Alex Ositis Foundation honours doctors, backs close-to-home care
By Ian MacKay
Two people who were instrumental in creating the Alex Ositis Foundation received praise during the organization’s annual steak supper on April 10.
Dr. Dave Ledding and Dr. Alfred Ernst had recently passed away, noted MC Bob Clothier. They and Dr. Dan Ledding were named Rosetown’s citizens of the year for 2025, Clothier reminded the audience.
Dr. Anil Bedi of Saskatoon poses with retired nurse Bev Lavigne on Friday night during the Alex Ositis Foundation fundraising steak night. Bedi was among the speakers that evening and Lavigne was one of the nurses who assisted during colonoscopy procedures at the Rosetown hospital for many years. The foundation raises money to buy and replace the equipment needed for the exams. Photo by Ian MacKay
The endoscopy program for which the foundation raises money was “Dr. Dave’s passion,” said the group’s Shelly Robson. Ledding “spent countless hours making things happen,” Robson said. The foundation formed in 1984 to provide services and equipment that were not already available, she said.
Other speakers included Saskatoon doctors Anil Bedi and Jen Bailey. Bedi, an oncologist who has visited the local hospital “three or four days a month” for 17 years, “provides good explanations,” Robson said, besides working with the program in person and by telephone.
Robson had been urging him to attend the event for a year, Bedi said. Then, a month before, she told him, “You’d better come; you have to speak,” he explained.
“From the very first visit (in 2009), I felt incredibly honoured,” he said. However, he told local hospital staff they needed new equipment and they replied that the Ositis Foundation would work towards obtaining it.
“To my shock, within two months, money was raised, in six figures,” Bedi said. “It says a lot about your community, your generosity, your commitment to each other, your dedication to health care for your citizens.”
The team has done 11,000 endoscopy procedures since then, which “means that thousands of patients” have not had to travel to Saskatoon for the procedure, “don’t have to pay for parking there, parking is free in Rosetown, and most importantly, don’t have to deal with those crazy Saskatoon drivers,” Bedi said.
“It means that people can have their procedures at home or close to home” and be cared for by staff whom they may already know, he said. The care meets national standards, happens quicker and, in some respects, is superior to that available in Saskatoon, he said.
“The team here is outstanding,” said Bailey, a Saskatoon gastroenterologist who has visited once a month since January 2025. “They’re skilled, organized, warm, efficient and deeply committed to the patients they care for.
“This team cares ... about the patients, each other and they care about doing things well,” she said.
Besides raising money for equipment, “You’re supporting your exceptional medical team, you’re supporting patients staying closer to home and you’re supporting people in this very room,” Bailey said.
The event “has become one of the unmistakeable Rosetown traditions,” Mayor Trevor Hay said. “It has long been a symbol of what Rosetown does best, taking care of one another,” he said.
“Whether it’s supporting local health initiatives, improving the quality of life or stepping in where help is needed most, the foundation continues to honour (the deceased Dr. Alex) Ositis’s legacy of practical impact,” Hay said, expressing appreciation to those who attended and contributed, including through a live and silent auction.