On Dec. 28, 2023, new appointments to the Order of Canada were announced. The Royal College would like to express our sincere congratulations to the five Fellows who were among those awarded this great honour. 

Louis Hugo Francescutti, CM, MSM, MD, FRCSC

Former Royal College President (2010-13) Dr. Louis Hugo Francescutti has been appointed for his leadership in emergency and preventive medicine, and for his advocacy of and support for society’s most vulnerable. During his presidency, Dr. Francescutti championed injury-reduction initiatives, helping position the Royal College as a national leader on this file. Following his Royal College presidential term, he served as president of the Canadian Medical Association (2013-14). 

At the University of Alberta, Dr. Francescutti is a professor in the School of Public Health and an adjunct professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine in the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry. He is also a practising emergency physician.

Dr. Francescutti developed numerous public safety programs including the founding of the Alberta Coalition for Cellphone-Free Driving in 2005 in response to the alarming number of injuries and fatalities resulting from drivers using devices on the road. After years of advocacy, his efforts resulted in legislation to control distracted driving. 

He has received numerous awards and accolades, including the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee medal in 2022 and the Meritorious Service Medal in the Military Division for promoting and supporting the Royal Canadian Medical Services in 2017. Dr. Francescutti was named one of Alberta's Top 100 Physicians of the Century in 2005. 

Anne Susan Bassett, CM, MD, FRCPC

Dr. Anne Bassett was appointed for her research and clinical contributions to advancing our understanding of the genetics of schizophrenia, particularly in the identification and characterization of genetic subtypes of the disorder. 

Dr. Bassett is a senior clinician scientist at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and at the Toronto General Hospital. She holds the Dalglish Chair in 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome at the University of Toronto and University Health Network.

An international leader in the study of the genetics of schizophrenia, she received the 2020 Lieber Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Schizophrenia Research from the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation. 

Raquel delCarpio-O’Donovan, CM, MD, FRCPC, FCAR 

Dr. Raquel delCarpio-O’Donovan has been appointed for her leadership as an esteemed neuroradiologist and for her mentorship of a generation of radiologists around the globe. 

She is a practising neuroradiologist at the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) where she is also an active lecturer and professor specializing in neuroradiology, with a focus on brain tumors, head trauma, and infectious diseases of the central nervous system. She played an integral role in the development of the Radiology Resident Program at McGill hospitals.

In 2022, Dr. delCarpio-O’Donovan was selected as an Honorary President at the annual symposium of the World Federation of Neuroradiological Societies as an acknowledgement of her substantial contributions to neuroradiology at an international level. She has received multiple accolades, including the YWCA of Montreal Women of Distinction Award, and the Canadian Association of Radiologists Gold Medal. In 2010, she was named one of the 10 most influential Hispanics in Canada, as well as the Royal College’s Mentor of the Year (Region 4). 

Deborah McColl Money, CM, MD, FRCSC

Dr. Deborah McColl Money has been recognized for her outstanding contributions to women’s health, notably in the field of reproductive infectious diseases, as a researcher, clinician, teacher and mentor. 

She advocated for universal testing for HIV in pregnant women in Canada and became the first non-American president of the U.S.-based Infectious Diseases Society for Obstetrics and Gynecology from 2010-12. 

Dr. Money has also served in various administrative roles, including as executive vice-dean of the Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia. 

She has been honoured with numerous accolades, including a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Infectious Diseases Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology in 2019 and a Fellow of the Canadian Association of Health Sciences in 2023.  

Bruce Godfrey Pollock, CM, MD, PhD, FRCPC    

Dr. Bruce Godfrey Pollock has been appointed for his pioneering contributions to geriatric psychopharmacology as a researcher, builder and educator. 

At the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, he is a senior scientist in the Adult Neurodevelopment and Geriatric Psychiatry Division. From 2008 to 2020, he served as vice president of research and director of the Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute.

Dr. Pollock is also a professor at the University of Toronto and holds the inaugural Peter and Shelagh Godsoe Chair in Late-Life Mental Health. He has led several clinical trials and received funding from the U.S. National Institutes of Health for his research on psychiatric disorders in geriatric patients. 

Recognized as a Distinguished Fellow of the Canadian Psychiatric Association and the American Psychiatric Association, Dr. Pollock received the 2017 Canadian Academy of Geriatric Psychiatry Award for Outstanding Contributions in Geriatric Psychiatry, in addition to several other prestigious awards in the field of Geriatric Psychiatry and Clinical Pharmacology.

Congratulations to all inductees for these outstanding contributions!