A local physician was recognized this spring for her time and efforts to give back to help build rural medicine.
Dr. Amanda Bergman was recently awarded the Fellowship of Rural and Remote Medicine in recognition for her leadership and dedication to rural health.
Bergman last week briefly reflected on how she would like to be a support and encouragement to others in the same way as she had people to offer her guidance.
“I had Dr. Bob Menzies and Dr. Gord Zacharias, who were two of my mentors when I went into med school,” she shared. “They really influenced me, so I like to help people out that way as well.
“It’s about teaching and having extra training and being involved, so it’s nice to see that that work is appreciated.”
Bergman works out of the Menzies Medical Centre in Morden. Born and raised in Morden, she earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Winnipeg and completed her master’s and medical degrees at the University of Manitoba.
She went on to complete rural-based family medicine training in Thunder Bay along with additional anesthesia training.
Bergman practices in anesthesia, emergency medicine, family medicine, travel health, and low-risk obstetrics.
Now living in Winkler with her husband and two children, she values the rural lifestyle and enjoys biking, travelling, and photography while remaining deeply committed to providing compassionate, community-focused care in southern Manitoba.
She recognizes the importance of helping to build and develop health care, especially in rural areas.
“That’s all part of how we get people interested in rural medicine,” said Bergman, who noted having had the opportunity last week to connect with some first-year medical students as part of the annual Rural Week initiative.
“I was talking to the Rural Week students … and they really appreciate how everyone out here really seems to love to teach and really are involved in all the different things you can do,” she said. “It’s opened up some doors that I don’t think they have really thought about before, for at least some of them. You’re catching them before they think about what they want to do … It gives them some time to maybe contemplate coming out and joining us out here maybe at some point.”
