Want to better understand how the health and social systems work and how you can better advocate for changes that would improve these systems for you and your family? Enhance your knowledge with one of our free courses for citizens:
Finding and using research evidence: A guide for citizens
In this free online course, you’ll be provided with solutions to overcome the most commonly cited frustrations people have when trying to access research evidence. Prepared by the McMaster Health Forum with support from the Ontario SPOR SUPPORT Unit, the course is now available online as a set of eight videos:
Here are helpful resources that are drawn on in the course:
- Definitions for word and phrases used in the modules
- How to make sure health information is trustworthy
- Links to online sources mentioned in the modules
Don’t miss the most important resource for citizen-targeted evidence about healthy aging:
Understanding how to navigate the health system
Knowing how your health system works will better you to navigate the system, identify opportunities to make things better, and advocate for changes that you’d like to see. This free online course describes the 'building blocks' of Ontario’s health system as well as how those building blocks are used to provide care in the province in different ways (e.g., by sector, condition, treatment, population). While Ontario is the example, these principles are useful to understanding health systems other jurisdictions in Canada and internationally.
Prepared by the McMaster Health Forum with support from the Ontario SPOR SUPPORT Unit, the course is now available online as a set of six videos:
Here are helpful resources that are drawn on in the course:
- Free download of chapters from Ontario’s Health System: Key Insights for Engaged Citizens, Professional and Policymakers. The Ontario book is also helpful in understanding other health systems
Don’t miss the most important resource for citizen-targeted evidence about healthy aging:
Masterclass on patient-oriented research
The Forum’s masterclass was designed to prepare future champions for the conduct and use of patient-oriented research and future mentors to others becoming involved in the conduct and use of patient-oriented research. While we are not currently planning any sessions for the masterclass on patient-oriented research, you can access all of the course material to learn more about patient-oriented research.
New Partners for Queen Elizabeth Scholars in Strengthening Health and Social Systems
The McMaster Health Forum is pleased to announce new opportunities for our latest Queen Elizabeth Scholars in Strengthening Health and Social Systems: Hannah Serrano, Christie Tan and Qi Wang.
Hannah and Christie will be the first of the Forum’s QE Scholars to work with a new partner in Trinidad and Tobago: the Caribbean Centre for Health Systems Research and Development (CCHSRD). This new Centre is located at the University of the West Indies’ Augustine Campus and is led by Dr. Donald Simeon. The Centre has an expansive mandate including to conduct health systems, health services and health policy research, responsive to the needs of the decision-makers and health-system leaders. During their internships both Hannah and Christie will assist CCHSRD in the early stages of their work as well as engage with different cultures, explore their ways of knowing, and understand regional healthcare challenges in the Caribbean.
The Forum is also welcoming our first incoming scholar from the People’s Republic of China. Qi Wang is enrolled in the Health Policy PhD program at McMaster University and she hopes that her time in Canada will prepare her with how to use evidence, values and insights to support decision-making in health and social systems so that she can play a key role in developing the health policy research field in China upon her return. We hope that Qi’s scholarship, coordinated as part of our long-standing collaboration with the Evidence-Based Medicine Centre at Lanzhou University, is the first of many.
The Canadian Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Scholarships (QES) is managed through a unique partnership of Universities Canada, the Rideau Hall Foundation (RHF), Community Foundations of Canada (CFC) and Canadian universities. This program is made possible with financial support from the Government of Canada, provincial governments and the private sector.
To stay connected with our QEScholars, follow @McMasterForum on Twitter and visit the #QEScholar tagboard page.
Read more about the QES Scholarship in Strengthening Health and Social Systems offered by the Forum.
- McMaster Forum
- McMaster Health Forum
- Queen Elizabeth Scholars
