Rachel Bethune is a medical student in her final year at the University of Calgary. Prior to medical school, Rachel completed her Master of Public Health degree at the University of Saskatchewan where she was awarded the prestigious School of Public Health Gold Scholarship. Throughout her schooling she has participated in, chaired, or otherwise led committees that aimed to look after the welfare of and the quality of life of medical students.
As part of the Calgary Medical Students' Association, Rachel served as the VP External Affairs and has recently completed multiple student leadership roles with the Alberta Medical Association. She also served as the student representative on the College Council for the College of Physicians & Surgeons of Alberta. As a part of this role, Rachel advocated on behalf on medical students for issues that matter to them.
She also co-led the first joint AMA/CMA Advocacy Symposium, where student attendees listened to keynotes from the presidents of both organizations. This event allowed students from across various disciplines an opportunity to present their advocacy and research work and get feedback from both provincial and national physician leaders.
Her work ethic has impressed seasoned physician leaders who have seen her advocacy in action. She is known as a proven leader in the areas of patient advocacy and system organization. She has been effective in leading at both the provincial and national level, and serves as a role model for her peers and colleagues at the University of Calgary.
Part of being a role model is being professional. Rachel took on a review of professionalism policies at the Cumming School of Medicine in an effort to establish guidelines which protect students at large. Her work on this triggered a faculty-wide review of professionalism and related policies by the school's Office of Professionalism, Equity and Diversity. It was one of many standards she set in place to create an environment of respect where students can flourish.
Not only is Rachel a role model for her peers, she brings an incredibly positive infectious energy with her which helps bring out the best in people around her.