Forum offers valuable experiences to students through annual fellowships

February 21, 2012 – Applications are now being accepted for the 2012-2013 McMaster Health Forum Fellowships that offer an exceptional opportunity for students to be part of the Forum’s initiatives in addressing pressing health challenges.

Two fellowships are offered for undergraduate students who will interact with Forum staff, faculty and visiting leaders, meet health system stakeholders such as heads of medical associations, hospital CEOs, government and World Health Organization representatives, and be involved in the planning, research and execution of various Forum events such as stakeholder dialogues. They will also develop work plans to advance the aims of the Forum and support their own development, and undertake an internship in an organization charged with addressing health challenges.

Forum offices closed for Family Day

The offices of the McMaster Health Forum will be closed on Monday, February 20, along with the rest of McMaster University, to observe Family Day.

The office will re-open at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, February 21.

Project management experts will provide students with hands-on experience

January 19, 2012 - McMaster University students will have the chance to build project management skills at Take the Lead: A Workshop on Project Management, on Wednesday February 1, from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Organized by the McMaster Health Forum Student Subcommittee, the workshop will be facilitated by two experts in the field of project management - Kelly Ann Pauly, a senior project manager at ArcelorMittal Dofasco, and Ori Schibi, an instructor with McMaster’s Project Management Program.

Unique challenges faced by advocates, policymakers and industry in struggle to address lack of access to medicines 

January 18, 2012 - With more than 10 million people dying each year because they lack access to medicines, the global struggle to achieve universal access to treatments is complex and involves many players from both public and private sectors.

The McMaster University community and the public at large are invited to engage in a discussion with a panel of experts about innovative solutions to address the global challenges associated with access to medicines, on Friday, January 27.

Students offer views on addressing global health issues in new publication

December 15, 2011 - Student Voices 3, a publication offering a student perspective on five pressing global health issues, is now available on the McMaster Health Forum website.

The edited volume contains five chapters dealing with surgical care, neglected tropical diseases, peak oil and sustainable energy, childhood obesity and childhood pneumonia. Each chapter explores the global political context in which decisions on the particular topics are made, identifies prevailing trends in the issue area, and considers advocacy strategies that concerned stakeholders can adopt to catalyze action.

McMaster Health Forum closed Dec. 24 to Jan. 2, 2012

December 20, 2011 - The offices of the McMaster Health Forum will be closed from 4 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 23 until 8 a.m. until Monday, Jan. 2, 2012.

McMaster University is also closed during the same period.

The Forum wishes to extend seasonal greetings to all, and looks forward to new and exciting ventures with our many partners and supporters in 2012.

New Health Systems Evidence website offers expanded search functions, available in seven languages

December 12, 2011 - The next generation of Health Systems Evidence – the world’s most comprehensive, free access point for high-quality evidence on health systems – has been launched by the McMaster Health Forum.

Health Systems Evidence is a valuable resource for policymakers, stakeholders and researchers seeking to address today’s most pressing health challenges. It provides answers on questions about how to strengthen or reform health systems, or how to get cost-effective programs, services and drugs to those who need them.

Every day, newspapers and websites are filled with grandiose health claims (chocolate heals the heart one day, and causes obesity the next) and statements about health care that aren’t based in evidence. Science-ish has had enough. A joint Maclean’s, Medical Post, and McMaster Health Forum project, Science-ish checks the latest health-related headlines against the evidence — and hold politicians, opinion leaders, and journalists to account. Our modest aim? To improve health reporting, and the quality of information about the health-related issues of the day. Click here to read the blog.

Workshop will help students learn techniques for effective public speaking in healthcare environments

November 17, 2011 - McMaster University students will have the chance to hone their public speaking skills specifically on healthcare topics at a workshop taking place Thursday, November 24, from 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Organized by the McMaster Health Forum Student Subcommittee, the workshop will be facilitated by two McMaster-based communications professionals. 

Summaries and interviews capture ideas, plans for action from three stakeholder dialogues 

November 15, 2011 - Summaries of deliberations at three recent stakeholder dialogues convened by the McMaster Health Forum are now available to the public through the Forum’s website.

The recently posted products include issue briefs that informed the discussions and presented options for addressing challenges, as well as summaries of the dialogues and video interviews with participants.

