Listed in order of submission
Electoral Group : Ottawa CFPC |
Positions : 3 |
Currently Running : 6
Dr. Nehal Islam
PGY-2 | Ottawa | Family Medicine-
Bio
Hi, I’m Nehal Islam, a PGY-2 Family Medicine resident at the Pembroke Family Medicine Teaching Unit (University of Ottawa), based at Pembroke Regional Hospital. I am training in full scope rural family medicine: emergency, hospitalist care, obstetrics, and office based practice. I’ll be Co-Chief Resident for 2026-27.
Training rurally taught me that policies built for urban, tertiary care settings often don’t fit rural or specialty specific realities. I want to bring that perspective to General Council, making sure rural family medicine and other specialties are genuinely reflected in PARO’s policies and guidelines, not added as an afterthought.
I bring hands on advocacy experience: developing EMR and AI scribe policy as an Epic superuser, coordinating scheduling and onboarding for my program, and completing PARO’s Leadership Program.
I’d be honoured to represent residents across training contexts and specialties, and help ensure every perspective shapes decisions that affect our training.
Dr. Michael Sewanaku
PGY-1 | Ottawa | Family Medicine-
Bio
My philosophy is simple: your story matters more than mine.
Every resident has sacrificed to be here: time with family, lost income, sleep and health. Some came to Canada as immigrants and rebuilt lives in a new system. Some grew up in Ottawa and fought through pressure. Some support families, debt, illness, and simply try to stay afloat while caring for others.
However you got here, you worked hard. I will not take that for granted.
Do not vote for me if you want a quiet defence of the status quo. Vote for me if you believe residents are underpaid, overextended, and underappreciated, and want someone willing to say so respectfully and with facts.
Residents keep Ontario’s health system moving. We show up at all hours, carry responsibility, and absorb pressure. When decision makers say there is not enough room to improve pay, reduce burdens, or make training safer and more humane, our response should be organized, evidence based, and unafraid.
I am a University of Ottawa family medicine resident with medical and legal training. My background taught me that rights only matter when people understand them, can access them, and have representatives willing to defend them. I believe in advocacy that is firm without being reckless, respectful without being timid, and practical without being complacent.
I am also involved in legal and advocacy work related to resident employment rights in Ontario. Because some matters are ongoing, I will speak responsibly and keep the focus on residents.
If elected, I would provide clear updates after Council meetings, use short surveys to hear directly from residents, push for better compensation and lower financial burdens, seek greater transparency around PGME fees, and advocate for clearer communication about the PARO-OTH Agreement.
I have always respected Canadians who are willing to challenge powerful systems in defence of ordinary and vulnerable people, including Agnes Macphail, Jack Layton, & Bertha Wilson. I am not running because my story is more important than yours. I am running because yours is. I want PARO to be more practical, transparent, and impossible to ignore when residents are asking for fair pay & respect.
Dr. Amy Zeglinski-Spinney
PGY-2 | Ottawa | Family Medicine-
Bio
Hi everyone, my name is Amy Zeglinski-Spinney, and I am a Family Medicine resident at the University of Ottawa. I am excited to be running for PARO General Council and would be grateful for the opportunity to represent uOttawa residents in this role.
Residency is rewarding, but it can also be challenging in ways that are not always easy to capture formally. Sometimes the issues that affect residents most are the everyday ones: scheduling pressures, workload expectations, unclear communication, administrative burden, or the feeling that a concern has nowhere obvious to go. I think General Council is an important space to bring those concerns forward in a thoughtful and constructive way.
If elected, I would aim to be an approachable and reliable representative for residents at uOttawa. I would take the role seriously by listening to concerns, following up on issues, and communicating back whenever possible. I think good representation requires both empathy and attention to detail: understanding what residents are experiencing, while also being organized enough to help move concerns through the proper channels.
My goal would be to represent uOttawa residents in a way that is grounded in our real day-to-day experiences. That means paying attention to concerns across programs, sites, and training levels, including from residents whose schedules make it harder to participate in formal discussions.
I care about helping make residency more sustainable, fair, and responsive to the realities of clinical training. I would be honoured to serve on PARO General Council and to work with residents and colleagues across programs to support practical, meaningful improvements to the resident experience.
Dr. Kene Unachukwu
PGY-2 | Ottawa | Family Medicine-
Bio
Hello everyone!
