For cardiologist Dr. Paul Galiwango, the best part about being a physician is the privilege of helping to improve the health and well-being of his patients. That's why he's so committed to helping to open doors for visible minority students who may be considering a career in medicine. The physician, who joined Rouge Valley Health System's Regional Cardiac Care Program in November, has volunteered his time speaking with students at some Toronto-area schools.

 

"Rouge Valley's Regional Cardiac Care Program is one of the very best within the eastern Greater Toronto Area. We welcome Dr. Galiwango to our strong medical team of cardiologists here, and we look forward to the contribution he'll make to the patients and staff here at Rouge Valley," says Sonia Peczeniuk, vice president of medical affairs and clinical support at RVHS.

 

Dr. Galiwango will see patients suffering from cardiovascular illness at both hospital campuses. "I look forwarding to helping to make Rouge Valley a leader in cardiovascular imaging, and to contribute to the Cardiac Computed Tomography (CT) program, which is a valuable resource to the communities of east Toronto and west Durham region. This should be a nice complement to the strong interventional cardiology and electrophysiology programs that are already in place at RVHS," says Dr. Galiwango. "Cardiology is particularly appealing, as heart disease is a major source of morbidity and mortality in Canada. So working in this field you're able to positively impact a large number of people from a diverse cross-section of the population. It's quite gratifying to be able to improve patients' well-being and longevity."

The Ontario Volunteer Service Awards honour the thousands of people who generously contribute their time as volunteers across Ontario. These awards are an important way to recognize volunteers who have provided service over many years.

 

The Volunteer Service awards are given to people who volunteer their time to a single organization for several years. Only organizations can enter nominations for the Volunteer Service Awards. Any organization that has been providing service for five years or more can nominate up to seven volunteers.

 

The deadline is January 25, and the nomination forms can be downloaded online.

I have worked for the Rouge Valley Health System Foundation for almost 8 years.  So when it came time for my total hip replacement, I never for a moment considered going anywhere but Rouge Valley Ajax and Pickering.  I wanted to have the surgery close to home.