Panel participants to share their perspectives on plans to care for growing number of seniors

November 7, 2011 - With the number of people over the age of 65 in Ontario projected to double in the next 25 years, the need to plan how to organize the best possible care system for older adults has reached a critical stage.

The McMaster University community and the public at large will have the chance to engage in a discussion with a panel of experts about current approaches and future opportunities to support healthy aging in Ontario, during an event on Monday, November 14.

Dialogue outputs provide insights on the impact of globalization on health of Canadians

October 15, 2011 - The rise of globalization and how it can impact the health of Canadians is examined in documents and videos now available to the public on the McMaster Health Forum website.

The issue brief, dialogue summary, topic overview and interviews with participants were produced in conjunction with a stakeholder dialogue convened by the Forum, entitled Addressing Health and Emerging Global Issues in Canada. A total of 16 participants - including policymakers, civil society and public sector representatives, researchers, and global health strategy contributors and advocates - gathered to discuss how globalization has eroded the protective effect that national borders once offered to the health of Canadians, and what needs to happen to address such erosions.

The issue brief that informed the dialogue draws on research evidence to describe the challenges related to emerging global issues, and offers three options for addressing the problem, as well as implementation considerations.

While stakeholder dialogues are off-the-record discussions, all products produced in conjunction with a dialogue are publicly available on the Forum’s website, to encourage broader, informed dialogue and debate about a specific health issue.

Fellows will advance their interests, knowledge in policy development

September 26, 2011 - Two fourth-year students at McMaster University whose experience working abroad has fostered their interest in health systems policymaking have been named McMaster Health Forum Fellows for 2011-2012.

Harrision Niznick, who is in the fourth year of the Arts and Science (Honours) program, and Ariela Rozenek, who is completing the final year of the Bachelor of Health Sciences (Honours) program, will both use this opportunity with the Forum to advance their understanding and particular interests related to policy development. The two were chosen from 15 applicants for the $5,000 fellowship awards.

Mike Wilson's role with Forum expands with appointment as assistant director

September 21, 2011 - Mike Wilson will take on a greater role in the work of the McMaster Health Forum with his appointment as assistant director.

Wilson has been working as a Research Fellow with the Forum for the past several months, preparing evidence briefs that are used to inform stakeholder dialogues on pressing health issues. His new role will involve taking the lead in the scientific aspects of preparing evidence briefs and dialogue summaries, as well as chairing steering committee meetings, drafting terms of reference for briefs, overseeing the identification and presentation of research evidence, and preparing scientific articles.

Information night set for Sept. 21 for students interested in joining Forum committee

September 16, 2011 - The Student Subcommittee of the McMaster Health Forum is planning an information session for all McMaster students interested in becoming actively involved with the Forum’s work.

The Student Subcommittee membership includes representatives from specific student groups on campus as well as five members-at-large.  This year, four member-at-large positions are available.

Science-ish blog checks health-related headlines against the evidence

July 25, 2011 - The McMaster Health Forum has partnered with Maclean’s magazine and The Medical Post in a pilot project aimed at ensuring that research evidence on a wide array of issues related to health and healthcare is better used in public statements and debates.

A new blog, available on the Maclean’s website and written by Medical Post associate editor Julia Belluz, fact checks health-related claims made in the media or other public domains by utilizing databases containing systematic reviews. (A systematic review is essentially a summary of the findings of individual studies on a particular topic and is considered the most credible form of evidence.)

Students working on global health policy issues through Forum-facilitated internships

June 7, 2011 - The McMaster Health Forum has facilitated opportunities for a range of students to gain global health policy experience this summer through internships at offices of the World Health Organization (WHO), Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research (housed at WHO) and the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI).

The Forum’s two fellows for 2010-2011 – Theresa Tang and Ahmad AlKhatib – are both working at WHO offices in Geneva for two months, under the supervision of Ulysses Panisset, in the Department of Knowledge Management and Sharing.

2011 stakeholder dialogues address range of topics

May 11, 2011 - The McMaster Health Forum is in the midst of conducting a slate of stakeholder dialogues addressing diverse topics ranging from emerging global issues that can affect the health of Canadians to poverty’s impact on health.

On May 12, a dialogue examining the rise of globalization and how it can impact the health of Canadians involved high-profile international and national stakeholders with varied expertise in global affairs. Issues such as the transmission of disease among an increasingly mobile population, the possibility of contaminated food or other products coming into Canada, and expanding environmental damage were discussed within the context of what needs to happen to ensure Canadians are protected.

