A long-serving physician was awarded a 2026 Lifetime Achievement Award of Excellence in Rural Medicine according to an announcement Monday, June 1 — and colleagues lined up to offer words of praise to Salt Spring’s Dr. Ronald Reznick.
Each year, the BC Rural Health Awards recognizes individuals and communities whose leadership and dedication are strengthening healthcare in rural remote, and Indigenous communities across British Columbia. Presented by the Rural Coordination Centre of B.C., the awards celebrate the people and partnerships who are improving access to care, advancing innovative solutions, supporting workforce sustainability and helping communities thrive. They recognize the broad range of contributions that sustain rural health systems, from frontline clinical care and mentorship to collaboration, advocacy and community-led leadership.
Arriving on Salt Spring Island in 1984, Dr. Reznick quickly immersed himself into island life, becoming a community fixture in and out of the clinic. Known for his kindness, sense of humour and abundance of warmth to his patients and neighbours, he continues to keep clinic hours showing little sign of slowing down. Described by his colleagues as a uniquely dedicated personality with no concept of the 40-hour week, Dr. Reznick has spent 40 years in service to his community in his clinic, at Lady Minto Hospital, with late night calls and doing house calls on horseback all while embodying full service longitudinal care.
“He has long carried the largest patient load of any of the physicians in the community,” said Dr. Kevin Patterson, “even as the population of unattached patients has grown dramatically.”
In the clinic, at the hospital, or in their home, patients connect with his humour and empathy, often feeling like they are the first, and most important, patient he will see on any given day.
“Ron is a friend and ally to all,” said Dr. David Brook. ”He is a true physician: able, available (like few others) and always affable.”
Colleague Dr. David Goranson said that over Dr. Reznick’s long career — doing emergency, inpatient, clinic and home visits — he has done the “full range of full service, rural general family practice” and everything that entails
“Over the years, he would have been involved in an uncounted number of tense and difficult situations where life and limb were threatened,” said Dr. Goranson. “But he chooses to see the joy, courage, dignity and magnificence of the players and the people.”
With four decades of stories from Salt Spring Island and a variety of rural locums, Dr. Reznick is quick to share his good humour and a laugh.
“I think that humour has been a huge part to help,” said Dr. Reznick. “I think humor for me has really carried me through this practice, and it continues to. Hopefully the patients aren’t too sick of my jokes at this point, but they still seem to enjoy some of them.”
Dr. Reznick often has difficulty saying no to his patients when they are in need and credits his Medical Office Assistant Gene for keeping him and his office functioning in the face of growing needs.
“Community is so important,” he said. “It’s so important that we all feel that we have something to do in the community; it gives us passion, it gives us support. It gives us the ability to help each other. If there’s a sick child on Salt Spring, everybody on Salt Spring is interested in helping that person.”
On reflection of his life and practice on Salt Spring Island, Dr. Reznick was quick to offer gratitude for what the community has offered him and his family.
“I am extremely fortunate to have been able to do a career that’s all I really wanted to do,” he said, “and that I’ve been doing it in a place as wonderful as Salt Spring Island. And if I were to do it again, I would just do it — I would not hesitate to repeat this, what I’ve had here.”