Thomas receives Lifetime Achievement Award

The College of Family Physicians of Canada has awarded Dr. Roger Thomas a Lifetime Achievement award. The award recognizes Thomas as a trailblazer and leader in family medicine research, and honours his contributions to family medicine research during his career.

Thomas, a professor in the Department of Family Medicine and a member of the Institute for Public Health, attributes the award to working with many exceptional people over the years.

"My research frequently involves the efforts of diligent teams located in Australia, Canada, Oxford, Italy, Portugal and Saudi Arabia,” he says, adding that it’s very encouraging to have the opportunity to meet with and mentor students and researchers.

His own research currently includes systematic reviews assessing the effectiveness of influenza vaccine; and interventions in schools, families and with mentors to prevent children and adolescents from starting to smoke. He is the lead author on a recently published systematic review in the Cochrane Library based on the effectiveness of smoking prevention programs in schools in 25 different countries. 

The award was presented to Dr. Thomas at the Section of Researchers Annual Dinner during the annual Family Medicine Forum (FMF) in Vancouver, BC, in November 2013.