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Ministry of Health provides $800,884 to Laurentian University to develop an Accelerated Critical Care Nursing educational program in partnership with Health Sciences North.

Ministry of Health provides $800,884 to Laurentian University to develop an Accelerated Critical Care Nursing educational program in partnership with Health Sciences North.

Funding will support the ongoing development of Northern Ontario critical care nursing workforce.

(May 26, 2022) - Laurentian University, in partnership with Health Sciences North (HSN), has obtained one-time funding of up to $800,884 from the Ministry of Health to support the delivery of the Accelerated Critical Care Nursing Program. Funding of up to $59,418 in the 2021-2022 year and up to $741, 466 in the 2022-2023 year, is expected. The University’s nursing and sciences infirmières programs have benefited from long term affiliations with HSN. For over 50 years, nursing students from both linguistic groups have successfully completed clinical placements at HSN. The two institutions have also consistently collaborated in research ventures that support the health of the Northern Ontario community. 

The hospital’s Critical Care program, along with many other areas, has been impacted by the pandemic and highlighted the need for a robust, sustainable nursing workforce. Critical care along with other nursing care areas across Northern Ontario are expecting additional vacancies as a significant percentage of the workforce will be eligible to retire over the next four years.

“This funding announcement that supports the Accelerated Critical Care Nursing Program will contribute substantially to bridging the theory to practice gap, will help further develop the critical care nursing workforce in Northern Ontario, as well as support retaining baccalaureate trained nurses in Sudbury. We look forward to continuing to foster an excellent working relationship with HSN and are thrilled that this funding will benefit health care students and workers, alongside all those who seek medical care in the North.”  - Dr. Céline Larivière, Dean of the Faculty of Education and Health, Laurentian University. 

“We are thrilled to continue our partnership with Laurentian University, and grateful for this critical funding. This collaborative program will help us continue to accept patients and deliver critical services for our Northeastern community members here in Sudbury and across Northern Ontario.” - Julie Trpkovski, Vice President, Medicine and Chief Nursing Executive, Health Sciences North.

Information about the program can be found on Laurentian’s website, here. The program is slated to begin this Spring / Summer 2022.

About Laurentian University:
Laurentian University serves over 8,000 students on its campus in Sudbury, Ontario, and is one of two bilingual universities in the province of Ontario. Committed to its bilingual, tri-cultural mandate, Laurentian University offers an outstanding university experience in English and French with a comprehensive approach to Indigenous education. 

About Health Sciences North: 
Health Sciences North is the regional hospital for Northeastern Ontario, based in Greater Sudbury and a leading Canadian academic health sciences centre. Health Sciences North’s purpose is to provide high quality health services, support learning and generate research that improves health outcomes for the people of Northeastern Ontario. 
 

Science Communication program collaborates with Science North, Health Sciences North and Eastlink to offer Northern MedTalks 2022

Science Communication program collaborates with Science North, Health Sciences North and Eastlink to offer Northern MedTalks 2022

Speaker event features engaging Northern Ontario healthcare providers.

(April 14, 2022) - On April 21, 2022 at 7pm, Laurentian’s Science Communication program, Science North, and Health Sciences North will collaborate with Eastlink to offer Northern MedTalks 2022. This free, fast-paced speakers event will feature ten presentations by Northern Ontario healthcare providers. Each ten minute talk is co-produced by healthcare providers and Master’s students of the Science Communication program whose curriculum is co-delivered by Laurentian and Science North. Co-producing this event is a capstone project for Science Communication students. 

Michelle Reid, Science Communication sessional instructor and Presentation lead for Northern MedTalks 2022 said about the event that “we are providing an entertaining, engaging, and inspiring experience that the public will find valuable.” To produce the event, healthcare providers, who bring insights from their medical practice, are paired with graduate students to support the informative, accessible and engaging delivery of powerful healthcare narratives. Science Communication students not only help guide healthcare providers in the delivery of their stories, but also design visual components that complement presentations. 

Healthcare providers participating range from family physicians, nurse practitioners, paramedics, neurosurgeons and more! Presentations will be hosted live from Science North’s Vale Cavern, but livestreaming will also be available from the comfort of home on Eastlink Community television or on Science North’s webpage. Science North’s Discovery Theatre and IMAX® Theatre will also livestream the event. Those attending the event at Science North will have the opportunity to meet and greet speakers after the event during a social hour in the science centre. 

Julie Moskalyk, Science Director of Science North shared that: “ In 2019 the first Northern MedTalks event took place, and was incredibly successful in reaching, and inspiring, our audiences of all ages. This year we are so pleased to expand the reach with a live stream to further increase accessibility to these powerful presentations, also allowing us to record the sessions for later access. Science North is proud to feature the work of the Science Communication program superstars as they show their skills in action!”

This is the second year that the Science Communication program has paired with Science North to deliver this exciting event. 
 

Toronto Celebrates Sudbury …to the tune of $100,000

Toronto Celebrates Sudbury …to the tune of $100,000

Health Sciences North/Horizon Santé-Nord (HSN) and Laurentian University are $100,000 richer, thanks to Toronto Celebrates Sudbury.

 

Today in Sudbury, organizers of the annual fundraising event held in Toronto presented a $100,000 cheque to be shared equally by HSN and Laurentian University. The proceeds from Toronto Celebrates Sudbury will be used to support research at each institution.

