The Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) is pleased to announce the arrival of Dr. Wayne Bruce to the new post of Associate Dean of Continuing Health Professional Education.

In this new position, Dr. Bruce will be responsible for all aspects of planning, implementing and evaluating Continuing Health Professional Education, including continuing medical education (CME) and continuing professional development (CPD) for physicians, other health professionals, health professional education programs, Interprofessional Education, and Faculty Development training and activities of the Northern Ontario School of Medicine. These programs will be designed to complement and expand on the School’s existing undergraduate and postgraduate education programs, consistent with NOSM’s key academic principles.

Dr. Bruce will report to the School’s Vice-Dean, Professional Activities, and be situated at NOSM’s West Campus in Thunder Bay.

Dr. Roger Strasser, NOSM Founding Dean, is delighted to welcome Dr. Bruce to the School. “Dr. Bruce will play an integral role in the further development of the School’s continuing health professional education activities, which focus on education that highlights the interdisciplinary, geographic, demographic, linguistic and cultural realities of Northern Ontario. The School has a strong commitment to recruiting excellent leaders, and Dr. Bruce’s experience and enthusiasm promise to contribute to the quality and breadth of skills in teaching, research, care, and administration facilitated by the Northern Ontario School of Medicine,” he said.

Before joining NOSM, Dr. Bruce was the Director of Continuing Medical Education and Outreach (CMEO) and a Professor of Pathology at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS) in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Prior to this, Dr. Bruce was the Director of Laboratory Education for North Dakota (LEND) at the University of North Dakota.

Dr. Bruce has acted as a consultant to a wide variety of organizations including the Specialty Disease Management Services in Jacksonville, Florida, and the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. He has a strong history and interest in rural health, a track record in creating and delivering innovate and creative programs, and extensive experience in delivering education through a variety of distance learning methods.

Dr. Bruce is a graduate of both the University of Minnesota and the University of North Dakota. He received his Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis.

This week, four third-year medical students of the Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) are beginning their Comprehensive Community Clerkships (CCC) in the community of Sioux Lookout.

Jessica Moretti, Lise Mozzon, Elaine St. John, and Tracy Michano-Stewart will be learning in the community’s principal health-care facility, the Sioux Lookout Meno-Ya-Win Health Centre.

An affiliation agreement between NOSM and Meno-Ya-Win has been signed, solidifying a partnership between the two institutions and allowing NOSM medical students to gain valuable hands-on practical experience in the community.

To welcome the four medical students, the Local NOSM Group (LNG) has organized an informal breakfast at Knobby’s, a local hotspot and well-known landmark located on Pelican Lake. The students will also join members of Town Council and the Chamber of Commerce on a ‘meet and greet’ houseboat cruise. The local physicians and other community members who make up Sioux Lookout’s LNG are an important link between the community and the medical students, providing a smooth integration into Sioux Lookout through orientation, relevant information and introductions to other community members.

Roger Walker, CEO of the Sioux Lookout Meno-Ya-Win Health Centre, is proud to be a part of a true community-based medical school. “Welcoming NOSM medical students into our community is an important part of our commitment to developing physicians who understand and appreciate the unique features and benefits of practicing medicine in Northern communities,” he said. “As a Comprehensive Community Clerkship site for medical students, our professional staff is given the opportunity to instruct students in a unique medical environment where students are able to observe, learn and participate in the care of patients.” During their eight months in Sioux Lookout, students will be taught by local physicians and other healthcare providers who are NOSM faculty members.

Dr. Roger Strasser, NOSM Founding Dean, says the people and communities of the North are integral to the success of the Comprehensive Community Clerkships. “The Northern Ontario School of Medicine is committed to building long term partnerships with communities and health organizations across Northern Ontario. Meno-Ya-Win Health Centre, local physicians, healthcare providers and other community members are welcomed partners,” he said.

Ten communities throughout Northern Ontario are hosting NOSM third-year medical students for the first time this September 2007. All 56 students of the School’s Charter Class are participating in the Comprehensive Community Clerkships.

The Ontario government is strengthening the health care and prosperity of northerners by investing in a new Cancer and Cardiac Research Centre in Thunder Bay, Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty announced today.

“All of us know family and friends receiving cancer or cardiac care, and we all know how important research is to bringing our loved ones back to full health,” said Premier McGuinty. “This research will not only benefit northerners, but Ontarians and Canadians whose health care could depend on the answers this type of research will provide.”

The Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation will provide $2,214,167 to make the former site of the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Cancer Centre suitable for the new research facility.

The Cancer and Cardiac Research Centre is expected to house several different research initiatives that will be supported by local medical professionals, educational institutions and private sector partners.

“The new centre will enable researchers to compile a wealth of oncological and cardiac- related knowledge that will contribute immensely to ongoing research efforts,” said Thunder Bay- Superior North MPP Michael Gravelle. “We are pleased to bring such research excellence to the North.”

“Creating jobs in new emerging technology and health care sectors throughout the North is a priority for our government,” said Thunder Bay-Atikokan MPP Bill Mauro. “This project will create more than 25 jobs within the health care sector in the pursuit of life-saving modern medical treatment.”
“By bringing first class health care research to northern Ontario, we are strengthening the health and prosperity of hard working northerners and their families,” said Premier McGuinty.