2009 NHRC Conference

The Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) held its fourth annual Northern Health Research Conference (NHRC) in Thunder Bay on May 29 – 30, 2009 at Lakehead University. The conference explored research activities occurring within Northern Ontario, and around the province, and highlighted current projects led by community-based researchers, health-care professionals, students, residents, and dietitians.

Seventy-eight oral and poster presentations were delivered, including titles such as: Interprofessional Collaboration and Potential Differences in Generational Cohorts; A Role for Flaxseed Oil in Chemotherapy: Enhancing Taxol-mediated Cell Death; “When I Work I am White”: The Experience of Being an Inuit Nurse in a Western Health-care Setting; Development of an Implementation Strategy for Algoma Public Health’s Snactivity Kits: A Resource for Elementary School Teachers; and, Sandy Lake Primary Stroke Prevention Program: Collaboration, Development, and Implementation.

Featured Keynote Speaker, Dr. Kue Young, Professor and TransCanada Pipelines Chair, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, addressed the question: “Why Am I Here? A Southern Academic’s Perspective on Northern Health Research”. Another conference highlight was the participation of high school students from Thunder Bay and surrounding communities. This session, led by NOSM’s Aboriginal and Francophone Affairs Units, provided opportunities for the students to learn about health research, health careers, and the NOSM M.D. program.

“The Northern Ontario School of Medicine is proud to have held this exciting event for a fourth year in a row,” said NOSM Dean, Dr. Roger Strasser. “A key theme of the School’s research is tackling the questions of importance to improving the health of the people and communities of the North, and this conference is one of many initiatives that allow the Northern Ontario School of Medicine to facilitate this objective. Nearly 120 participants from different research backgrounds and institutions came together to share their study findings, advance knowledge, and network amongst themselves towards developing new integrated, interdisciplinary pan-Northern research teams.”

Research is a significant component of the NOSM curriculum. The School’s faculty and students are actively engaged in a wide range of health research projects and their efforts continue to provide the School with the opportunity to work in partnership with organizations and individuals on health issues that have a direct relevance to the people of Northern Ontario. Dr. Greg Ross, NOSM Associate Dean, Research, was delighted to see graduate students and NOSM medical students, residents, and graduates of the first class of dietetic interns present. “Student registration and participation in the Northern Health Research Conference was increased this year. A number of the School’s learners were on hand to present their findings on projects funded by the Northern Ontario School of Medicine’s Founding Dean Summer Medical Student Research Awards and Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario’s Summer Medical Student Research Awards.”

The fifth annual Northern Health Research Conference will be held at Laurentian University in Sudbury, Ontario, in the spring of 2010.