UBC Medicine community members honoured by Indigenous Physicians Association of Canada
Press Release
June 11, 2026
Two UBC Faculty of Medicine community members have been honoured with Indigenous Physicians Association of Canada (IPAC) Awards for their work advancing Indigenous health and strengthening the wellbeing of Indigenous peoples across the country.
The awards, which honour Indigenous physicians, residents and medical students, celebrate leadership grounded in relationship, mentorship, advocacy and responsibility to community and the environment. Awardees demonstrate a dedication to collective care, shared responsibility and a commitment to the wellbeing of future generations.
Recipients were recently honoured during the 2026 IPAC Annual Mentorship Gathering on June 5.
Faculty of Medicine recipients
Sacred Land Award
The award recognizes a First Nations, Inuit and/or Métis physician, medical resident or medical student in Canada who champions planetary health as human health through an Indigenous lens.
Dr. Shannon Waters, Clinical Assistant Professor, School of Population and Public Health
Dr. Waters, a member of the Stz’uminus First Nation, is the Deputy Provincial Health Officer for Planetary and Water Health. Her health leadership priorities include connection to the environment, mental wellbeing and maternal, child and family wellbeing. Dr. Waters earned her medical degree at UBC, trained at the Indigenous site of UBC’s family medicine residency program and completed an additional residency at UBC’s public health and preventative medicine program.
Medical Student Leadership Award
The award recognizes a First Nations, Inuit and/or Métis medical student in Canada who demonstrates a dedication to leadership within their personal, cultural and medical communities.
Dr. Denna Flett, MD Class of 2026
Denna Flett, a member of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation, is a graduate of the UBC Faculty of Medicine MD Class of 2026. Throughout her training, Denna was a member of the Truth and Reconciliation (TRC) Report Card Project. This student-led team uplifts the voices of Indigenous medical students across Canada to evaluate how well their institutions are responding to the TRC Calls to Action 23 and 24. Denna also served as the UBC Medical Undergraduate Society’s Indigenous Health President, where she founded the organization’s first Indigenous Health Circle, a community devoted to shared decision-making and building community.
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UBC Faculty of Medicine
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