My name is Kenechi Unachukwu, and I am a PGY-2 Family Medicine resident at The Ottawa Hospital – Civic Campus. I am excited for the opportunity to represent our resident community at uOttawa through PARO General Council.
Resident voices have helped shape meaningful improvements in wellness, education, and workplace conditions across our training programs. I hope to build on that momentum by ensuring every resident feels heard, supported, and well represented.
Before residency, I had the privilege of working in diverse healthcare settings in Belarus and Nigeria, where I saw firsthand how collaboration and advocacy can drive positive change and improve the experiences of both trainees and patients. During my PGY-1 year, I also had the opportunity to see how resident advocacy can lead to meaningful improvements in wellness initiatives, educational opportunities, and workplace conditions. It would be an honour to work alongside our Chief Residents and fellow residents across all training sites to build on the great work already underway and continue enhancing the residency experience for everyone.
Thank you for your consideration. I would truly appreciate your support!
Dr. Austin Solak
PGY-1 | Ottawa | Family Medicine-
Bio
Hi everyone,
My name is Austin Solak, and I am a PGY-1 Family Medicine resident at the University of Ottawa. I am excited to run for PARO General Council because I believe residents deserve strong, approachable, and effective representation. Throughout medical school, I have been passionate about advocacy and leadership at the local, provincial, national, and federal levels:
1) Ontario Medical Students Association (OMSA): As Western University's voting representative, I represented medical students across Ontario by reviewing and voting on motions related to student services, grants, advocacy priorities, governance, and strategic initiatives. I also co-led the Scheduling & Timing Working Group within the Medical Education Standards Task Force, where our team evaluated medical education policies across Ontario and developed recommendations to improve learner experiences.
2) Canadian Federation of Medical Students (CFMS): I represented Western at the national level, participating in CFMS meetings, policy discussions, and governance. This included collaborating with medical student leaders from across Canada on issues including medical education, learner wellness, equity and inclusion, and the future of physician training.
3) Local Student Leadership: I served for two years as VP External for the Schulich Hippocratic Council, where I acted as the primary liaison between students and external organizations, promoted advocacy opportunities, and helped strengthen communication between learners and leadership.
4) Health System Leadership: I worked with the Public Health Agency of Canada's COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout Task Force, supporting national vaccine implementation through policy analysis, data reporting, and collaboration with federal partners.
I hope to build on these experiences through the following priorities:
1) Advocacy: Advocate for resident wellness, equitable training experiences, and transparent decision-making.
2) Awareness: Increase awareness of PARO resources, benefits, and the collective agreement.
3) Accessibility: Be an approachable and responsive representative who actively listens to and ensures issues are brought forward to PARO.
Dr. Charlotte Abderrahmane
PGY-1 | Ottawa | Family Medicine-
Bio
Hi, I'm Charlotte, a PGY-1 Family Medicine resident at the University of Ottawa.
Most of what wears residents down isn't dramatic. It's accumulated friction: schedules that arrive late, unclear entitlements, administrative burden that nobody owns. I'm running for PARO General Council because that friction is fixable, and fixing it is what representation is for.
I came to this work early. Through the Fédération médicale étudiante du Québec's Journée d'action politique, I developed policy proposals to improve our healthcare system, and I've been involved in advocacy, quality improvement, and health policy initiatives throughout medical school. Those experiences taught me something simple: meaningful change comes from listening to people on the front lines, then translating their concerns into practical, specific solutions rather than statements.
If elected, I commit to three things.
1) Making the contract usable. Most residents discover their PARO-OTH protections only after something goes wrong. I'll know the agreement thoroughly and translate it into plain answers before problems become crises.
2) Closing the loop. I'll tell you what I brought forward, what happened, and what's next, every time. If something can't be fixed, you'll know that too, and why.
3) Representing everyone. I'll actively seek input across sites, programs, and training years, and as a bilingual resident I'm glad to work with colleagues in both English and French.
As a future family physician from an immigrant background, I care deeply about health equity, newcomer and refugee health, and strengthening primary care. I'm also focused on digital health: tools like AI scribes and smarter workflows are arriving whether we shape them or not, and residents deserve a seat at the table so technology reduces our workload instead of adding to it.
Family medicine residents are only here for two years. We feel every inefficiency twice. I'd be honoured to represent you: approachable, organised, and accountable for results.
Merci, and thank you for your vote.