THE YEAR THAT FELT LIKE A DECADE By Girard Hengen Reflecting on her 2020-21 term as “virtual” president of the Saskatchewan Medical Association (SMA), Dr. Barb Konstantynowicz recalls the words of a fellow physician. “During a virtual meeting, a colleague in B.C. said it well: ‘The year that felt like a decade,’ ” Dr. Konstantynowicz said. “Despite this, I marvel at the strength, scientific knowledge, and abilities of so many physicians. I am incredibly proud of my colleagues who have stepped up in these difficult circumstances.”
Dr. Konstantynowicz became SMA president at the 2020 Spring Representative Assembly (RA). The spring RA, usually held in person in early May, was delayed to June due to the COVID-19 pandemic and conducted virtually. It was just one instance of many in which the SMA adapted to the demands and constraints brought on by the pandemic. When Dr. Konstantynowicz became president, the pandemic was three months old. Masking was not widely accepted and obtaining personal protective equipment (PPE) was difficult for most community-based physicians’ offices, which SMA DIGEST | FALL 2020
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