Forum adjunct faculty Steven Hoffman heads for Harvard 

April 1, 2011 - Steven Hoffman, an adjunct faculty member with the McMaster Health Forum, has been accepted into Harvard University’s prestigious PhD in Health Policy program.

Hoffman, who is a graduate of McMaster’s Bachelor of Health Sciences Program and holds a master of arts in political science and a juris doctor from the University of Toronto, will begin full-time studies at Harvard in September. He has also been granted a Frank Knox Memorial Fellowship to support his studies in the first two years of the program. The fellowship recipients are selected based on outstanding academic excellence, strength of character, and potential for leadership in their fields.

Students publish analysis of broad range of proposals to improve global health governance

March 30, 2011 - Students studying global health decision-making at McMaster University have released a publication that represents the first-ever comprehensive assessment of a broad range of potential global health governance reforms.

Student Voices 2: Assessing Proposals for Global Health Governance, provides evidence-based assessments of 13 previously suggested reforms to address the way that global health efforts are coordinated, financed and prioritized. Nineteen students taking courses offered by the Bachelor of Health Sciences Program in collaboration with the McMaster Health Forum contributed to the content.

Debate to examine if evidence-based medicine is still the leading force in improving patient care

March 21, 2011 - The role of evidence-based medicine (EBM) in the delivery of healthcare in the 21^st century will be the subject of a public debate on March 31 featuring the doctor who first coined the phrase and a leading researcher at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota who previously studied at McMaster University.

Dr. Gordon Guyatt, a leading advocate of EBM who coined the phrase in 1990, and Dr. Victor Montori, who studied under Guyatt in the early 2000s and now conducts research into how knowledge is produced, disseminated and taken up in medical practice, will highlight the state of EBM in the debate from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the DialogueSpace on the fourth floor of Mills Memorial Library.

Forum offers two exciting summer job opportunities for students 

March 17, 2011 - The McMaster Health Forum is offering two summer job opportunities that will give students the chance to be involved in the day-to-day efforts that lead to improving health outcomes through collective problem solving.

Summer students will work directly with the Forum staff and interact with a variety of internal and external stakeholders in healthcare systems. A basic understanding of the Canadian healthcare system is required. Deadline to apply is 9 a.m. on March 24.

For full details, click here.

International community role in addressing healthcare challenges to be explored at global health lecture

March 14, 2011 - An international healthcare leader who works to increase the power of the community in shaping healthcare will be the speaker at the next presentation in the McMaster Health Forum’s Global Health Lecture Series.

Jacqui Lunday, the Chief Health Professions Officer for Scotland’s health department, will focus on opportunities and challenges facing the international community in meeting global health needs. She will address issues such as health workforce capacity and development, and the provision of affordable, sustainable health care services for the future. The lecture will be held on March 23, from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the McMaster Health Forum DialogueSpace on the fourth floor of Mills Memorial Library.

Lunday will explore the potential for networking, interprofessional collaboration and communities of practice to have a significant impact on healthcare. She will present examples of recent developments brokered through the World Health Organization and 60 international health professional bodies as evidence of the use of community in global health advocacy.

McMaster community invited to panel discussion on future of Canada's healthcare system

March 14, 2011 - The future of universal health care in Canada, particularly the possibility of expanding it to including prescription drugs and long-term care, will be the subject of a public panel discussion hosted by the McMaster Health Forum on March 22.

With the expiration of the First Ministers’ Accord on Healthcare Renewal in 2014 and the aging of the Canadian population, the future of Canada’s healthcare system is gaining increasing attention in political and public arenas. The Canadian Medical Association has challenged Canadians to be informed and take an active part in shaping the future of universal healthcare.

The panel discussion features two experts with extensive experience in studying various aspects of the healthcare system, who will discuss the benefits and risks of altering some of the features of Canada’s medicare. Dr. Michael Rachlis, a private consultant in health policy analysis, and Christopher Longo, an assistant professor in McMaster University’s DeGroote School of Business, will offer their ideas on possible changes, and then engage with the audience on questions and concerns about the current medicare framework.

Fadi El-Jardali to discuss governance of health systems in Middle East countries

March 12, 2011 - Fadi El-Jardali, a Visiting Leader with the McMaster Health Forum, will discuss efforts to improve the use of evidence in the governance of health systems in countries of the Middle East at the CHEPA monthly seminar on Wednesday, March 16.

