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NOSM Maintains Full Accreditation of MD Degree

The Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) has received full accreditation of its educational program leading to the MD degree. The review, originally scheduled as an in-person on-site visit, became the first in Canada to undergo a two-step virtual visit due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Accreditation is a process by which institutions and programs voluntarily undergo an extensive peer evaluation of their compliance with accepted standards for educational quality. Through accreditation, the Committee on Accreditation of Canadian Medical Schools (CACMS) provides assurance to medical students, graduates, the medical profession, health-care institutions, health authorities, regulatory authorities and the public, that educational programs culminating in the award of the MD degree meet reasonable, generally-accepted, and appropriate national standards for educational quality.

“I congratulate NOSM faculty, staff and students who worked hard to maintain full accreditation of the MD program,” says Dr. Lee Toner, NOSM Interim Associate Dean, Undergraduate Medical Education. “Events from this past year have really been challenging for our medical school. I’m proud of our commitment to continuous quality improvement and the dedication to finding solutions, particularly when obstacles are outside of our control.”

In addition to the challenges of operating a medical school during a pandemic, Laurentian University, affiliated with NOSM for degree granting purposes, became insolvent and commenced protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) on February 1, 2021. The CCAA proceeding has implications on some standards of accreditation that will require monitoring.

Dr. Sarita Verma, NOSM Dean, President and CEO says, “With legislation passed on June 3, 2021 to make NOSM a stand-alone university, we continue our commitment to the strategic priority of maintaining the highest standards of accreditation across all our programs.”

“The School will continue its mission to improve the health of Northern Ontarians by being socially accountable in its education and research programs and advocating for health equity,” says Dr. Verma. “NOSM will lead in health and wellness for our employees and learners and become a global example of social accountability in action.”

More information about the MD accreditation can be found on NOSM’s website.

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The Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) is an award-winning socially accountable medical school renowned for its innovative model of distributed, community-engaged education and research. With a focus on diversity, inclusion, and advocacy for health equity, NOSM relies on the commitment and expertise of the peoples and communities of Northern Ontario to educate health-care professionals to practise in Indigenous, Francophone, rural, remote and underserved communities.

About CACMS
The accrediting bodies for medical educational programs in the United States and Canada and their sponsors recently decided that the joint Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) / Committee on Accreditation of Canadian Medical Schools (CACMS) accreditation process for Canadian medical schools put into place eight years ago will conclude in September 2021. This will make way for the CACMS to assume sole responsibility and authority for the accreditation of Canadian medical education programs. Canadian medical schools will, however, remain accredited by the LCME until further notice.

For further information, please contact: news@nosm.ca

In the Spotlight, Uncategorized

Taking pride in pronouns

Gallery

Understanding and recognizing gender identities is important to delivering inclusive, patient-centered health care. Often, pronouns have a gender implied which are not always accurate or needed. Understanding how to correctly use and share one’s pronouns is a sign of safety and respect.

Unfortunately, often people aren’t aware of how to do this. That’s why Lucie Ménard and Ashley Perreault decided to take action.

Lucie, a second-year NOSM medical student in Sudbury, and Ashley, a first-year NOSM medical student in Thunder Bay, are both the Local Officers of Reproductive and Sexual Health (LORSH) for NOSM, and sit on a national committee with LORSH representatives from 13 medical schools across Canada. During a meeting, the group identified the misuse of pronouns as an important issue nationwide.

“After our meeting, we consulted with fellow medical students, colleagues, and friends from the Queer community about their experiences with pronoun misuse. What we learned is that individuals feel a sense of security when asked or addressed by their preferred pronouns. Hearing this, we wanted to normalize pronoun use and create an environment that is welcoming and inclusive for all gender identities,” says Ashley.

An eye-catching solution was proposed—a wearable pronoun pin. The students collaborated with community members and the NOSM Library and Communications teams to create the pins and develop a complete initiative for distribution. The pins can be attached to a lanyard, lab coat or clothing to highlight an individual’s preferred pronoun. The pins also spark conversation about the importance of pronouns.

“Proper pronoun use was something we as medical students were all aware of, but we didn’t receive formal education on this topic. As LORSHs we decided to take this initiative as an opportunity to educate ourselves and our NOSM community on pronoun use through an infographic and a subject guide” says Lucie.

Recognizing that an infographic wouldn’t be sufficient to close the knowledge gap, they built a subject guide available through the NOSM Library. The subject guide was developed by Jennifer Dumond, Danica Desjardins, Aidan Goertzen and LORSH. It highlights evidence-based research and resources regarding Two-Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Queer and other gender-fluid communities (​2SLGBTQ+).

The uptake was high. “The response has been very positive. The library subject guide has had over 470 views so far and individuals have been thanking us for this one-stop-shop for educational resources and for starting the conversation. Over 240 people from NOSM signed up to receive a pronoun pin, including learners, staff, faculty and residents,” says Lucie.

NOSM partners, health-care centres, hospitals and medical schools across the country have also taken notice. Health Sciences North (HSN) in Sudbury reached out and are working with Ashley and Lucie to launch a pronoun pin initiative at the hospital during Pride week. Two other medical schools have asked for guidance to create something similar at their school.

“Allyship means taking action and we hope to inspire other students to work on the projects they’re passionate about,” says Ashley. “I hope we inspire students to collaborate with other departments and staff at NOSM who have allowed us to make this initiative a reality. We couldn’t have done this alone.”

