I have spent enough years in emergency medicine to know that pressure reveals character. The past year asked a great deal of Canada’s health systems and the people who work in them. Time and again, I saw the AFMC community respond with leadership, collaboration and purpose. 

We invested in our future. This year, we welcomed Simon Fraser University as AFMC’s 19th member faculty and celebrated the arrival of the inaugural class at the Stephens Family School of Medicine. As the first new medical school in Western Canada in nearly 60 years, its opening marks an important step toward improving access to care across British Columbia. 

We stood with our learners. When unexpected policy and regulatory changes created uncertainty, AFMC worked closely with faculties and national partners to ensure learners had the clarity and support they needed. We also continued reducing barriers across the medical education journey, by easing financial pressures, expanding access to visiting electives and making trusted information and support easier to find through MEDPREPP et Learner Connect. 

We brought people together to lead. At ICAM 2026, AFMC convened 1,920 delegates from Canada and around the world to explore the issues defining health research and medical education. Seeing 606 learners among them was especially encouraging. It was a powerful reminder that some of our best ideas come from bringing diverse voices into the same conversation, and that the future of academic medicine is already taking shape through the leadership of the next generation. 

We acted on our values. AFMC continued moving commitments to anti-racism, wellbeing, planetary health and health equity into practice. Through national initiatives, partnerships and shared learning opportunities, we are creating healthier, safer and more inclusive learning and working environments across academic medicine. 

Some of our most important work happened out of the spotlight. With the integration of Toronto Metropolitan University, our national data ecosystem now includes all 19 faculties of medicine, providing the most complete picture of medical education in Canada to date. The evidence helps faculties, governments and health system leaders make more informed decisions about medical education and health workforce planning. 

This was year two of AFMC 2024–2027 Strategic Plan, and it showed what AFMC does best. We connect people, evidence and expertise from across the country to advance social accountability, medical education and health research. 

None of this would be possible without the more than 1,200 volunteer faculty members, learners and patient partners who contributed more than 800 hours of meeting time this year, working alongside 53 AFMC staff, our Board of Directors, sponsors and collaborators. Their time, expertise and commitment are what give this community its strength. On behalf of our Board, thank you. 

As we enter the final year of our Strategic Plan, my optimism is grounded not only in what we hope to achieve, but in what we have already accomplished together. We will continue to listen closely, work across boundaries and keep learners, patients and communities at the centre of everything we do. 

Ensemble vers l’avenir!

Connie