An assistant professor of health policy at the American University of Beirut in Lebanon, El-Jardali is completing his third visit with the Forum, during which he has been assisting with preparations for a planned stakeholder dialogue on advanced practice nursing, and teaching in the Health Policy 711 seminar course for Health Policy PhD students.

At the CHEPA seminar, he will provide insights gained through an ongoing research project entitled Toward Evidence Informed Policies in the Middle East Region.

Health Systems Strengthening and the Global Health Agenda: a case of what goes up, must come down?

March 2, 2011 – The McMaster Health Forum Student Subcommittee invites all students, staff, faculty and community members to attend a public talk on health systems strengthening and its place on the global health agenda.

The talk on March 9 from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. will provide those in attendance with the opportunity to learn about the significance of health systems strengthening among global health policymakers and will explore how the issue has gained political priority to a position at the top of the global health agenda. It will be held in the Forum’s DialogueSpace on the fourth floor of Mills Memorial Library.

Workshop on government relations aims to help student leaders at McMaster

February 23, 2011 – The McMaster Health Forum Student Subcommittee has organized an exclusive workshop aimed at helping student leaders on campus learn to effectively interact with government officials.

The workshop on March 2 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., entitled Government Relations: How to Get Noticed, will provide a step-by-step guide to help students get an issue onto a government agenda. It will be held in the Forum’s DialogueSpace on the fourth floor of Mills Memorial Library.

Forum seeks applications for 2011-12 fellowship opportunities

February 22, 2011 – Applications are now being accepted for the 2011-2012 McMaster Health Forum Fellowships that offer an exceptional opportunity for students to be part of the Forum’s initiatives in addressing pressing health challenges.

Two fellowships are offered for undergraduate students who will interact with Forum staff, faculty and visiting leaders, meet health system stakeholders such as heads of medical associations, hospital CEOs, government and World Organization representatives, and be involved in the planning, research and execution of various Forum events such as stakeholder dialogues. They will also develop work plans to advance the aims of the Forum and support their own development, and undertake an internship in an organization charged with addressing health challenges.

Student subcommittee active in range of events offering enhanced learning opportunities

February 10, 2011 – The McMaster Health Forum Student Subcommittee is involved with a full slate of activities during the winter term to give students in health-related fields of study and beyond opportunities to broaden their learning experiences.

Under the leadership of co-chairs Theresa Tang and Alyssa Cantarutti, the 16-member committee that includes representatives from a range of student organizations at McMaster University has helped organize a series of public talks on global health and a workshop on communications, and is planning a debate about evidence-based medicine as well as a panel discussion on universal healthcare.

Interactive workshop offers students opportunity to learn how to 'make the news'

February 3, 2011 – The McMaster Health Forum is inviting students to an interactive communications workshop that will teach them how they can advocate for positive change through public engagement with the media.

The workshop on Thursday, February 10 in the Forum’s DialogueSpace will be led by Ken Marciniec, communications officer for the Ontario Nurses’ Association, and journalist Sarah Elton, food columnist for CBC Radio’s Here and Now and author of the national bestseller, Locavore: From Farmers' Fields to Rooftop Gardens, How Canadians Are Changing the Way We Eat. It will run from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Public talk to examine global health as a security issue

February 2, 2011 –A public talk focusing on the motivations and means of framing health as a national and global security issue has been postponed until February 9. Students interested in learning more about this topic are invited to attend the event which is part of the Forum's Global Health Lecture series and will be held in the McMaster Health Forum DialogueSpace.

Clifton van der Linden, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Political Science at the University of Toronto and a research fellow with the Faculty of Social Sciences at the Free University Amsterdam, will deliver the talk beginning at 6 p.m.

Poverty's impact on health subject of public lecture by Forum's Jim Dunn

January 18, 2011 - Jim Dunn, a McMaster Health Forum adjunct faculty and a leader in research related to addressing poverty issues, will deliver a public lecture on January 25 dealing with neighbourhood-based approaches to addressing poverty and its impacts on health.

Poverty By Postal Code: Will Neighbourhood Solutions Work in Hamilton? is the first in a series of lectures being organized by various community organizations to address issues raised by the Hamilton Community Foundation’s Vital Signs report and the Hamilton Spectator’s Code Red series, which both identified the grim reality of poverty in various Hamilton locales.