Lucie also encourages everyone at NOSM to reflect on their surroundings and what health inequities are occurring in their community. “As medical students, we don’t have a lot of free time, but we chose to advocate for something that we’re passionate about.”

NOSM is making pronoun pins part of the orientation package for new medical students. “We’re hoping this will become part of the standard,” says Ashley. “It is important for the incoming students to recognize that NOSM is an inclusive community. As future health-care professionals, we hope the pins will also spark the conversation regarding inclusivity early on in their career.”

Want to learn more?

Respect the Difference logoThe Respect the Difference movement was developed by NOSM to bring awareness to a culture of kindness and respect in the learning and work environment. We hope that together, we can ignite a positive cultural change that is grounded in respect and reaches beyond the NOSM community. We encourage all Canadian medical schools and the medical sector to join our movement.

We all have the potential to be changemakers, and we have the mutual responsibility to take action toward a culture of kindness, respect and compassion. It starts here at NOSM. It starts with you.

Become a Changemaker.

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NOSM Appoints Academic Director for its new Centre for Social Accountability

Dr. Sarita Verma, Dean, President and CEO of the Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) is pleased to announce the appointment of Erin Cameron, PhD, as the inaugural Academic Director of the Centre for Social Accountability beginning a three-year term on July 1, 2021. Her appointment marks an important milestone in the development of the School’s new Centre for Social Accountability (CFSA).

“Erin is a well-known faculty member and an active academic researcher at NOSM who is highly regarded for her focus on innovative, socially accountable medical education research,” says Dr. David Marsh, Associate Dean, Research Innovation and International Relations at NOSM. “Her track record in fostering strong multidisciplinary research collaborations with broad impact will help guide the Centre forward.”

The Centre for Social Accountability is the only one of its kind in Canada with a core mandate to improve the health of Northern Ontarians, reaching beyond NOSM’s founding commitment to be socially accountable in education, research programs and in advocacy for health equity. Erin Cameron says the Centre is well poised with the support of a network of researchers, partners and contributors already in place.

“I am looking forward to this new role. The Centre for Social Accountability will be the frontrunner to improving equity, access, and population health outcomes that are sustainable with new opportunities and research that are now underway,” says Erin Cameron, who is currently an Associate Professor in Medical Education and Curriculum Development at NOSM. As an educational leader, she represents NOSM on multiple national groups including the Canadian Medical Education Research Centre Directors Group and the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada’s (AFMC’s) Social Accountability Network.

“Professor Cameron will assemble a team and engage all NOSM stakeholders in examining the idea of social accountability. The Centre is mandated to lead in socially accountable approaches to care, education, advocacy, social justice and change for the improvement of Northern Ontario’s health. I cannot think of a better leader and passionate researcher to take this Centre forward,” says Dr. Verma.

This new interdisciplinary Centre for Social Accountability (CFSA) will be dedicated to leading-edge population health, primary care research to innovate new models of education, incubate research in social accountability and advocate about issues that address inequitable health care in the North such as poverty, water insecurity and climate change. The CFSA was made possible with support of a $1.2 million donation from Dr. Hugh Robertson, Emeritus Professor of Radiology at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center and Clinical Professor of Radiology at Tulane University Medical Centre in New Orleans. The donation was earmarked to address social accountability, health inequity, advocacy for marginalized populations and access to care in Northern Ontario.

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About the Centre for Social Accountability
NOSM’s new Centre for Social Accountability (CFSA) is the only one of its kind in Canada. The Centre will result in improved health of Northern Ontarians while extending beyond NOSM’s commitment to being socially accountable in our education and research programs and advocating for health equity. The CFSA’s integrated approach in the areas of policy leadership and advocacy; research and innovation; education; and community impact will produce a deeper and broader understanding on a range of issues affecting population health outcomes inside and outside the medical system. In this way, the Centre’s social accountability research defines and strengthens the School, making NOSM and its partners more effective in the achievement of this critical mission.

About the Northern Ontario School of Medicine
The Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) is an award-winning socially accountable medical school renowned for its innovative model of distributed, community-engaged education and research. With a focus on diversity, inclusion, and advocacy for health equity, NOSM relies on the commitment and expertise of the peoples and communities of Northern Ontario to educate health-care professionals to practise in Indigenous, Francophone, rural, remote and underserved communities. NOSM’s graduates, faculty, learners and staff are changemakers who lead health-system transformation in Northern Ontario. The School is a recipient of the Charles Boelen International Social Accountability Award from the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada and the prestigious ASPIRE award, which recognize international excellence in social accountability and medical education.

For further information, please contact: news@nosm.ca

 

Biography: Erin Cameron

Erin Cameron, PhD, is an Associate Professor in Medical Education and Curriculum Development at the Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM). She currently co-chairs the Northern and Rural Health curriculum course in the Undergraduate Medical Education program at NOSM and is a founding member and the Chair of MERLIN (Medical Education Research Lab in the North), a community of practice research group focused on building capacity and doing innovative socially accountable medical education research.

As an educational leader, Erin represents NOSM on multiple national groups such as the Canadian Medical Education Research Centre Directors Group and the AFMC Social Accountability Network. Her program of research focuses on social justice pedagogies that support transformation in education and health systems. With regional, provincial, and national funding focused on socially accountable medical education research, professor Cameron fosters multidisciplinary research collaborations. Prior to joining NOSM in 2017, she held a faculty appointment at Memorial University of Newfoundland and enjoyed a varied career as a professional athlete and communications specialist. Erin loves living in Northern Ontario and enjoys vibrant outdoor adventures with her partner and four young children.

NOSM University