Meritorious Service Medal
- Awarded on: April 24, 2007
- Invested on: June 04, 2010
Rank: Lieutenant-Colonel
Lieutenant-Colonel Ricard is commended for the outstanding levels of competence, dedication and leadership he displayed while deployed as the surgeon for Task Force Afghanistan, from February to November 2006. He was responsible for establishing all medical support to operations, including a Patient Evacuation Coordination Centre that, amongst other accomplishments, efficiently evacuated the wounded soldiers following two mass casualty events during combat operations. The exceptional manner in which he conducted himself, both in ensuring highly effective life-saving support to operations and in providing treatment to Afghan citizens, brought honour to the Canadian Forces and to Canada.