Resident Advocacy Day 2013 - End Child Poverty Now

2013 Resident Advocacy Day Report
November 20, 2013: End Child Poverty Now!
National Resident Advocacy Day is an initiative of the Residents Section of the Canadian
Paediatric Society (CPS) and is supported by the Healthy Generations Foundation. This initiative
aims to give residents hands-on experience in the CanMEDS role of health advocate and to raise
awareness about critical children and youth health issues. Paediatric residency programs across
Canada participate by organizing resident education and community awareness activities.
The theme for the 2013 National Resident Advocacy Day was child
poverty in Canada. The objectives of the day were to:
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raise awareness about the prevalence of childhood poverty in
Canada,
clarify the impact of childhood poverty on health and life
experience,
highlight the impact of childhood poverty on health care costs
and chronic illness
educate residents about this relationship
help families with information about supportive resources in
their community
The following report contains a summary of activities that took place on November 20, 2013 at
participating paediatric residency programs across Canada. Reports are provided in the
language of the submitter.
The success of National Resident Advocacy Day depends on the work of extraordinary local
leaders, who represent CPS initiatives to each paediatric program across the country. The
Residents Section Executive wishes to thank the CPS program representatives for all their hard
work and unique contributions to making this day a truly national success.
Dalhousie University
Local representatives: Erin MacDonald and Laura Swaney
Paediatric residents got involved and raised awareness!
Program representatives created an eye-catching poster
display in the foyer of the IWK Health Centre, and spent the
day chatting with patients, families and co-workers about
childhood poverty.
University of Alberta
Local representative: Hannah Weinstangel
Residents attended a lecture prepared by their advocacy
committee on the general effects of child poverty, the state
of child poverty in Canada, and how it relates to health.
Localized efforts to fight child poverty in Edmonton were
discussed. The group considered practical ways to address poverty and related health issues by
supporting families in the community and at the hospital. They have a better understanding of how to
help and advocate for families who are struggling financially, in their community, nationally and
internationally. Residents are wearing their white ribbons with pride, and will share their knowledge
with others.
Memorial University
Local representatives: Kate Fathi and Alison Lopez
Paediatric residents spent a wonderful CPS National Resident Advocacy Day. Dr. Mark Zaretsky, a
program resident, gave a presentation to colleagues and staff on poverty experienced in childhood,
which sparked engaging debate. Residents also created a poster board on childhood poverty in Canada,
in the world, and what can be done to combat it. The poster was displayed in the main atrium of the
Janeway Children's Health and Rehabilitation Centre for the public to view and ask questions about. In
addition, residents distributed educational materials throughout the hospital. The day was a great
success and marked a real step forward in raising awareness about child poverty.
Western University
Local representative: Beth Ellen Brown
The annual CPS National Resident Advocacy Day was a great
success this year! With the assistance of allied health
professionals, residents compiled an abundance of information,
pamphlets, posters and various other resources. These were
displayed in the main lobby of the London Children’s Hospital for
hospital visitors and staff. The information was well appreciated
and used. Residents also organized a drive for the London Food
Bank, which was a great success.
To reinforce the themes raised on Resident Advocacy Day, a
representative from Neighborhood Legal Services delivered a
seminar to Western residents in January 2014 on the impact of
child poverty in Canada, local supportive services in London, and
how we can get involved in our community and make a
difference.
McMaster University
Local representative: Hana Mijovic
Compared to the Ontario average, Hamilton is known to have a high rate of childhood poverty.
Residents decided to focus their Advocacy Day efforts on raising awareness about poverty in local
neighbourhoods.
The program hosted two community speakers at our academic half day. Teri Pecoskie from the Hamilton
Spectator spoke to us about interviews and research she has conducted for the recent "Born" series,
which focuses on the connections among teenage pregnancies, low birth weight babies, and
poverty. Tom Cooper, from the Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction, spoke about advocacy
initiatives currently underway in Hamilton.
To support ongoing advocacy and awareness around the social determinants of health, McMaster’s
residency program launched a rotation in social paediatrics in 2013. The rotation integrates second year
paediatric residents into the Hamilton community, with the aim of building better appreciation of the
local environments where our patients live, learn and grow.
Université Laval
Représentant local : Isabelle Ouellet
Dans le cadre de la Journée Nationale des Résidents pour la
Défense des Droits des Enfants, les résidents de
l’Université Laval ont tenu un kiosque d’information lors du
congrès Entretiens de Pédiatrie. Ils ont pu discuter avec les
participants et les sensibiliser au phénomène de la
pauvreté chez les enfants. Les résidents ont également
créé et distribué des dépliants sur le sujet aux 200
médecins présents. Cette journée a été couronnée de
succès et a permis de rejoindre de nombreux spécialistes
médicaux impliqués au quotidien dans la santé des enfants!
University of British Columbia
Local representatives: Kamal Abdulwahab and Stephany Quinn
Residents really threw themselves into this year’s Advocacy Day, which actually turned into a week’s
worth of activities to launch a local ‘end child poverty’ campaign! The organizing team displayed
educational materials and posters on child poverty in the resident lounge and distributed fact sheets
and stickers to personal mailboxes. A new resident website was launched, hosting a special CPS National
Resident Advocacy Day web page. An online, interactive quiz featuring information from the fact sheets
and letters was created, along with a contest to test newly acquired knowledge.
