Bolton, whose field is psychiatric epidemiology, studies mental health in populations. She uses complex data analysis methods to reveal patterns in health data, such as the interrelationship between trauma, at-risk populations and suicidal behaviours.  

“I always kind of saw myself as the person running the stats,” says Bolton, who joined the Max Rady College of Medicine faculty in 2020 as an assistant professor of psychiatry, with an adjunct appointment in community health sciences.

“My role has really shifted dramatically.”

Bolton gradually took on mentorship and leadership roles during her graduate and postdoctoral work.

Now, as a faculty member, she is responsible for co-leading a large interdisciplinary team, ranging from psychiatrists and social workers to technical support staff, that provides and evaluates a virtual mental health skills training program for Manitobans through the CBTm (Cognitive Behaviour Therapy with Mindfulness) Hub.

The assistant professor is one of seven faculty members or students in the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences who have received The Winnipeg Foundation Martha Donovan Women’s Leadership Development Awards in the 2023 round of funding.

Bolton’s award will fund her to attend a two-day program, Leadership Skills for Engineering and Science Faculty, at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston this summer.

“All my leadership training has been through experience and on the job,” she says. “I’ve modelled my leadership style after my own mentors, who have been fabulous, but the majority of them are men.”

Women still face unique challenges in terms of proving themselves as capable leaders and role models, often while juggling family responsibilities, Bolton says.

“I’m hoping the program at MIT will allow me to recognize areas where I can improve my leadership skills and develop my strengths. I also hope it will help me to become a strong female role model to my team and students.”

The $250,000 Winnipeg Foundation Martha Donovan Fund was established in 2019.

“These awards give us a great opportunity to recognize and support emerging women leaders,” says Dr. Jacquie Ripat, vice-dean (academic affairs) of the Rady Faculty. “The recipients are a source of inspiration and will contribute to developing an inclusive and equitable academic environment.”

Here are the other 2023 award recipients:

Dr. Laura Chisick

Dr. Laura Chisick, assistant professor and section head of general internal medicine, will attend the Leadership Strategies for Evolving Health Care Executives program at Harvard University.

“I believe this program will give me the tools I need to navigate our health-care system at this pivotal time,” Chisick says. “As a general internist, I work every day towards improving patient care.”

Dr. Renée Douville

Dr. Renée Douville, associate professor of pharmacology and therapeutics, is taking online courses through the Yale School of Management in the areas of Women’s Leadership, Leading Teams and Leading with Power and Influence. 

Douville has been tasked with co-developing a joint master’s program in neuroscience between UM and the University of Strasbourg in France.

“I see this training as a pathway to better manage the team supporting this program and guide its future students,” she says. “My overarching goal is to grow as a female role model and leader by gaining dynamic, transferable leadership skills.”

Dr. Amanda Fowler-Woods

Dr. Amanda Fowler-Woods, assistant professor of community health sciences, will attend the Intermediate Indigenous Women in Leadership program at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity in Alberta.

She hopes to explore her potential as a driver for change in the academic and health-care systems. 

“This course will support the development of my leadership skills through connecting with other Indigenous women, teachers and Elders through land-based learning, ceremony and culture,” she says.

Dr. Zulma Rueda

Dr. Zulma Rueda, associate professor of medical microbiology and infectious diseases and Canada Research Chair in sexually transmitted infection – resistance and control, will attend a hybrid online/in-person program at Harvard University called Women Leaders: Advancing Together.

“I would like to grow my capacity and confidence to speak to those in power, enhance my negotiation skills, navigate complex situations, and recognize and overcome organizational barriers,” Rueda says. “My dream is to become a mentor who empowers and supports other women to rise and lead.”

Ellie Jack

Ellie Jack, a PhD candidate in community health sciences, has a research focus on mental health service access and financial well-being.

She will participate in a program called Leading Strategic Student Success through the Harvard University Graduate School of Education.

“I’m passionate about post-secondary education,” Jack says. “This training will help me refine my leadership skills so that in future roles as a post-secondary instructor, I can best support student development.”

Abigail Kawadza

Abigail Kawadza is a master’s student in the administration stream at the College of Nursing, which prepares graduates for careers in nursing management and administration.

