Canadian Medical Association
CMA membership tops 45,000
On Nov. 30, 1998, the CMA had 45,125 members, handily surpassing the target of 44,500 members set at the beginning of 1997. The CMA, its provincial/territorial divisions and MD Management, its wholly owned financial subsidiary, worked to inform members of association activities and to build a closer relationship with all physicians. Initiatives such as Project Spiral - a plan aimed at recruiting medical students and residents - and membership promotion efforts contributed to the increase in membership. By the end of 1999, membership had surpassed the 46,000 mark. [CMA News 1999;9(1):1]
CMA award winners
The CMA presented its highest honour, the F.N.G. Starr Award, to Halifax pediatrician Richard Goldbloom in recognition of outstanding clinical skills and sensitivity to the social and emotional needs of children and their families.
Goldbloom, who received his medical degree from McGill University in 1949, has published more than 200 articles and books. His textbook, Pediatric Clinical Skills, is still used widely by undergraduate and postgraduate medical trainees around the world. His work has been recognized through his appointment as officer of the Order of Canada, among many other honours.
A keen proponent of preventive medicine, Goldbloom chaired the Canadian Task Force on the Periodic Health Examination from 1985 to 1995. He was also editor of the Canadian Guide to Clinical Preventive Health Care, published in 1994, and served as president of the Canadian Paediatric Society in 1985/86.
The CMA's Medal of Service was awarded to Dr. Estelle Simons who, for more than two decades, led a group pioneering the pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic approach to the study of medicines used in the treatment of asthma, anaphylaxis and allergic rhinitis. As head of the 30-member Section of Allergy and Clinical Immunology in the Department of Paediatrics and Child Health at the University of Manitoba, she has published more than 250 publications and has contributed chapters to the major allergy, clinical immunology and pediatric textbooks. Simons' goals are to apply the highest standards of scholarship to interactions with patients, to teaching and to innovative patient-focused allergy research projects. Ultimately, she adds, these projects should result in fewer symptoms and improved quality of life for those experiencing allergic disorders. The Medal of Service is awarded to physicians who make an exceptional and outstanding contribution to the advancement of health care in Canada.
The CMA's Medal of Honour was presented to physiologist and physicist Richard Stein, whose research interests revolve around the control of movement using intracellular and extracellular recording, functional electrical stimulation and histochemistry. Stein and his colleagues united clinicians and engineers in efforts to use patterned electrical stimulation to restore standing and walking after a spinal cord injury or stroke. His team is also studying methods of reversing bone and muscle atrophy after injury. Firmly committed to merging theoretical research with practical applications, Stein founded two Edmonton-based companies to bring the fruits of university-based research to consumers with motor disabilities.
A former president of the Canadian Physiological Society and the Canadian Association for Neuroscience, Stein has also served on the Medical Research Council of Canada, the Muscular Dystrophy Association of Canada, the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Society of Canada and many other organizations.
The CMA Medal of Honour is the highest award the association can give to person who is not a member of the medical profession. [CMA News 1999;9(9):6]
Dr. Landry calls it quits
After 13 years at the CMA helm, Dr. Léo-Paul Landry retired in June 1999. When he became CMA secretary general in May 1986, the organization had about 70 employees and was in poor shape financially and strategically. This year the CMA has 130 employees and is nearing Landry's goal of having the equivalent of a year's operating expenses - $25 million - in reserve. [CMAJ 1999;160(13):1863-4]
Dr. Vaughan takes helm
Dr. Peter Vaughan, the CMA's director of professional affairs, was named secretary general and CEO to replace Landry. A 1982 graduate of McMaster University, Vaughan completed a master's degree in public health at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. Prior to returning to graduate school, he was a general practitioner in Guelph, Ont. for 10 years. He spent his first three years in practice as a flight surgeon with the Canadian Armed Forces. Remaining in the military reserve after turning to private practice, he was recalled to active duty in September 1994 to serve during the UN's special operation to evacuate injured civilians from Sarajevo - an experience he described in CMAJ (156:855-6). In 1996 he provided primary medical care in the Guatemalan highlands during a cease-fire there. [CMA News 1999;9(6):6]; [CMAJ 1999;161(1):69-70]
Surgeon new CMA president
For the first time in 13 years, a surgeon has been elected president of the CMA. Dr. Hugh Scully, professor of surgery at the University of Toronto and senior cardiac surgeon at the Toronto General Hospital, has been involved in organized medicine since his students days. He identified three major issues for the upcoming year: the physician shortage, timely access to care and physician input into key decisions about the future of health and health care. [CMAJ 1999;161(3):303-4]
