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CIHR: Extension of Term for Acting President and Appointments to Governing Council
Dr. Pierre Chartrand has accepted a request from the governor in council to continue as acting president of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) until such time as a new president is appointed. A competitive process is currently under way to appoint a permanent CIHR president. Prior to this appointment, Dr. Chartrand was the vicepresident of research at CIHR.

Before joining CIHR, Dr. Chartrand was the chief executive officer (CEO) of the Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer and a full professor in the Department of Pathology and Cellular Biology in the Faculty of Medicine at Université de Montréal. Among his many accomplishments, Dr. Chartrand has been a member of the board of the Fonds de la recherche en santé du Québec (FRSQ). He organized and led the FRSQ's Cancer Network, which became, under his leadership, one of the strongest networks of the FRSQ.

The governor in council has also appointed Dr. Nicole Letourneau and reappointed Dr. William (Bill) Thomlinson to Governing Council, both for three-year terms.

Dr. Letourneau is a full professor in the Faculty of Nursing at the University of New Brunswick and a research fellow at the Canadian Research Institute for Social Policy. She holds a Canada Research Chair in Healthy Child Development. Dr. Letourneau has also been a member of the Institute Advisory Board for the Institute of Gender and Health. In 2006, Dr. Letourneau was the recipient of the Peter Lougheed/ CIHR New Investigator Award: Canada's Premier Young Researcher, which is CIHR's most important career development award given to Canada's brightest young researchers at the beginning of their careers.

Dr. Thomlinson has been a member of the CIHR Governing Council since 2005. He is the executive director of the Canadian Light Source Synchrotron facility in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. A globally renowned expert in synchrotron medical imaging, Dr. Thomlinson was formerly head of the Medical Research Group at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in Grenoble, France, where he led a highly successful medical beamline group, helped start lung and mammography imaging and led the facility's first human blood vessel imaging studies. He is also the former associate chair for environment, safety and health at the National Synchrotron Light Source, Brookhaven National Laboratory, in New York, where he created and led the successful multidiscipline Synchrotron Medical Research Facility.

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BC Cancer Foundation Appoints New President and CEO
Brian Kenning, chair of the BC Cancer Foundation Board, has announced the appointment of Dr. David MacLean as president and CEO of the BC Cancer Foundation, effective May 1, 2008. Originally a family physician in rural Nova Scotia, Dr. MacLean has a distinguished background in healthcare and academia as both a physician and researcher. He was the founding dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University, has worked extensively with the World Health Organization and been a member of the boards of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of British Columbia and the Yukon and the Fraser Health Authority.

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New Vice-President of Innovation at Canada Health Infoway
Canada Health Infoway has announced that, effective March 3, 2008, Dr. James R. Maclean joined the organization as vice-president of innovation and adoption. Previously, Dr. Maclean has held the positions of special advisor and executive lead for the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, where he directed the establishment of 150 interdisciplinary family health teams. He has also served in the positions of chief of staff and CEO at Markham Stouffville Hospital (MSH), in Markham, Ontario. During his 13- year tenure in those roles at MSH, the hospital earned a National Quality Institute Award for excellence, making it the first healthcare institute ever honoured with this award.

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Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre Executive Appointments
Following an extensive national search, Dr. Keith Rose has been named the new executive vice-president, chief medical executive, at Toronto's Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, effective April 14, 2008. Dr. Rose comes to Sunnybrook from his most recent post as the vice-president and chief medical executive at North York General, one of Ontario's largest community teaching hospitals. Dr. Rose has been in healthcare for more than 30 years, and he brings to Sunnybrook an impressive background of leadership accomplishments from his tenure at North York to his work at St. Michael's Hospital, where he held a number of roles including medical director of Perioperative and Critical Care, chair of the Medical Advisory Committee and chief of the Department of Anaesthesia.

Margaret Blastorah has accepted the position of director of nursing research at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. Blastorah is currently completing her PhD in nursing administration at the University of Toronto, investigating the effect of mentoring on the development of leadership self-efficacy in nurses. Most recently, she was director of professional practice at the Markham Stouffville Hospital. Blastorah has a diverse professional background that includes various positions at the College of Nurses of Ontario, the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario, the Wellesley Hospital, the Toronto General Hospital and Chaim Sheba Medical Centre in Israel. She has also served as professional practice leader at St. Joseph's Health Centre.

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Appointment at Chatham-Kent Health Alliance
Paul Heinrich has been appointed vice-president and chief financial officer for the Chatham-Kent Health Alliance in Ontario. Heinrich, who succeeds Rick Cooper, began his new duties March 3. Heinrich previously served as executive director and chief financial officer for the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Calgary. He was also advisor to the chief clinical officer of the Calgary Health Region.