 

Toronto Celebrates Sudbury  was launched in 2011 by a group of professionals in Toronto with personal connections to Greater Sudbury. The Co-Chairs of the event are Perry Dellelce, Jamie Lamont, Kevin O’Brien, Nathan Wright and Liana Flabiano. The event brings together Toronto residents with ties to the Nickel City to raise money for a Sudbury charitable organization. The evening also promotes Sudbury in Ontario’s capital.

 

On hand for today’s presentation were Perry Dellelce and Jamie Lamont. ’“We’re very pleased and honoured to raise money for Greater Sudbury,” says Perry Dellelce, Managing Partner at the law firm of Wildeboer Dellelce.

 

“Greater Sudbury has been very good to us and we want to give back to our hometown, plus it’s great to bring together so many people in Toronto who have ties to Sudbury,” added Co-Chair Jamie Lamont.

 

“I want to thank the organizers of Toronto Celebrates Sudbury for their work in supporting and promoting the activities of HSN and AMRIC, “ notes Dr. Denis Roy, HSN’s President and CEO. “World class research and health care is being done here in Sudbury and we’re delighted that people are taking note of this in Canada’s largest city.”

 

“We are proud to be part of this exciting fundraising intiative, and we appreciate the hard work and the vision of Toronto Celebrates Sudbury in supporting research at Laurentian,” says Dominic Giroux, President and Vice-Chancellor of Laurentian University. 

 

The Sudbury Community Foundation (SCF) acts as the administrator and distributor of the proceeds from the annual event. The Board of the SCF noted the collaborative relationship between HSN and Laurentian University and praised the leaders’ institutions for working together in support of research. They also acknowledged the tremendous work of the organizers of Toronto Celebrates Sudbury.

 

“SCF is happy to be a conduit to bringing these important research funds to our community,” said Carmen Simmons, Executive Director of the Sudbury Community Foundation.  “Toronto Celebrates Sudbury has been a brilliant collaboration by an energetic committee of Sudbury expats in support of our community.  Well done!”  

 

Contact: 

Dan Lessard

(705) 523-7118, ext. 4

(705) 507-4031 c

dlessard@hsnsudbury.ca

Laurentian University awarded patent for RNA Disruption Assay

Laurentian University awarded patent for RNA Disruption Assay

Technology developed by L.U. professor Dr. Amadeo Parissenti aids in cancer treatment

October 10, 2014 – Laurentian University has been awarded a patent for the RNA Disruption Assay (RDATM), a technology that aids in the treatment of breast cancer.  The test was developed by Laurentian University professor Dr. Amadeo Parissenti and by his research associate Dr. Baoqing Guo of Health Sciences North.  The patent was issued in September by the Australian Patent Office.

 

The University has licensed the technology exclusively to Rna Diagnostics Inc., a Canadian molecular diagnostics company that develops diagnostic tools to improve chemotherapy management. In addition to other patents currently pending through its licensing arrangement with Rna Diagnostics, Laurentian has a number of patents pending worldwide on discoveries made at the University. 

 

“We are immensely proud of the pioneering work of Dr. Parissenti and his research colleague Dr. Guo, and we are honoured to be holding the patent for a discovery that helps people by improving our understanding of cancer treatment,” said Laurentian University President and Vice-Chancellor Dominic Giroux. “We have enjoyed an exceptional relationship with Rna Diagnostics and we believe our collaboration will continue to produce significant advances for cancer patients everywhere.”

 

Dr. Parissenti is a professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Laurentian, as well as a faculty member at the Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) and an affiliate scientist with the Advanced Medical Research Institute of Canada (AMRIC), the research arm of Health Sciences North. He is also Chief Scientific Officer for Rna Diagnostics Inc.

 

The RNA Disruption Assay (RDATM) helps oncologists to measure a breast cancer patient’s response to chemotherapy at an early stage of treatment.  The technology can be used after one or two cycles of chemo, and the results can determine whether patients would do better with another therapy.

It is anticipated that the knowledge generated by this patent and others currently pending will change the current treatment landscape for breast and other types of cancer.   Rna Diagnostics currently has ongoing clinical trials and collaborations with healthcare leaders in Germany, Italy, Sweden, the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada.

“Congratulations to Laurentian University on this patent, and to Professor Parissenti and Dr. Guo on the acknowledgment of their key discovery,” said Dr. Ken Pritzker, President and CEO of Rna Diagnostics Inc.  “RDA will assist cancer clinicians in personalized treatment decisions, save healthcare systems significant costs and most importantly, improve outcomes for breast cancer patients. Rna Diagnostics looks forward to our continuing collaboration with Laurentian University to bring RDA, a significant advancement in cancer chemotherapy practice management, to global markets.”

 

About Rna Diagnostics Inc.

Rna Diagnostics, a Canadian molecular diagnostics company, is developing diagnostic tools to improve chemotherapy management. The company’s first product, RNA Disruption Assay™ (RDA™), determines early in a woman’s breast cancer treatment how she is responding to chemotherapy. If the chemotherapy is not working effectively she can be switched quickly to other treatment, avoiding the harmful side-effects of ineffective chemotherapy and thereby improving her outcome. For more information on Rna Diagnostics, please visit www.rnadiagnostics.com