Dr. Michael Klein of Roberts Creek has been named to the Order of Canada.
Klein will be invested as a Member of the Order at a ceremony later this year.
Gov.- Gen. David Johnston announced 113 appointments to the Order earlier this month. They include 85 Members, 27 Officers and one Companion.
According to officials at Rideau Hall, Klein is being recognized “for his sustained contributions to integrating family medicine and maternity care in Canada.”
Klein’s family provided Coast Reporter with some additional biographical details:
“Refusing to serve in the U.S. Army Medical Corps during the Vietnam War, he fled to Canada in 1967 with his wife Bonnie. He became a family practitioner, pediatrician, advocate, professor, and researcher at McGill and UBC.
“Michael Klein has played a vital role in placing maternity care at the heart of family medicine. Motivated by concerns over the harmful effects of certain then widespread medical interventions, he pushed for the adoption of family-friendly birth practices, the re-introduction of midwifery and the elimination of routine intrusive interventions such as episiotomy. An influential mentor to many, his approaches are now widely adopted in maternity care.”
Klein is also well know for his work with the group Canadian Doctors for Medicare, and he was one of the invited speakers at the June 29 town hall meeting on Vancouver Coastal Health’s proposed changes to long-term care on the Sunshine Coast.
