Northern Rural Medical School becomes a reality: Plans to create a medical school in the North will be a shot-in-the-arm for Northern Ontario's ailing health care system.

• Position: Fednor Update - Brief Article

The official announcement -- the first new medical school to be created in Canada in more than 30 years -- was made this past spring, following a concentrated lobbying effort by numerous partners and stakeholders across the North. As part of this effort, FedNor contributed more than $250 000 to fund the development of the model and proposal for a Northern Rural Medical School (NORMS), and an international symposium.

"It's very exciting to be involved in building a new medical school for Northern Ontario," says Mary Louise Hill, Vice-President (Academic) and Provost, Lakehead University in Thunder Bay. "Doctors who are trained in the North are more likely to choose to practise here, and will be better prepared to thrive as professionals in our northern communities. In time, everyone in Northern Ontario will benefit from this initiative."

The new medical school is a positive step forward in more ways than one, according to Miriam McDonald, Chief Executive Officer of the Northeastern Ontario Medical Education Corporation (NOMEC).

"Not only will we be able to keep our northern medical students here after graduation, a new medical school will undoubtedly help with the recruitment of physicians who are seeking opportunities in research and teaching," says McDonald. "The success of NOMEC's family medicine residency program is proof that targeted training works!"

A rural health symposium, held in Sudbury May 17, 2001, featured a number of international experts on northern and rural medicine who provided valuable information and direction for the project.

According to Geoff Tesson, Executive Director of Health Initiatives at Laurentian University, this endeavour is new to Canada. "Other countries are willing to share their knowledge of best practices and what has worked for them," says Tesson. "This invaluable consultation will allow us to design the delivery model in more detail."

"I think it's important to note that it was a collaborative effort that got this entire process started," says Richard Adams, President of the Federation of Northern Ontario Municipalities. "The role northern municipalities played in banding together in support of the medical school was absolutely vital. The government listened to that collective voice and responded."

It is expected that students will begin to enrol in the program in 2004.

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