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home >> events > Events
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December 6th, 2007
MEDIA SCIENCE FORUM
"Communicating Health Research in an Era of Headline News"
Ottawa Congress Centre and Westin Ottawa Landmarks Lounge
Ottawa, Ontario
Featured Speakers
Event Host
Dr. Ronald Worton
Dr. Worton is retired after a 37-year career as a medical research scientist and scientific leader.
Following degrees in Physics at the University of Manitoba and a PhD in Medical Biophysics at the University of Toronto, Dr. Worton spent two years as a research fellow at Yale University. In 1971, he moved to the Department of Genetics at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, where he spent 25 years as a scientist, the last eleven years as Geneticist in Chief at the Hospital and Professor in Molecular and Medical Genetics at the University of Toronto.
In 1996, Dr. Worton moved to Ottawa as Scientific Director of a new Research Institute at the former Ottawa General Hospital. Following the merger of this Institute with the Loeb Health Research Institute to create the Ottawa Health Research Institute in 2001, he became its first CEO and Scientific Director, retiring in April, 2007. During that 6 year period he was also VP Research of The Ottawa Hospital, and Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Ottawa.
Dr. Worton's research has been on the genetics of human disease, including identification of the gene responsible for Duchenne muscular dystrophy and elucidation of the mechanism of mutation in patients. His work has resulted in more than 120 publications in leading journals and books and over 150 invited presentations at international meetings.
Dr. Worton’s national and international leadership role has included 12 years as Associate Director of the Canadian Genetic Diseases Network, 6 years as Head of the Canadian Genome Analysis and Technology Program, 4 years as Founding Scientific Director of Canada’s Stem Cell Network, 2 years as Vice President of HUGO, the international Human Genome Organization and 1 year as President of the American Society of Human Genetics.
He has also served on the Boards of the Ottawa Health Research Institute, the Ottawa Hospital Foundation, the Canadian College of Medical Geneticists, the Muscular Dystrophy Association of Canada and the American Society of Human Genetics. He also served on the Interim Governing Council that created the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.
Currently he is Chair of the Board of Research Canada, Vice Chair of the Board of the Ontario Research Fund and member of the Ontario Ministry of Health Advisory Council on Health Research.
Dr. Worton is the recipient of several national and international awards including the prestigious Gairdner Foundation International Award. He holds honorary degrees from the University of Manitoba and Université Catholique de Louvain and is an honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and a member of the Order of Canada.
Ms. Deborah Gordon-El-Bihbety, Media Science Forum Steering Committee Chair
 Ms. Deborah Gordon-El-Bihbety is President & CEO of Research Canada: An Alliance for Health Discovery. She brings considerable executive level experience in public policy, health advocacy, government relations, association management, project management and media relations to Research Canada. She was instrumental in the creation of Research Canada and led the successful transition of the Council for Health Research in Canada into Research Canada, effectively recruiting new member organizations and superbly handling governance changes in order to bring Research Canada into operation.
Before joining Research Canada (then the Council for Health Research in Canada) in 2003, Ms. Gordon-El-Bihbety was the Associate Chief Executive Officer at the Canadian Public Health Association (CPHA), where she was responsible for the Association’s national programs including its businesses.
Ms. Gordon-El-Bihbety has a background in health research, having published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal and a number of other journals. She is currently the Co-chair of the Expert Panel on Health Literacy which will publish its research on the state of health literacy in Canada in January 2008. She also chaired the Leaders’ Forum Steering Committee which resulted in the successful 2004 Leaders Forum for Health Research in Canada in Ottawa. In addition, she has worked closely with many national health associations on a wide variety of health research and health policy issues.
Keynote Speaker
Dr. Jessie Gruman
Jessie Gruman is the founder and president of the Center for the Advancement of Health, an independent, nonpartisan Washington-based policy institute funded by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Annenberg Foundation and others.
Since it was established in 1992 the Center has worked to translate health research into effective policy and practice. The Center focuses specifically on ensuring that evidence of the influence of social, behavioral and economic factors on health is used in efforts to prevent, manage and treat disease. Dr. Gruman has worked on this same set of concerns in the private sector (AT&T), the public sector (National Institutes of Health) and tholuntary health sector (American Cancer Society). She received her undergraduate degree from Vassar College and her Ph.D. in social psychology from Columbia University.
She is a Professorial Lecturer in the School of Public Health at The George Washington University and serves on the boards of trustees of the National Health Council, the Public Health Institute, the Sallan Foundation, and the Center for Information Therapy, among others.
