Émilie Gagnon MD CM

Roger Ladouceur

Dr Émilie Gagnon is a “brand new” family physician. So new, in fact, that she is not a family physician yet. She is actually a first-year resident in Laval University’s regional family practice unit in Rimouski, Que. When I contacted her about this article, she asked me candidly, “Are you sure that I can be one of the Faces of Family Medicine?”

If Émilie is in medicine, it is because of McGill University and its admissions policy based on equity and diversity. It took Dr Gagnon’s unique background and training into account; it was responsible for her choosing the field of medicine. Émilie was born and grew up in the town of Gaspé, Que, in the Gaspé Peninsula. She attended elementary and secondary school there, before attending Cégep de la Gaspésie et des Îles. Then came the move to Montreal and a university with a great reputation.

However, it is her own choice to be in the field of family medicine. As is true in many predoctoral training programs, family medicine was not pushed at McGill. Her fellow students and even her teachers tended to disapprove of her choice, which prompted her to enrol in McGill’s family medicine interest group in her first year.

Why family medicine? One of the reasons, she thinks, is her family doctor when she was a child. “He was a real family doctor who did everything,” she said. Another reason is the range of opportunities and challenges that family medicine offers. She is a person who likes to get involved, to practise a range of skills, and to roll up her sleeves. The word challenge is not a part of her vocabulary. In high school, she enrolled in the Academics and Sports Program, practising figure skating and going on to become a coach. She has participated in one Canadian Figure Skating Championships and in several marathons. She is a determined and energetic person. She later became Co-Chair of the Section of Medical Students of the College of Family Physicians of Canada and is now the Resident Representative at the Quebec College of Family Physicians.

Émilie is a dynamic young woman who is always on the move. Meet the new face of family medicine—the next generation!

“The word challenge is not a part of her vocabulary”

PHOTOS (LEFT): Dr Gagnon catching up on some reading (top). Dr Gagnon with her mother, Hélène Lebreux (left), and with her sister-in-law, Maude Provencher, and friends Gabrielle Tchang and Léandre Gagné Lemieux.

PHOTOS (RIGHT): Dr Gagnon keeping active and racing with her sister, Véronique Gagnon.

Footnotes

Dr Gagnon is a family medicine resident at Laval University, completing her residency in Rimouski, Que.
PHOTOS: Roger St-Laurent, Gaspé, Que
TEXTE/STORY: Roger Ladouceur, Verdun, Que
THE COVER PROJECT Canadian Family Physician has embarked on a project to assemble the portrait of family medicine in Canada. Each cover of the journal features a family physician chosen at random from our membership list, along with a short essay—a brief glimpse of the person and the practice. Over time, the randomness will become representative and the differences, taken together, will define what it is that all family physicians have in common.