the 20 pioneers in family medicine research.
Dr. Rosser was also awarded the Order of Canada in 2010, for helping to advance the field of family medicine and for contributing to the evolution of primary care research in Canada. Specifically, the Governor General noted that Dr. Rosser was most influential in building mechanisms for the review and evaluation of health care systems, notably helping to establish practice-based research networks in Canada.
The OCFP will honour Dr. Rosser at our upcoming Awards Ceremony on November 16, 2022 and here you can find the CFPC’s In Memoriam.