NOSM receives unprecedented $1.2 million donation to invest in social accountability

The Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) announces a $1.2 million donation to support its social accountability mandate. This gift marks the largest by an individual donor in the School’s history.

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, made the donation to help NOSM in addressing health inequity, advocacy for marginalized populations and access to care in Northern Ontario.

With roots in Cochrane, Ontario, Dr. Robertson is concerned about the shortages of physicians in the North. “I have fond memories of practising in Northern Ontario and I see the great need for funding. I want to support NOSM with its strategic plan to address health human resource planning,” says Dr. Robertson.

NOSM plans to apply some of this donation towards the establishment of a new one-of-a-kind Center for Social Accountability that will have four pillars: research and innovation, community impact, policy leadership and advocacy, and education. Under the banner of a new interdisciplinary Centre for Social Accountability, NOSM will tackle issues that create inequitable health care in the North such as poverty, water insecurity and climate change.

“This generous gift allows NOSM to broaden the scope of our social accountability outcomes,” says Dr. Sarita Verma, NOSM Dean, President and CEO. “Increasing our focus on Northern Ontario communities, partnering on innovative population-health research and engaging in cutting-edge education will advance the work that we are doing and help establish sustainable solutions to health care in Northern Ontario. We thank Dr. Robertson for embracing this vision and are humbled and deeply grateful to him for supporting this critical work.”

About the Centre for Social Accountability

One-of-a-kind, the Centre for Social Accountability’s contributions to research and advocacy, will result in better informed decisions about challenges facing the system of health-care delivery in Northern Ontario, leading to better population health outcomes. Fundamental to this will be research and advocacy into determinants of health, such as mental health and addictions, water safety and food security, and climate change which will magnify the impact of NOSM’s education and advocacy efforts within the system. By measuring NOSM’s impact through its provision of health-care workforce and implementation of health human resource planning, the Centre will be recognized for its leadership in Indigenous, Francophone and Rural health at a national and international level.

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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.

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