Dr. Maureen Topps Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Assessment of Clinical Competence

The Saskatchewan International Physician Practice Assessment (SIPPA) was piloted in 2011 as a made-in-Saskatchewan Practice Ready Assessment program for internationally trained family physicians to meet the needs of rural and underserved communities across the province. Dr. Witt has served as medical director of SIPPA since 2014. Under his leadership, SIPPA has grown into a foundational pillar of the province’s physician workforce strategy, having assessed over 650 physicians who have collectively supported care for almost 1 million patients across Saskatchewan over the program’s history. SIPPA is recognized nationally as a leader in Practice Ready Assessment and is a founding participant of the Medical Council of Canada’s National Assessment Collaboration PRA program.

SIPPA has demonstrated a strong commitment to continuous improvement and system responsiveness, expanding its programming over time to meet evolving health care needs. The dedicated efforts of the SIPPA team and Dr. Witt have helped build sustainable pathways that bring skilled physicians into the communities that need them most. His leadership has led to a model of physician integration and support that is now looked to as a benchmark across the country.

At any given time, over 150 physicians are engaged in the program. Led by Dr. Witt, SIPPA’s collaborative model works closely with government, regulators, and the health system, which has been critical to its success and scalability.

Dr. Jon Witt is an emergency physician and faculty member at the University of Saskatchewan who has spent more than a quarter of a century advancing clinical practice, medical education, physician development, and health care improvement in rural Saskatchewan.