Award: Medical student Gali Katznelson receives Canadian Medical Hall of Fame award
Gali Katznelson, Medicine Class of 2022, has been selected for a 2020 Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Award for Medical Students, awarded to medical students with an established track record of community leadership, advanced communication skills and a demonstrated commitment to advancing medical knowledge based on recommendations from their medical school.
At the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Katznelson serves as class president, a writer for the ethics and law section of a student journal, and co-lead for the Political Advocacy Committee’s free tax clinic initiative. She has led student volunteer initiatves with newcomer, homeless and women’s health services in the London community, as well as efforts to start a local student-run clinic.
Katznelson, passionate about health policy and bioethics, is also involved in the broader medical community in her capacity as a student representative on the Canadian Medical Association Committee on Ethics.
After completing her undergraduate degree at McMaster University, Katznelson obtained a master’s degree in bioethics from Harvard University. During her master’s training, she was a student fellow at the Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy, Biotechnology and Bioethics at Harvard Law School, where she later returned as a research assistant. She worked with her mentors on research surrounding the ethics of artificial intelligence, opioid policy, solitary confinement, medical education, genetic testing and pandemic response.
“My dream is to use my status as a physician and skills in bioethics to influence health policy,” Katznelson wrote in her application for the award. “I hope to achieve an impactful career guided by a commitment to health as a human right.”
Recipients of the CMFH Award for Medical Students receive a cash prize of $5000 and a travel subsidy to receive their award in person, at the 2021 Canadian Medical Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Vancouver, British Columbia.
