On Thursday March 25, 2010, the Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) and Laurentian University hosted an event in which distinguished speaker, Stephen Lewis, on behalf of the Canadian coalition, the Campaign to Control Cancer (C2CC), delivered a presentation on the topic of cancer.

The first of a series of addresses to audiences at six Ontario universities, Mr. Lewis launched The People vs. Cancer Speaking Tour at Laurentian University’s Fraser Auditorium in Sudbury from where he began spreading the word that everyone can participate in the fight against this widespread disease.

Mr. Lewis drew heavily on his extensive international experience, speaking about the transformational role that an engaged public can play in the battle against cancer, and urging Canadian universities and students to bring forward their skills, innovation, creativity and leadership to the campaign to reduce cancer in one generation.

Stephen Lewis’s speaking tour was launched in conjunction with a series of Community Conversations on Cancer. These public forums allow people from all walks of life to organize and host Community Conversations in their own regions with the view to encouraging discussions about cancer and cancer control among community members. A report on the key findings gathered from Community Conversations will be presented to policy makers in 2010.

The Campaign to Control Cancer, which is hosting Mr. Lewis’s speaking tour, is a coalition of more than 70 organizations dedicated to combating the alarming spread of cancer, which is the leading cause of death in Canada. An estimated twenty five percent of Canadians are expected to die from the disease.

Stephen Lewis is Professor in Global Health at McMaster University and is Board Chair of the Stephen Lewis Foundation which supports community-based organizations working to turn the tide of HIV/Aids in Africa.

His work with the United Nations spans more than two decades, including his posting as Canada’s ambassador to the U.N from 1984 to 1988. He previously served as an elected member of the Ontario Legislative Assembly, and in 1970, became leader of the Ontario New Democratic Party.

Earlier today, the Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) and the University of Toronto (U of T) Faculty of Medicine signed a Collaboration Agreement which will allow the two parties to collaborate and share expertise and resources in the areas of applied health sciences and research.

During an event held today at the University of Toronto, the two organizations announced their shared commitment to providing high standards of medical education which is socially accountable and responsive to patients and the populations in which they originate. In addition, the partners highlighted their complementary resources and objectives with respect to research, education, and expertise.

Working together, NOSM and U of T have established (with the Michener Institute for Applied Health Sciences), a Consortium to deliver a Bachelor of Science Physician Assistant education program. This program is the second PA program in Ontario. The mission of the Consortium of PA Education is to deliver Physician Assistant education programs built on a foundation of social accountability, particularly to rural, remote, and underserved communities. The Consortium welcomed the first students to the program in January 2010.

The Agreement between NOSM and U of T lists a number of additional areas of potential collaboration, including the following:

• Undergraduate Medical Education Electives and Selectives;
•  Postgraduate Medical Education Residency Programs – Community Medicine and other specialties;
• Aboriginal Health;
• Medical Radiation Sciences Program;
• Continuing Education and Professional Development;
• Simulation in Education and Research; and,
• Research, including fields of study such as Primary Health Care, Cancer, and Aboriginal Health.

“The mission of the University of Toronto and the Faculty of Medicine is to prepare future leaders, to contribute to our communities, and to improve the health of individuals and populations through the discovery, application, and communication of knowledge,” stated Dr. Catharine Whiteside, U of T Faculty of Medicine Dean. “Partnerships like the one we have formalized today between the University of Toronto and the Northern Ontario School of Medicine are among our most important enabling assets.”

“A significant component of the Northern Ontario School of Medicine’s social accountability mandate is to build and cultivate relationships with organizations to facilitate common goals,” said Dr. Roger Strasser, NOSM Dean. “This Collaboration Agreement between the Northern Ontario School of Medicine and the University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine will allow us to pursue education and research initiatives and opportunities that maximize the positive impact our organizations are having on the populations we serve,” he said.

Founded in 1843, the University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine catapulted onto the world stage with Sir Frederick Banting and Charles Best’s discovery of insulin in the 1920s. In recent years, the Faculty has led the way in the quest to link genes to disease. Today, with over 5,000 faculty members, 6,000 students, 10 fully-affiliated hospital partners and 19 community affiliates, the Faculty of Medicine ranks among the top academic medicine institutions in the world, whether measured in peer-reviewed publications, number of PhD candidates and post-doctoral trainees, or research funding totals.

The Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) is pleased to announce that the School’s Health Sciences Library (HSL) and several partner organizations collaborating on an initiative entitled “Project Conifer” were the recipients of the 2010 Ontario Library Association’s (OLA) Divisional Awards held in Toronto on February 27, 2010.

Project Conifer received two awards from distinct branches of the OLA. The Ontario College and University Library Association (OCULA) granted Project Conifer the Award for Special Achievement for planning and implementing a library program which serves as a model to other institutions. The Ontario Library Information Technology Association (OLITA) recognized Project Conifer for its innovative and collaborative approach to adopting an open source library system. Evergreen, which is considered an excellent match for academic libraries, was adopted and modified by NOSM and its Conifer partners.

NOSM’s Health Sciences Library Director, Patty Fink, highlighted the benefits resulting from the adoption of the Evergreen library system, a model that was originally developed by the Georgia Public Library Service.

“This is an enhanced system both from an operational and user standpoint. The library will benefit from the ability to determine its own priorities for systems development, and our clients will benefit from expanded functions that provide enhanced user autonomy,” she said.

Evergreen also enables NOSM to extend its collaboration with community hospitals by encouraging participation in, and adoption of, this integrated library system.

Project Conifer is the shared implementation of a single system that supports 24 different libraries among the five project partners – the Northern Ontario School of Medicine, Laurentian University, Algoma University, McMaster University, and the University of Windsor.

Laurentian University’s Systems Librarian, Dan Scott, who has been the lead developer for the partners since July 2007, and Project Manager until August 2009, noted the significance of the awards. “These two awards recognize Project Conifer for its innovative and collaborative approach in adopting an open source library system, and highlights the project as an example that others can follow,” he said

Dr. Cathy Maskell of the Leddy Library at the University of Windsor accepted the OLA awards on behalf of the Conifer Consortium at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.

This is the first academic consortium to implement Evergreen.