Two leading researchers at 蘑菇AV have been inducted as Fellows into the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences (CAHS), one of the highest honours for members of the country鈥檚 health sciences community.
Dr. Christine Chambers and Dr. Gail Tomblin Murphy are being recognized for their significant contributions to health policy and the promotion of health science.
Dr. Chambers, a clinical psychologist, Canada Research Chair (Tier 1) in Children鈥檚 Pain and Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience and Pediatrics, is the scientific director of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research鈥檚 Institute of Human Development, Child and Youth Health and the knowledge mobilization network, Solutions for Kids in Pain. Her research, based in the Centre for Pediatric Pain Research at the IWK Health Centre, is aimed at improving the assessment and management of children鈥檚 pain.
Dr. Chambers has had a significant impact on children鈥檚 pain management globally. Her scientific contributions include documenting the prevalence of chronic pain in children, improving children鈥檚 pain measurement and detecting sex differences in pain. Her research affects practice and policy through its inclusion in clinical practice guidelines, including those for the World Health Organization. It has also been referenced extensively, with more than 15,000 citations and over 185 peer-reviewed papers.
鈥淚鈥檓 truly honoured to be named as a Fellow in the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences. The common denominator across my career 鈥� whether it be as a researcher in my lab or in my leadership roles with CIHR鈥檚 Institute of Human Development, Child and Youth Health (IHDYCH) and Solutions for Kids in Pain (SKIP) 鈥� is a commitment to impact, ensuring that research improves the lives of Canadian children and their families,鈥� says Dr. Chambers.
鈥淭herefore, the CAHS commitment to informed and actionable solutions to improve the health of Canadians very much resonates with me. I look forward to engaging with other CAHS Fellows to help deliver on this vision and continue to make a positive impact in health sciences and create a healthier Canada together.鈥�
Dr. Chambers鈥� reach extends far beyond her own clinical and research setting as she has trained many in the next generation of scientists. She is deeply committed to training, having formally mentored more than 130 research and clinical trainees, as well as many women in science. She is also the Assistant Director of the North American Pain School (NAPS) and co-leads a science communication training program through the Pain Research Forum. Her 2013 evidence-based needle-pain YouTube video for parents started her innovative and far-reaching efforts to mobilize scientific knowledge. Her award-winning initiative, a science-media partnership to mobilize evidence about children鈥檚 pain to parents, had more than 150 million content views, and was featured in national and international media.
Commitment to community health
Dr. Tomblin Murphy, Nova Scotia Health鈥檚 vice-president of Research, Innovation and Discovery and Chief Nurse Executive, is a renowned expert in population needs-based approaches to health systems and workforce planning, evaluation and research. In her 30 years at 蘑菇AV, Dr. Tomblin Murphy has become known as a strong researcher, teacher, mentor and leader, having served also as the Director of the School of Nursing and Assistant Dean Research in the Faculty of Health. 听
鈥淚t is truly an honour to be recognized as a Fellow,鈥� said Dr. Tomblin Murphy. 鈥淢y passion for improving the health of our communities, both locally and internationally, led me to nursing and my career has enabled me to provide leadership and expertise to bring new and innovative solutions to improve health and health-care delivery, and to better understand the conditions necessary for impactful change.鈥�
Dr. Tomblin Murphy, who did her BN and MN degrees at 蘑菇AV and received her PhD in nursing from the University of Toronto, has made significant contributions to nursing听through her leadership in professional associations, research and teaching activities. Her impact resonates locally, nationally and on the global stage. She has been an expert advisor on health workforce to the World Health Organization and Pan American Health Organization (WHO/PAHO ) since 2005 and leads Canadian and international research teams consisting of clinicians, health care leaders,听senior policy makers, and researchers from government, universities and health-care organizations.
Dr. Tomblin Murphy is also the Director of the WHO/PAHO Collaborating Centre on Health Workforce Planning and Research, which hopes to build capacity in听needs-based human resources planning, within Canada and internationally. As听director, Dr. Tomblin Murphy oversees all related research projects, including needs-based health systems work being done in Brazil, Jamaica and Zambia with future projects planned in these and other Pan-American and African countries.
She is actively involved in a number of national and international networks, including the World Health Innovation Network, the Canadian Coalition for Global Health Research, Primary Health Care to Communities, and the Canadian Health Human Resources Network.
鈥淐ongratulations to Dr. Chambers and Dr. Tomblin Murphy on this well-deserved recognition from the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences,鈥� says Alice Aiken, vice president research and innovation at 蘑菇AV. 鈥淏oth are internationally recognized leaders and innovators in health research mobilization, patient engagement and partnerships.鈥�
The Canadian Academy of Health Sciences brings together Canada鈥檚 top-ranked health and biomedical scientists and scholars to make a positive impact on the urgent health concerns of Canadians. CAHS Fellows are chosen through a peer review process for their demonstrated leadership, creativity, distinctive competencies and commitment to advancing academic health sciences. They agree to serve the Academy and be active in promoting improved health, health care and health-related policies.
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