Dr. Haissam Haddad Appointed as Officer of the Order of Canada

The CCS wishes to extend our sincere congratulations to Dr. Haissam (Sam) Haddad, who was appointed as an Officer of the Order of Canada this summer for his contributions to the medical field through his work at the Ottawa Heart Institute and the University of Saskatchewan.

Becoming an Officer of the Order of Canada is one of the most notable distinctions in the country. Dr. Haddad is currently the provincial head of the department of medicine with the College of Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan, the provincial head of medicine for the Saskatchewan Health Authority, and has been a CCS member for nearly thirty years – contributing significantly to the drafting of heart transplantation and heart failure management guidelines.

Previously, Dr. Haddad led the heart transplant and cardiac rehabilitation programs at Dalhousie University, was the head of the cardiac transplant and heart failure programs at the University of Ottawa’s Heart Institute, and was vice-president of medical staff at Ottawa Hospital.

Dr. Haddad has overcome significant odds to achieve his impressive career accomplishments. After practicing as a family physician for three years in his home country of Syria, he moved to Halifax, NS to live closer to his Canadian wife’s family. When he first arrived in Canada, Dr. Haddad was first told he had less than a 1% chance of ever working in the country’s medical system. He was already fluent in Arabic and French, but had to learn English before he wrote his Canadian licensing exam.

Dr. Haddad passed the exam three years after arriving in Canada and went on to study internal medicine at Dalhousie University, before becoming a cardiology resident at the University of Alberta.

“Before this award, my biggest accomplishment was to convert having no hope to hope, and to become a successful person and a physician,” said Dr. Haddad. “When I learned more about this award, I see that it summarizes my 37 years in Canada.”

On behalf of all CCS staff and members, congratulations to Dr. Haddad on this impressive accomplishment and on the inspiring work he does every day to help advance heart health for all Canadians.

Excerpts of this CCS news item were taken from https://news.usask.ca/articles/colleges/2023/medicine-overcoming-the-odds-to-receive-one-of-canadas-highest-honours.php and https://thestarphoenix.com/life/bridges/bridges-dr-haissam-haddad-is-a-visionary-cardiologist.