Forum named WHO Collaborating Centre for Evidence-Informed Policy

December 6, 2010 – The McMaster Health Forum will play a greater international role in supporting evidence-informed policymaking about the governance, financial and delivery arrangements of health systems with its designation as a World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre.

The four-year designation is the culmination of a year-long process and ongoing work with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and with WHO, led by John Lavis, director of the Forum, and Holger Schunemann, chair of the Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, to design and coordinate plans for how PAHO’s and WHO’s priorities in the field of knowledge translation could be advanced by this new collaborating centre.

Rural health dialogue findings shared at Saskatchewan conference

November 30, 2010 – The McMaster Health Forum’s role in Saskatchewan’s efforts to improve rural health care delivery was highlighted by Director John Lavis at the recent Connecting the Dots III conference held in Regina.

The conference engaged healthcare system leaders as well as representatives of urban and rural municipalities in identifying key actions and next steps in the process of developing a plan for improving access to rural and remote health services in the province.

Forum work highlighted at Innovation Fund Showcase

November 22, 2010 – The work of the McMaster Health Forum was highlighted during the province’s first Innovation Fund Showcase organized by the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care and the Ontario Medical Association.

The Forum displayed a poster highlighting its efforts and achievements on the topics of chronic disease management, chronic pain management and cancer care delivery, at the event held this month in Toronto. The Showcase featured a selection of research projects being led by academic physicians committed to transforming healthcare delivery in Ontario.

Lecture to examine how human rights affect global health equity

November 9, 2010 – Students interested in learning about how human rights can affect the achievement of global health equity are invited to attend a public lecture on Nov. 17 in the McMaster Health Forum DialogueSpace.

Lisa Forman, director of the Comparative Program on Health and Society of the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto, will deliver the lecture beginning at 6 p.m. Forman, who is the Lupina assistant professor in global health and human rights at both the Dalla Lana School of Public Health and the Munk School of Global Affairs, has specialized in international human rights law relating to HIV/AIDS, health and medicines for more than a decade.

Forum student sub-committee seeks new members

November 1, 2010 – The student sub-committee of the McMaster Health Forum is planning an information session for all McMaster students interested in becoming actively involved with the Forum’s work.

The student sub-committee is being expanded to include five members-at-large who will join the membership complement that now includes representatives from specific groups on campus.

Student learning enhanced by purpose-built DialogueSpace

October 4, 2010 – Students taking courses affiliated with the McMaster Health Forum are now using the state-of-the-art DialogueSpace in the Forum’s new purpose-built venue at Mills Memorial Library to enhance their learning experience.

The Forum’s Simulations course (HTH SCI 4YY3) and the Law & Disorder in Global Health course (HTH SCI 4LD3) each have about 25 students who are able to take advantage of the multi-purpose, technology-enabled venue that is designed to support and facilitate collective problem-solving.

Forum moves into new venue in Mills Library

September 2, 2010 – The McMaster Health Forum is now conducting its work in a newly purpose-built venue at the core of the McMaster University campus, in Mills Library.

The Forum’s new home on the fourth floor of Mills is uniquely designed to enhance its leadership role as a hub for harnessing information, convening stakeholders and preparing action-oriented leaders to meet pressing health issues creatively.

Visiting leader to describe unique work supporting evidence-based practice

August 19, 2010 – The evolution of Australia’s only evidence-based practice support unit will be the focus of a seminar by McMaster Health Forum Visiting Leader Dr. Claire Harris on Sept. 29 in the Forum’s new venue at Mills Memorial Library.

Based in Melbourne, the Centre for Clinical Effectiveness (CCE) is an Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) Support Unit within Southern Health, a large integrated health service which provides acute, subacute, rehabilitation, mental health, aged care and community services. The role of CCE is to encourage, support and enable educators, health professionals, managers and policymakers to use research evidence in decision-making for clinical practice, service delivery and organizational change.

Student publication examines global health issues

August 17, 2010 – An examination of five pressing global health issues from the perspective of a group of McMaster University students has been published by the McMaster Health Forum.

Student Voices: Advocating for Global Health through Evidence, Insight and Action, is a five-chapter publication written by students who took The Politics & Praxis of Global Health Advocacy course offered to fourth-year undergraduate students through the Bachelor of Health Sciences program in collaboration with the McMaster Health Forum. Offered for the first time in the winter 2010 term, the course is taught by Steven Hoffman, a former Forum Fellow, who edited the publication.