Kawadza, who has been a nurse for more than a decade, will participate in the LEADS Leadership Foundations online program for health-care professionals through the Canadian College of Health Leaders.

“My area of research interest is the dynamic between nurses and leaders,” she says. “Specifically, what do nurses expect from their leaders, and how can leaders improve the nursing work environment to retain and sustain a healthy workforce?”

Dr. Catherine Cook and Elder Margaret Lavallee each received the Certificate of Merit Award, which promotes, recognizes and rewards faculty committed to medical education in Canadian medical schools.

“These awards are a testament to the important contributions by UM medical educators and learners in promoting Indigenous participation and achievement,” said Dr. Peter Nickerson, vice-provost (health sciences), dean, Max Rady College of Medicine and dean, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences. “Their dedication to medicine, equity and access is not only evident in their daily work but is also recognized and affirmed at a national level by these prestigious awards.”

He also congratulated Marissa Murray (medical student), Dr. Melinda Fowler-Woods (resident), and Dr. Amanda Fowler-Woods (graduate student) on receiving the CAME Rising Star – Certificate of Excellence Awards.

The CAME awards will be presented at a virtual award presentation taking place on Thursday, February 29, 2024 from 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm Eastern via Zoom.

Certificate of Merit recipients

The CAME Certificate of Merit Award recognizes senior faculty who have made an exceptional contribution to medical education in Canadian medical schools.

Dr. Catherine Cook

Dr. Catherine Cook
In her role as the inaugural vice-president (Indigenous) at the University of Manitoba, Dr. Catherine Cook oversaw Indigenous senior leadership projects which are integral to expanding Indigenous representation in classrooms and in leadership, creating supports and structures for Indigenous success, and advancing reconciliation at UM. She previously served as vice-dean (Indigenous health) at the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences.

Elder Margaret Lavallee

Elder Margaret Lavallee

Margaret Lavallee is the Elder-in-Residence at Ongomiizwin – Indigenous Institute of Health and Healing in the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences. She is dedicated to expanding knowledge and providing cultural and spiritual guidance to students. Upon receiving her honorary degree by UM in 2022, she said her dream is to have more Indigenous students entering health-care professions.

Rising Star — Certificate of Excellence recipients

The CAME Rising Star — Certificate of Excellence Award recognizes learners who have demonstrated a commitment to medical education that has had a positive impact on the health professions education community.

Marissa Murray

Marissa Murray

Third-year medical student Marissa Murray holds a unique gift with her ability to teach those around her. Her commitment to uplifting her peers in combination with her remarkable way of knowledge sharing makes Marissa a champion of Indigenous learner success.

Dr. Melinda Fowler-Woods

Dr. Melinda Fowler-Woods

Dr. Melinda Fowler-Woods’ commitment to working with traditional medicines alongside western medicine goes beyond her own knowledge and practice, as she also values creating space for future Indigenous physicians to learn about traditional medicines as well.  

Dr. Amanda Fowler-Woods

Dr. Amanda Fowler-Woods

A recent PhD graduate, Dr. Amanda Fowler-Woods’ research work leads with the utmost respect for Indigenous peoples, Indigenous communities, and Indigenous health and is recognized as a valuable contribution to the health of Indigenous peoples.

The course, titled Indigenous People, Health and Research: Doing Research in a Good Way, is offered in relationship with Dr. Wanda Phillips-Beck, who was named Manitoba’s first Indigenous Research Chair in Nursing in 2020. It will integrate Indigenous ceremony, land-based learning opportunities, talking circles and knowledge from Indigenous Knowledge Keepers and scholars.

Wanda Phillips-Beck

“We are excited to see this course emerge, which is a step towards creating a culturally safe workforce and a culturally responsive health research community, both of which are key goals of my chair award,” Phillips-Beck said.

An adjunct professor with the College of Nursing, Phillips-Beck is an Anishinaabekwe from the Hollow Water territory on the eastern shore of Lake Winnipeg. She has been a practicing registered nurse for over three decades and all her work has been with Indigenous people.

“We want to provide an environment of learning, scholarship and opportunities to do research and learn about Indigenous people and culture. This course opens spaces to understand there are different perspectives and worldviews that come into play when you are conducting research,” Phillips-Beck said.

