Thunder Bay medical student wins Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Award

For third-year NOSM University medical student Emma Harland, who studies in her hometown of Thunder Bay, winning the 2024 Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Award for Medical Students is an important recognition of her work to improve social accountability in Northern Ontario. This significant national award recognizes students who demonstrate perseverance, collaboration, an entrepreneurial spirit, and who show outstanding potential as future health care leaders and innovators in Canada. 

“I’m very honoured to receive this award,” Harland says. “For me, it serves as a source of encouragement to continue the work that I’m doing in health promotion in Northern Ontario and the work that I’m doing to help maximize social accountability in medical education. I take it as a vote of confidence from both the NOSM University community and the broader medical community in my skills and abilities as a student leader and future physician.” 

Community leadership is an important aspect of the award. Harland was acknowledged for her commitment to the community within NOSM University and in Thunder Bay, including work with Compass North, a student-led organization that conducts community health outreach. At NOSM University, Harland has helped to produce a trivia app to study attitudes and perceptions of substance use, and she has been involved with a study of community members that helps to improve social accountability at NOSM University.  

Harland acknowledges the support that NOSM University faculty and colleagues have given her throughout her medical education.  

“I’m incredibly grateful for the NOSM University community as well as the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame and the sponsors of the award, who serve to recognize young leaders across Canada,” Harland says. 

Before attending NOSM University, Harland earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Lakehead University. She will complete her third year of medical school, called the Comprehensive Community Clerkship, in Sault Ste. Marie.  

Recipients of the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Award in 2024 receive a cash prize of $5,000 and a travel subsidy to attend the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in Hamilton, where they will have the opportunity to meet Hall of Fame laureates and interact with health leaders from across the country.