The Winnipeg doctor who intervened while nurse was being stabbed to receive Medal of Bravery

A Winnipeg doctor who intervened to save a nurse’s life in a stabbing attack at a Winnipeg hospital will receive the Medal of Bravery from Gov. Gen. Mary Simon.

A Winnipeg doctor who stepped in while a co-worker was being stabbed is set to receive one of Canada’s most prestigious civilian honours.

Gov. Gen. Mary Simon’s office announced Dr. Kenneth Hahlweg will receive the Medal of Bravery at a ceremony at Rideau Hall on Thursday.

“On October 27, 2021, Dr. Kenneth Hahlweg helped an employee who was attacked by a co-worker at Seven Oaks General Hospital in Winnipeg, Manitoba,” Gov. Gen. Simon’s office wrote in a news release.

Hahlweg was on duty when Trevor Farley, a nurse who had previously worked at the hospital, stabbed nursing supervisor Candyce Szkwarek during a psychotic episode.

Farley had killed his parents at their homes before going to the hospital to attack Szkwarek.

“Dr. Hahlweg found the victim bleeding and the attacker ready to strike again,” the news release said.

“The doctor tackled the assailant and chased him from the hospital, where he was caught by police. Dr. Hahlweg returned to the victim and provided first aid.”

Szkwarek survived the encounter, though she required multiple surgeries.

Farley was found not criminally responsible for his parents’ killings and the attack on Skwarek by a Manitoba Court of King’s Bench judge in 2023.

For his heroic role in the horrific event, Hahlweg will be honoured alongside 30 other decoration of bravery recipients, including a B.C. nurse who helped rescue a family from a mudslide and a New Brunswick man who intervened in a shooting at a karaoke bar.

Hahlweg was also given a Special Award for Bravery from Doctors Manitoba.

The full list of recipients can be read on the Governor General of Canada’s website.