Good morning, TeamUHN!
It is a pleasure to connect with you across care, research, and education through this weekly CEO update – all in service of A Healthier World.
Key reminders and updates
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We begin with a message of gratitude to the Indigenous Health Program (IHP) for hosting the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation event Friday at the Michener Institute of Education at UHN. All of TeamUHN deeply appreciates the IHP's leadership and guidance as we walk the path of reconciliation together. Last Friday, the Residential Schools Survivors' Flag was also raised at UHN. Each element depicted on the flag was selected by Survivors – learn more from
the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation.
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Last week, The Slaight Family Foundation announced a $1.5 million gift to UHN Foundation to be directed to UHN's Centre for Mental Health for programming to support transitional age youth (TAY) aged 18 to 25. This announcement was part of $26.5-million in funding The Slaight Family Foundation announced for 19 organizations across Canada to support initiatives related to youth and mental health. Together with our community partner, Youth Wellness Hubs Ontario, UHN will provide new support to TAY with co-occurring physical and mental health needs. This support will be available both during their time in our care and after they return to their communities. We are grateful to be part of The Slaight Family Foundation's annual giving initiative once again.
Read more here.
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Congratulations to more than 1,800 players who participated in the 12th annual Road Hockey to Conquer Cancer Saturday. They raised $3.15 million for The Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation (PMCF), a new world record for this event. Thanks to all the clinicians, researchers, and staff who played, including five teams from UHN, and Drs. Marcus Bernardini, Tony Finelli, Peter Ferguson, Michael Daly and several other TeamUHN members. Since its inception in 2011, Road Hockey to Conquer Cancer has raised more than $30 million for life-saving cancer research at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. My thanks to everyone who organized such a wonderful day, including our PMCF staff, Dr. Miyo Yamashita, President & CEO of the PMCF, as well as our leaders on the Corporate and Community Partnerships team at the PMCF, Steve Merker, Brendan Ennis, and Jordan Harding.
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Congratulations to Dr. Barry Rubin, recipient of the M. Andrew Padmos International Collaboration Award from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons Canada and Royal College International for his "dedication, leadership, and unwavering commitment to decreasing clinician burnout globally." Dr. Rubin is one of 12 steering committee members of the
U.S. National Academy of Medicine (NAM) Action Collaborative on Clinician Well-Being and Resilience, co-led by Dr. Vivek Murthy, U.S. Surgeon General. He represents UHN as the only Canadian health care organization in the NAM network of over 200 hospitals and specialty societies committed to reducing clinician burnout. He was integral in developing the
National Plan for Health Workforce Well-Being, launched in October 2022. Part of his voluntary work with NAM included leading the committee that developed the
Compendium of Key Resources for Improving Clinician Well-Being which outlines 80 evidence-based strategies to decrease clinician burnout. With Royal College International, Dr. Rubin has also engaged audiences on the importance of decreasing burnout at virtual conferences in Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. Congratulations again, Dr. Rubin, on this outstanding work.
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Today, UHN is kicking off the Electronic Health Record (EHR) Survey from KLAS Research, which clinical users of Epic will receive via email. Implementing and adopting Epic has taken us on a clinical transformation journey to improve patient safety and provide a higher quality of care. We are all invested in this effort, and now we need your help to guide future actions. Please take a few minutes to give us candid feedback about your experiences with Epic. It is critical that we understand the current state so we can successfully optimize our systems and support to better meet your needs.
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If you missed last week's joint staff Open Forum with West Park Healthcare, please
watch the recording online. It was a pleasure to join West Park's President and CEO, Anne-Marie Malek, to answer questions from staff and speak about how we might leverage one another's expertise to create the world's leading tertiary and quaternary rehabilitation centre. For all the latest on our potential merger, head to
westpark-uhn.com.
Closing Notes
Congratulations to the hundreds of Princess Margaret Cancer Centre patients, their caregivers, doctors, nurses, health care workers and supporters who gathered last Wednesday at Black Creek Pioneer Village for Canada's inaugural Allogeneic Blood and Bone Marrow Transplant Patient Survivorship Day. Dr. Jonas Mattsson, director of the Hans Messner Allogeneic Transplant Program, and his team organized this beautiful event to celebrate patients' good health, and pay tribute to the huge team who make transplants possible. John Ralston Saul, one of several patients who spoke, said he felt linked forever to his anonymous donor. Lilac Cana, another patient, sang an opera duet with Dr. Armin Gerbitz.
October 1 st was International Day of Older Persons, which asks that we reflect on the challenges facing older persons and do our part to build a society for all ages. The number of people aged 65 or older worldwide is projected to more than double to 1.6 billion by 2050, which underscores the importance of meeting the health care needs of an aging population.
UHN/Sinai Health's Healthy Ageing and Geriatrics Program provides excellent care for older adults, trains physicians and health professionals in the most relevant practices of geriatrics, and implements innovative new ways of caring for older adults. The 11th annual UHN/Sinai Health Toronto Geriatrics Virtual Update Course, designed to give front-line practitioners the latest practical and evidence-based knowledge they need to care for older patients, will be held
Nov. 10.
Learn more and register for the event here.
It was great to see positive media attention last week on the Social Medicine Supportive Housing project in Parkdale, a partnership between UHN, the City of Toronto, and the United Way of Greater Toronto.
Global News and
The Toronto Star both had reports on this innovative initiative. Once completed, the four-storey modular building at 150 Dunn Ave. will provide accessible, safe, and affordable housing to 51 people from historically marginalized groups who are frequent users of hospital services. Mayor Olivia Chow
posted on X that she was "happy to partner with UHN on this project and excited to see even more across the city."
And now… our
video of the week. This clip shows how nurses set up an operating room for a neurosurgical procedure.
Feedback?
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Have a good week,
Kevin