Forum welcomes fellows for 2010-11

August 5, 2010 – Two students in McMaster’s Bachelor of Health Sciences program who each have a keen interest in learning to bring about creative solutions to healthcare delivery problems have been chosen as the McMaster Health Forum Fellows for 2010-11.

Theresa Tang, who is entering the fourth year of the B.H.Sc. program, and Ahmad AlKhatib, who is entering the program’s third year, were chosen from a field of 40 applicants for the $5,000 fellowship awards.

Registration open for Forum's Simulations Course

July 8, 2010 – Registration is now open for the McMaster Health Forum’s Simulations Course which offers students the chance to participate in simulated meetings of influential organizations such as the United Nations, provincial and federal cabinets, hospital boards and Local Health Integration Networks.

This is the second time the course has been offered. Registration is limited to 24 students, who must be in at least the third year of an undergraduate degree program at McMaster, and obtain the permission of the course instructor.

HCC shines spotlight on Forum's work on primary healthcare

June 2, 2010 – The McMaster Health Forum’s efforts to help shape and improve primary healthcare in Canada is being highlighted by the Health Council of Canada.

Earlier this year, the Forum organized a stakeholder dialogue sponsored by the Health Council of Canada, which brought together 20 healthcare leaders from across the country to talk about ways to strengthen primary healthcare in Canada. 

Rural health in Saskatchewan to be examined at Forum dialogue

May 7, 2010 – The McMaster Health Forum is preparing for its first off-site Stakeholder Dialogue to be held in Regina on June 17.

The dialogue will focus on designing a rural health strategy in Saskatchewan and bring together policymakers as well as others working at various levels in the province’s health system, for off-the-record deliberations about the pressing challenges being faced in rural areas.

Health Systems Evidence update service launched

May 1, 2010 – A new e-newsletter service that provides monthly updates about policy briefs, systematic reviews and overviews of reviews relevant to specific health system topics being addressed by the McMaster Health Forum has been launched.

The first Health Systems Evidence Service update, specific to strengthening primary health care, was distributed in April. Three additional updates, focusing on strengthening chronic disease management, optimizing diabetes care, and enhancing the management of chronic pain, will be delivered this month.

Registration open for Global Symposium on Health Systems Research

March 31, 2010 – Registration and the call for abstracts are now open for the First Global Symposium on Health Systems Research being held in Montreux, Switzerland from Nov. 16 to Nov. 19.

The event will bring together researchers, policymakers, representatives of donorand multinationalorganizations, and other stakeholders representing diverse constituencies to share evidence, identify significant knowledge gaps, and set a research agenda aimed at accelerating universal health coverage.

Poverty's affect on health to be examined at public lecture

March 9, 2009 – Jim Dunn, an adjunct faculty with the McMaster Health Forum who researches the effects of poverty on health, is the keynote speaker at the Social Science in the City Anti-poverty Lecture series on March 10.

Dunn will explore the issues of why more money is associated with better health in his lecture entitled Housing, Neighbourhoods and Health: Poverty Traps or Trampolines?, at 7 p.m. at The Hamilton Spectator Auditorium.
Dunn, who is also a scientist with the Centre for Research on Inner City Health in Toronto, is among the McMaster social scientists who are actively researching how poverty is taking its toll on the health of Canadians.

Student event explores media influence on women's health

March 8, 2010 – The Student Sub-Committee of the McMaster Health Forum hosted a public event featuring noted Canadian physician Marla Shapiro, to mark International Women’s Day on March 8.

Dr. Shapiro, an author and health consultant for Canadian news programs, explored how media coverage of women’s health issues can have a major impact on public sentiment, particularly regarding pharmaceuticals.

Students invited to apply for Forum Fellowships

February 5, 2010 – Applications are now being accepted for the 2010-2011 McMaster Health Forum Fellowships that offer an exceptional opportunity for students to be part of the Forum community.

Two fellowships are offered for undergraduate students who will interact with Forum staff, faculty and visiting leaders as they work to creatively address pressing health challenges. Forum Fellows will meet many health system stakeholders such as heads of medical associations, hospital CEOs, government and World Organization representatives, and concerned citizens who participate in Forum events. They will also develop work plans to advance the aims of the Forum and support their own development, and undertake an internship in an organization charged with meeting pressing health challenges.