Dr. Felix Ankel: 2020 International Medical Educator of the Year Award recipient
Dr. Felix Ankel is professor of emergency medicine at the University of Minnesota and Associate Dean for Medical School Faculty at HealthPartners hospital in Minneapolis, Minnesota. As his colleagues put it, Dr. Ankel is an incubator, provocateur, mensch, futurist and idea collider who enhances instructional innovation, humanistic education and workforce readiness for the future of healthcare.
A leader in innovation
Dr. Ankel has consistently shown a strong commitment to improving residency and health professions education. He has been integral to the adoption of modern educational frameworks such as competency-based medical education at his home institution, and at the regional, national and international levels. He has transformed his local emergency medicine residency program into a paragon of innovation and scholarship deeply rooted in modern educational theory. And he has led the creation of an institute focused on multidisciplinary health professions education that has inspired similar initiatives across Minnesota.
But Dr. Ankel is more than just a leader in adopting proven practices. He is ahead of the curve, known for leading in areas of innovation that have later become commonplace. As one example, he incorporated quality projects into the program at HealthPartners hospital long before the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education required them.
A committed and ethical mentor
Deeply committed to ethics, self-reflection and humanism, Dr. Ankel is fondly known for keeping a poster in his office of the Spike Lee film “Do the Right Thing” – a motto he uses to ensure his residency program is promoting humanistic medicine, and ethical education and clinical work.
He is a tireless mentor and sponsor who actively promotes junior faculty for international speaking opportunities. And he creates leadership roles that propel the next generation of academicians and clinician educators toward their own illustrious careers. Dr. Ankel is recognized as a world expert on the integration of educational theory and clinical practice. In addition to traditional scholarship, he is known for leveraging social media and professional learning networks to reach as many learners and educators as possible. A systems thinker, Dr. Ankel thinks globally and acts locally.
Dr. Ankel has demonstrated a combination of innovation, global thought leadership and ethical humanism throughout a distinguished career that more than qualifies him as recipient of the Royal College’s International Medical Educator of the Year Award.
Dr. Ankel will be recognized and celebrated during the virtual ICRE series on January 13, 2021.