Dr. Gruman is a Fellow of the Society of Behavioral Medicine and has received the Society’s awards for distinguished service and “Leadership in Translation of Research to Practice". She was recognized for outstanding service from the American Psychological Association and was honored by Research!America for her leadership in advocacy for health research. She is the recipient of an honorary doctorate in public policy from Carnegie Mellon University and the Presidential Medal of The George Washington University. She served as the Executive in Residence at Vassar College and serves on the editorial board of The Annals of Family Medicine, and is a member of the Society of Behavioral Medicine, the American Psychological Association, the Association for Psychological Science and the Council on Foreign Relations.
Dr. Gruman is the author of numerous articles and essays published in the scholarly and public media. Her book for the general public, After Shock: What to Do When the Doctor Gives You – or Someone You Love – a Devastating Diagnosis (Walker Publishing, 2007) is about how people use scientific information to make decisions about their healthcare.
Morning Panel
Mr. André Picard, Moderator
André Picard is the public health reporter at The Globe and Mail, where he has been a staff writer since 1987.
He has received much acclaim for his writing, including the Michener Award for Meritorious Public Service Journalism, the Canadian Policy Research Award, the Atkinson Fellowship for Public Policy Research and the Award for Excellence in Women’s Health Reporting. In 2002, he received the Centennial Prize of the Pan-American Health Organization as the top public health reporter in the Americas.
André is the author of three best-selling books CRITICAL CARE: Canadian Nurses Speak for Change and THE GIFT OF DEATH: Confronting Canada's Tainted Blood Tragedy and A CALL TO ALMS: The New Face of Charity in Canada.
Ms. Sally Brown
Ms. Brown joined the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada in October of 2001as CEO. The previous 10 years she was Senior Vice-President of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC). Her career also includes three years as a special advisor in Prime Minister Mulroney’s Office and six years as a hospital administrator at the Toronto General Hospital (TGH).
Ms. Brown has a Diploma in Nursing and a BA and an MHSc from the University of Toronto.
Ms. Brown has served on a number of national boards including the Canadian Health Services Research Foundation, Research Canada and the Health Charities Coalition of Canada is currently on the Board of the Canadian Stroke Network.
Dr. Chad Gaffield
Chad Gaffield, one of Canada’s foremost social historians, came to SSHRC from the University of Ottawa, where he was the founding director of the Institute of Canadian Studies and, most recently, held a University Research Chair. During his 20-year University of Ottawa career, he also served as vice-dean of graduate studies and on the executive committee of the board of governors. He is a former president of the Canadian Historical Association and the Canadian Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences.
An expert on the sociocultural history of 19th- and 20th-century Canada, Gaffield led the Canadian Century Research Infrastructure Project (CCRI), one of Canada’s largest and most innovative research projects in the social sciences and humanities. By applying digital technology to the country’s rich mine of historical census information, the CCRI enables unprecedented and profound analysis of the forces that have shaped the modern nation.
In 2003 Gaffield was honoured with the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, he received the society’s 2004 Tyrrell Medal for his outstanding contribution to the study of Canada.
Chad Gaffield received his BA and MA from McGill University, and his PhD from the University of Toronto.
Dr. Joe Schwarcz
Joe Schwarcz (PhD McGill 1973) is Director of McGill University’s Office for Science and Society which is dedicated to demystifying science for the public, the media and students. Dr. Schwarcz also teaches a variety of courses with emphasis on health issues and on the application of chemistry to everyday life. He is well known for his informative and entertaining public lectures on topics ranging from the chemistry of love to the science of aging.
Professor Schwarcz has received numerous awards for teaching chemistry and for interpreting science for the public. Among these are the Royal Society of Canada’s McNeil Award and the American Chemical Society’s prestigious Grady-Stack Award. Previous winners of the Grady-Stack have included famed science writer Isaac Asimov, New York Times columnist Walter Sullivan and Don Herbert of TV’s "Mr. Wizard" fame. Dr. Schwarcz is the only non-American ever to be honored with this prize. His latest award is the Royal Canadian Institute’s Sandford Fleming Medal. Dr. Schwarcz was also awarded an honorary Doctorate degree by Athabasca University in the spring of 2002.