Amanda Fowler-Woods, a PhD candidate in the department of community health sciences at the Max Rady College of Medicine, said the course will take a “deeper dive” into Indigenous methodology for health research, something she noticed was missing in her course work.

Amanda Fowler-Woods

“With the approval of my advisors, I started to put together a reading course that would help me do that deep work, looking at scholars who use Indigenous methodologies and learning what that really means for me,” she said.

Fowler-Woods is excited to be sharing her reading course experiences and learnings with other graduate students at the University of Manitoba.

“Relationship with other people is the foundation of Indigenous methodologies,” she said. “We are also extending that relationship out to the community by involving Elders and Knowledge Keepers and incorporating their expertise into the course.”

An Anishinaabe woman born and raised in Thunder Bay, Ont., Fowler-Woods has been a research associate at  Ongomiizwin – Indigenous Institute of Health and Healing for the last decade. Much of her work is centred on achieving health equity for Indigenous people in Canada.

Dr. Annette Schultz

Nursing professor Dr. Annette Schultz is co-leading the course with Phillips-Beck and Fowler-Woods. She said the course is open to any Indigenous or non-Indigenous graduate student interested in health research.

“Both the relational process with course development and delivery along with Indigenous authored course materials, are evidence of the College of Nursing’s actions towards meeting its strategic priorities concerning Indigenous people and decolonization,” Schultz said.

Both researchers are located in Max Rady College of Medicine departments and are advised by Dr. Annette Schultz of the College of Nursing.

Dr. Anna Chudyk, a postdoctoral fellow in the department of family medicine, and Amanda Fowler-Woods, a PhD candidate in community health sciences, are both first-time recipients of the SPOR national training fellowship.

Both said they are honoured to have their work recognized by CIHR and receive their fellowships, which were created to support development of leaders in the field of patient-oriented research.

Dr. Anna Chudyk

Chudyk was awarded $70,000 per year plus a research stipend for three years for her work on the theory and application of patient-oriented research, which she is leading in collaboration with patients, the departments of family medicine and surgery, College of Nursing, Faculty of Kinesiology and Recreation Management and St. Boniface Hospital Research Centre researchers.

“My current projects are focused on developing a deep theoretical understanding of patient-oriented research and applying this knowledge to enhance capacity for patient-oriented research, both within St. Boniface Hospital Research Centre and the broader Canadian patient-oriented research community,” she said.

Chudyk began her research career by obtaining a master’s degree in epidemiology and biostatistics from the University of Western Ontario. While at the University of British Columbia, she found an interest in applying her research skills to helping people in the community through participatory research, which brought her to UM last year.

“I truly believe that those affected by a problem should be actively involved in the generation of solutions to it, and that individuals’ reflections on their first-hand experiences are essential to effecting individual and social change,” she said.

While this is her first SPOR fellowship, her master’s and PhD studies were also supported by national CIHR scholarships through the Frederick Banting and Charles Best Canada Graduate Scholarship and Vanier Canada Graduate scholarship programs.

Amanda Fowler-Woods

Fowler-Woods received $50,000 per year for two years for her Indigenous health research. A two-time UM alumna who works regularly with Ongomiizwin – Indigenous Institute of Health and Healing, she said this is the first time she’s received CIHR funding for work that she leads, although she has worked on several other CIHR-funded projects.

“This fellowship will allow me two years to finish my dissertation research project, which is part of a larger project initiated through Shared Health which involves the development of a system for the collection of racial and ethnic identifier data within the Manitoba health-care system.  This is something we don’t do consistently in Canada, but is being done in other countries, like the U.S., New Zealand, Australia and the U.K.,” she said.

She said the award will also help with her work at UM’s George & Fay Yee Centre for Healthcare Innovation, where she is working to incorporate Indigenous health perspectives throughout its various platforms.

“As an Indigenous researcher, it has always been important to me that my work is focused on the health of Indigenous peoples,” said Fowler-Woods, who grew up in Thunder Bay, Ont. “I have a very strong connection to my Ojibwe culture and I feel very fortunate that this fellowship will allow me to continue my work in this area.”