NOSM Board Holds Face-to-Face Meeting in Sudbury

Members Hear Medical Student Experiences and Say Farewell to Ken Adams, Departing CAO 

The Board of Directors of the Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) held a face-to-face meeting in Sudbury on November 28 and 29, 2014.

On the first day of the two-day meeting, Board members heard presentations from NOSM Associate Deans on the topics of faculty engagement, research ethics, patient safety and simulation in health care, and community engagement.

In the afternoon, two NOSM medical students relayed their experiences to the Board. Reflecting on her upbringing in Sault Ste. Marie and medical school learning placements, fourth-year medical student Kendra Komsa spoke about the various influences that have led her to want to be a rural physician in Northern Ontario. Next, third-year medical student Nicole Ranger, via WebEx from the community of Hearst, spoke about the rich cultural and linguistic dimensions of her Comprehensive Community Clerkship (CCC) placement in that community. Both students agreed that NOSM’s distinctive, distributed community-engaged model is preparing students well for practice in rural settings.

Before dinner, Board members were provided a tour of Laurentian University’s Laurentian Architecture Laurentienne (LAL). Opening in September 2013, LAL is the first new school of architecture in Canada in over 40 years, and the first outside of the province of Québec to offer French programming. The Bachelor of Architectural Studies (BAS) undergraduate program focuses on design, culture, technology and professional practice, highlighting design and culture for the North.

After dinner, Board members said farewell to NOSM’s departing Chief Administrative Officer, Ken Adams. The Board congratulated Ken on his new appointment to the position of Vice President, College Services at Confederation College in early January 2015, and thanked him for his significant contributions to the administration of the School over the last six and a half years of service at NOSM.

To begin the second day of meetings, the Board toured the Northern Ontario School of Medicine at Laurentian University.

After a presentation on finance led by Ben Petersen, Treasurer and Chair of the Finance Audit and Risk Management Committee, Ken Adams, NOSM’s CAO, and Joe Lipinski, NOSM’s Director of Finance, Board members participated in a workshop to consider implementation planning for NOSM’s 2015-2020 Strategic Plan. This session, led by Dr. Roger Strasser, NOSM Dean, Dr. David Marsh, NOSM’s Associate Dean of Community Engagement, and Grace Vita, NOSM’s Director of Planning and Risk, asked Board members to reflect on how, during the implementation phase, NOSM can learn from, and build upon, the strong community engagement that occurred during the development of the plan. From May to September 2014, senior leaders and staff travelled to more than 50 Northern, rural, remote, Francophone, and Aboriginal communities across the North to meet with individuals, organizations, health-care professionals, and faculty to discuss Northern Ontarians’ ongoing health-related needs. The input received has provided important guidance to setting the priorities of NOSM’s 2015-2020 Strategic Plan.

At the formal Board meeting in the afternoon, members received reports from the Finance, Audit and Risk Management, Governance, and Executive committees, and the Nominations and Community Relations sub-committees. The Board also received reports from the School’s Francophone and Aboriginal Reference Groups. In addition, Board members received a copy of The Scope, a new biannual publication that highlights research by faculty members in the School’s Human, Medical, and Clinical Sciences Divisions, residents, medical students, a broad range of health-professional learners, and collaborators-all with a view to improving the health of Northern Ontarians and beyond. The Scope is now available at  nosm.ca/thescope .

The Board of Directors approved Financial Statements from the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee for the five-month period ending September 30, 2014.

Dr. Brian Stevenson, Chair of the Northern Ontario School of Medicine’s Board of Directors and President of Lakehead University, noted that the two-day meeting in Sudbury was a great success. “I am always inspired by the rich discussions and collaboration that occurs when NOSM Board members meet,” he said. “The Board takes such pride in what the medical school is accomplishing, and the incredible contribution NOSM’s staff, faculty, learners, and alumni are making to improve the health of people and communities across Northern Ontario.”

The Northern Ontario School of Medicine’s next Board of Directors meeting is scheduled to occur on March 18, 2015.

For a complete list of Board members, please visit our website at nosm.ca .

Contact:

news@nosm.ca