"Dr. Joe" appears on the Canadian Discovery Channel, TV Ontario, Global Television, CBC-TV, CTV-TV and various radio stations. He hosts the "Dr. Joe Show" on Montreal's CJAD and Toronto’s CFRB every Sunday from 3-4 PM. He was also the host of "Science To Go", a 13 episode show on the Discovery Channel that focused on common foods. Dr. Schwarcz writes a weekly newspaper column in the Montreal Gazette entitled "The Right Chemistry" as well as a monthly column in Canadian Chemical News. He was the chief consultant on the Reader’s Digest best sellers "Foods That Harm, Foods That Heal" and "The Healing Power of Vitamins, Minerals and Herbs" and contributed the chemistry chapter to the best-selling "Mental Floss". His books "Radar, Hula Hoops and Playful Pigs", "The Genie in the Bottle", "That’s The Way The Cookie Crumbles", "Dr. Joe and What You Didn’t Know", "The Fly in the Ointment" and "Let Them Eat Flax" have been best sellers. The books have been translated into five languages and are sold around the world.
Dr. Marla Shapiro
Dr. Marla completed medical school at McGill University and trained at the University of Toronto for her Masters of Health Science in Community Health and Epidemiology.She trained in Family Medicine and is certified by the Canadian College of Family Practice. She concluded her specialty training in Community Medicine receiving her Fellowship in Community Medicine from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.She holds a Fellowship in Family Medicine and is a NAMS credentialed menopause specialist. She is an Associate Professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Toronto and is in private practice.
In 1993 she joined City TV in Toronto, Ontario as the medical expert on the nationally syndicated show Cityline. Shortly thereafter she became the medical expert for City Pulse and CP24 News. In 2000, she left City to become the Health and Medical Contributor for CTV's Canada AM. In addition to her weekly appearances on Canada AM, she is seen on Newsnet and as the medical consultant on CTV’s National News with Lloyd Robertson.
2003 saw the exciting addition of Balance: Television for Living Well, in which Dr. Shapiro appears as host. This refreshing daily health and lifestyle show is seen across North American households and has sold internationally.
Dr. Shapiro writes a health column for the Globe and Mail. In addition she has a regular column in Canadian Health and Living. She is the Editor of Health Essentials as well as the Editor of ParentsCanada. She writes weekly in her blog which can be found at www.ctv.ca.
Dr. Shapiro is the recipient of the 2005 Media Award from the North American Menopause Society for her work in expanding the understanding of menopause, and won the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada/Canadian Foundation for Women's Health Award for Excellence in Women's Health Journalism in 2006 for her documentary Run Your Own Race. The documentary has won numerous awards including the New York Film Festival and the Columbus International Film and Video award.
Her book Life in the Balance: My Journey with Breast Cancer, was released in Fall 2006 and is a national bestseller.
She is a member of several advisory boards including Cancer care Ontario and the newly formed Canadian Partnership Against Cancer.
Luncheon Speaker
Dr. Patrice Roy, Moderator
 Executive Director of the Rx&D Health Research Foundation and Director, Research and Development Quebec and Atlantic for Pfizer Canada Dr. Roy obtained a doctorate in biochemistry from the Université de Montréal, after which he did postdoctoral studies at the Clinical Research Institute of Montreal. He also obtained an MBA from McGill University, with a double concentration in human resources and marketing. Prior to joining Pfizer Canada, he administered research groups in the fields of Alzheimer’s disease and cardiovascular diseases. He has been with Pfizer Canada now for more than 10 years, where he supervises different types of research and development projects. He is also the Executive Director of the Rx&D Health Research Foundation.
Professor Kathryn O’Hara, Speaker
 Kathryn O'Hara joined the faculty of the School of Journalism and Communication in 2001 and became the first person to hold the School's CTV Chair in Science Broadcast Journalism, the first such chair of its kind in anglophone Canada. O'Hara is a long-standing broadcast journalist, the former consumer columnist with CBC's Midday, the former anchor of CBC's Newsday in Ottawa, and the former host of Later the Same Day, CBC Radio Toronto's "drive-home" program. She holds an M.Sc. in Science Communication from The Queen's University of Belfast, and for the three years before coming to the School was an independent producer for the BBC and CBC. Kathryn served on the science and techncology advisory boards for Environment Canada and currently, Health Canada. She is on the Steering Committee for the National Cancer Institute of Canada's prevention research initiative. She is active in the World Federation of Science Journalists and is vice-president of the Canadian Science Writers' Association.
Afternoon Café Scientifique
Mr. Irving Gold, Moderator
 Irving Gold is the Vice President, Government Relations and External Affairs for the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada where he provides health policy, government relations and communication expertise to the association.