University of Saskatchewan
Local representative: Stefan Slomp
The university community got involved in
National Resident Advocacy Day, with two
important goals: demonstrating the impacts of
child poverty in Canada and providing a
helping hand to a number of families in
Saskatoon.
A team of residents made T-shirts and wore
them on Resident Advocacy Day, while hosting
a booth at the Royal University Hospital. Shirts
were also distributed to staff and donations
encouraged. Residents produced a number of
posters and provided stickers and information
throughout the day. They exchanged
information with people in the public health program, who proved eager to further the cause.
Residents raised over $600 in donations. This amount was converted into grocery cards, which will be
used to support families who frequent the Student Wellness Initiative (SWITCH) clinic in downtown
Saskatoon. Many of our clients are struggling particularly hard during this harsh winter season.
University of Manitoba
Local representative: Rachael Gardner
On Advocacy Day, paediatric residents of the University of Manitoba rallied around the many issues of
child poverty. Materials were disseminated and residents all made an individual effort to identify
potential ways to advocate for their patients that day. An article was published on the paediatrics
department website concerning issues of child poverty in Manitoba. Time was dedicated during half-day
teaching to allow the residents to discuss issues around First Nations health and poverty and to share
their experiences in patient advocacy.
University of Ottawa
Local representatives: Megan Sample and Bindu Suresh
Resident program representatives at the University of Ottawa gave a 30-minute presentation during
half-day teaching for National Resident Advocacy Day. Residents also watched a short video produced
by CHEO about the health effects of poverty (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JX61pfC2p0A) and
disseminated resources for further information.
University of Toronto
Local representative: Ryan Smith
Many educational activities were planned for this year’s Resident Advocacy Day. The day began with an
invited speaker at Grand Rounds: Dr. Arvin Garg, a social paediatrician and the author of a recent JAMA
viewpoint on the social determinants of health. His research in the area of primary care paediatrics set
the stage for the remainder of the day. Using Dr. Garg’s talk as a catalyst, residents met to discuss
“difficult social cases from the ward” with Dr. Ford-Jones and Dr. Levin, along with social workers and
members of the resident advocacy committee. Residents also organized a lunch hour talk for residents
and fellows, with another invited speaker: Dr. Paul Caulford, founder of the Scarborough Clinic for
uninsured and refugee patients. The title of his talk was "Children and Youth New to Canada: Health
status ‘poverty’ when access to care and status rights are denied". He drew on 14 years of experience
providing community-based care, and shared vivid case examples of the challenges to providing care for
these populations, and what the future may hold. Finally, a “mental health think tank” discussed various
projects in development, usually to aid families facing economic and social challenges in at-risk
neighbourhoods. It was a fantastic day overall, thanks to excellent resident and faculty participation!
Université de Montréal
Représentant local : Brigitte Parisien
Les résidents en pédiatrie du CHU Ste-Justine s'impliquent pour la défense et la santé des enfants et ont
été actifs lors de la Journée nationale de défense d'intérêts organisées par la Société Canadienne de
Pédiatrie. Cette année, ils ont profité des moyens de communication qu'offre l'hôpital pour sensibiliser
leurs collègues à l'impact de la pauvreté des enfants sur leur santé. En effet, de courts textes sont
apparus sur les écrans des cafétérias et dans le petit journal affiché quotidiennement dans les
ascenseurs de l'hôpital. Les résidents ont arborés fièrement leur auto-collant aux couleurs de la journée
de défense des intérêts et ont partagés avec familles et personnel hospitalier l'importance des
programmes sociaux et des organismes qui soutiennent les familles les plus démunies pour la santé des
enfants. Un groupe de résident est aussi passé sur les étages de pédiatrie générale pour amasser des
fonds pour un organisme choisie pour sa mission envers les mères enceintes dans le besoin. De cette
façon, 100$ ont été remis au Dispensaire diététique de Montréal qui reçoit des résidents en stage de
pédiatrie sociale et qui offre "un départ en santé pour chaque bébé" en fournissant aux femmes un
soutien nutritionnel et moral durant leur grossesse. Cette philosophie est tout à fait en accord avec les
valeurs des médecins résidents en pédiatrie de Ste-Justine qui croient qu'un avenir en santé ça se bâtit
tôt!"
Northern Ontario School of Medicine
Local representative: Jenna Ashkanase
This year’s Resident Advocacy Day was hosted at Health
Sciences North, in Sudbury. The event provided a
fantastic opportunity to meet with community
members, health care professionals and medical
students. Information was presented using a poster
display and handouts, while stickers and white ribbons
were distributed to promote awareness of child
poverty. Educational materials were also made
available at two of the program’s other Northern sites,
Thunder Bay and North Bay. An advocacy letter recommending better federal funding for child benefits,
as well as for affordable housing and child care, was sent to MP’s for Thunder Bay, North Bay and
Sudbury. These advocacy efforts met with real enthusiasm from the communities, and residents look
forward to participating again next year.