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New Deputy in the Northwest Territories
Mr. Greg Cummings has been appointed to the position of deputy minister for the Department of Health and Social Services, Northwest Territories. Cummings recently served with the government of the Northwest Territories as assistant deputy minister of operational support for the Department of Health and Social Services. He also held the position of CEO at the Yellowknife Health and Social Services Health Authority and the Tli Cho Community Services Agency. Cummings has served as the Northwest Territories board member on the Canadian Healthcare Association and is currently the Mental Health Commission of Canada's board member for the three northern territories.

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Yukon Appoints Medical Officer of Health
Health and Social Services Minister Brad Cathers announced recently that Whitehorse physician Brendan Hanley would assume responsibility as Yukon's medical officer of health (MOH) in February. Hanley replaced Dr. Bryce Larke, who served as Yukon's MOH for seven years. Larke will temporarily remain as the Yukon's representative on several federal/provincial committees. In addition to his most recent role as medical director of the Whitehorse General Hospital Emergency Department, Hanley has extensive experience internationally, including work with Doctors without Borders. In 2003, he obtained a master's degree in public health from Johns Hopkins University. He has an interest in many areas of community health and has played an active role locally in injury prevention.

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Newly Formed MHCC Appoints President and CEO
The Honourable Michael Kirby, chair of the Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC), has announced the appointment of Michael Howlett as the president and CEO of the newly formed commission. His appointment took place February 18, 2008. Howlett was most recently president and CEO of the Canadian Diabetes Association (CDA). For the past five years, he has been a champion for those affected by diabetes, working with government, the medical and research communities and business. Under his direction, the CDA experienced a dramatic turnaround. It became a financially sound and effective national organization, internationally recognized as the authority in diabetes research, education and advocacy.

Howlett's professional career spans three decades. Prior to joining CDA, he established himself as both a successful business leader and a champion of causes, who defended those who could not defend themselves.

MHCC is a non-profit organization created to focus national attention on mental health issues. It is funded by the federal government but operates at arm's length from all levels of government. The commission's objective is to enhance the health and social outcomes for Canadians living with mental health problems and illnesses. To achieve this goal, the commission is pursuing three key initiatives: (1) leading the development of a national mental health strategy, (2) creating a 10-year campaign to reduce the widespread stigma associated with mental health problems and illnesses and (3) establishing a Knowledge Exchange Centre to improve cross-sector communication about mental health and mental illness for all Canadians.

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Canada Health Infoway's Alvarez Inducted into the CIPA Hall of Fame
In November, Canada Health Infoway President and CEO, Richard Alvarez, was inducted into the Canadian Information Productivity Awards (CIPA) Hall of Fame. Pictured here are (L to R) Bill Hutchison, chairman and CEO of Hutchison International Management; Richard Alvarez; and Bernard Courtois, president and CEO of the Information Technology Association of Canada.

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Industry Veteran to Lead Infoway's Collaboration with Private Sector
Canada Health Infoway is pleased to announce the appointment of Laurie Rogers as national industry executive. In this position, Rogers will be working in collaboration with the private sector to accelerate the deployment of electronic health records across the country.

Previously, Rogers was a senior member of GE Healthcare's team. With his arrival at Infoway, he brings with him 25 years of experience in the information technology industry, where he worked extensively on the development of e-health solutions. Rogers served on the Board of Directors for the Information Technology Association of Canada as well as the Canadian Health Information Technology Trade Association. He also holds a master's degree in business administration from the University of Western Ontario.

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Anderson, Lee and MacArthur Appointed to New Roles with SIMS
Shared Information Management Services (SIMS) recently announced some changes to its senior management, effective January 2008:

• Former SIMS CIO Matthew Anderson has been promoted to executive lead of the partnership. Anderson is also senior vicepresident of performance and technology for University Health Network and e-health lead for the Toronto Central Local Health Integration Network. A recipient of Canada's Top 40 Under 40 award, Anderson's accomplishments in the advancement of ehealth have been recognized nationally.
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• Former executive director Lydia Lee has transitioned to chief information officer for the SIMS Partnership. Lee brings to the role a wealth of experience from positions held in healthcare administration and consulting focusing on strategic alliances, integrated health system planning, information management and evidence-based healthcare.
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• Tracey MacArthur, the former SIMS director of community integration and the Project Management Office, has been appointed to senior managing director responsible for SIMS' operational management. MacArthur has an extensive background in e-health and management of large-scale information management initiatives in the hospital and community sectors, and brings a long-standing focus on integration across the continuum of care.

SIMS is the information management and technology partnership between 13 healthcare organizations in the Greater Toronto Area. The group spans the acute, rehabilitation, complex continuing, long-term and community care sectors. With similar values, these organizations commit to identifying, planning and implementing joint initiatives that contribute to a coordinated and integrated healthcare delivery system. For more information on SIMS, visit www.simspartners.ca.

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