Prior to joining the AFMC, Irving worked in the area of knowledge transfer and exchange. Beginning in 1999 at the Centre for Health Economics and Policy Analysis at McMaster University, Irving worked as the centre’s research transfer associate. In 2000, Irving created the Canadian Research Transfer Network and chaired its board of directors until 2004. In 2002, Irving joined the Canadian Health Services Research Foundation and became responsible for the knowledge network and knowledge brokering activities of the foundation. In 2004, Irving was appointed to the position of director, where he oversaw not only the knowledge networks and knowledge brokering programs but all foundation activities meant to ensure that research-informed evidence gets into the hands of health system managers and policy makers.
Irving has become an internationally recognized expert in developing and implementing linkage and exchange strategies that bring researchers and decision makers together and build decision-maker capacity to use research-informed evidence. Irving has been consulted by government departments and research centres from all over the world and by organizations such as the WHO and the Global Development Network.
Prior to becoming involved in the world of knowledge transfer and exchange, Irving worked in the area of corporate communications and government relations, specifically in the area of post-secondary education. Irving’s research experience spans several academic disciplines, and he is currently completing his PhD dissertation, a sociological analysis of the role of evidence in scientific controversies. Irving holds master’s degrees in both criminology and sociology.
Irving is currently the chair of the inaugural board of directors of the Canadian Obesity Network, a Network of Centres of Excellence – New Initiative, and he has been a visiting scholar at the Wellesley Institute in Toronto since 2005.
Ms. Avis Favaro
From a ground-breaking series on Trans-fats in our foods, to experimental surgery for Asthma, CTV's Medical/Health Correspondent Avis Favaro is always looking for health information that can make a difference in the lives of Canadians. In fact, she jokes that she has become the "network hypochondriac".
Avis joined the CTV news team in 1992 and since then has been nominated for an impressive 12 Geminis, winning once for a unique story on an experimental cancer treatment developed in Winnipeg in the 1940's. Most recently, she and W-FIVE producer Brett Mitchell won a Gold Medal at the 2005 New York Film and TV festival for a documentary on a novel treatment for Multiple Sclerosis.
She has also been awarded the Bronze WorldMedal from the New York Festivals in 2001 for "Cancer Doctors"; she took the International Health and Medical Media Award for "Ethics in Medical Research" in 2000; she was awarded the Bronze WorldMedal for Best News Correspondent at the New York Festivals in 1999. Prior to that, the Canadian Association of Journalists gave her the Investigative Award for "Whistleblower Doctor" in 1998; she won the Dan McArthur Award at RTNDA for "Seniors Sex".
She works in tandem with producer and film-maker Elizabeth St.Philip - who recently won the International Health and Medical film competition (the Freddies) for a story on Asthma Surgery. Elizabeth has also worked for Discover and the CBC and has produced a critically acclaimed documentary Breakin' In for the National Film Board of Canada.
Prior to this, Avis worked at Global Television as the health correspondent. She has a degree in history from the University of Western Ontario and acquired her masters in journalism from UWO before launching her journalism career as a writer/reporter at Global in 1982.
Dr. Diane Finegood
 Dr. Diane Finegood is the Scientific Director of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Institute of Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes (INMD), which identified obesity and healthy body weight research as its sole strategic priority.
A Professor in the School of Kinesiology at Simon Fraser University, she has investigated the pathogenesis of diabetes and is now modeling factors that regulate obesity and body weight in individuals and populations to identify novel solutions to the obesity problem.
She has received numerous awards, including a 2006 Canada’s Top 100 Women Award and the Danone Institute’s 2005 Distinguished Nutrition Leadership Award.
Dr. John Spence
 Dr. John C. Spence spends most of his time relaxing in the Sedentary Living Laboratory in the Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation at the University of Alberta. He has expertise in the area of behavioural medicine and research methods. His research focuses on both the benefits and determinants of physical activity and how physical inactivity is related to obesity. Dr. Spence has studied the broad social determinants (e.g., SES, gender) and population physical activity patterns. More recently, he has focused on (a) the physical environment and how it may influence physical activity choices for both children and older adults (e.g., presence of parks and playgrounds), and (b) the effect of media (e.g., popular films) on physical activity and diet. Dr. Spence has a strong background in physical activity measurement, meta-analysis, and archival research. His work is funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Heart & Stroke Foundation of Canada (HSFC), Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), and the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research (AHFMR).
Last Updated: 2007-11-09
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