Public Health Association of BC Public Health Association of BC

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Conference 2022 August update: Call for Abstracts is now open, early bird registration on until Sept 30th! Seeking award nominees & board nominations.

Posted on August 22, 2022

Call for Abstracts

 

PHABC’s 2022 Conference is now open for abstract submissions. The abstract submission deadline is September 30th at 5:00pm PST.

If you have research on or are part of a promising practice you think aligns with our conference themes, we welcome your contribution to our dialogue. The conference plenary sessions will focus on four inter-related themes:

  1. Making Peace with Nature for Public Health
  2. Ecojustice/Eco-social Equity and Public Heath
  3. Well-being Societies
  4. Local (Practice) and Action

The conference organizers request that you submit abstracts that align with one or more of the four themes of the conference; however, additional themes may also be identified from the selected abstracts.

We encourage submissions from the full spectrum of public health practice and endeavor to be inclusive of quality submissions even if they do not fit under the above thematic areas.

All successful abstract submissions will have access to a discounted conference registration rate. Learn more

 

Conference Banner

About PHABC’s 2022 Conference

 

Public Health Association of BC (PHABC) is pleased to share this year’s conference topic: “Our Health, Our Planet: Creating Well-Being Societies and Making Peace with Nature.” The conference topic was inspired by recent WHO and UN initiatives, as well as the importance of recognizing the role Indigenous knowledge has in creating a healthy relationship between humans and the Earth.

There is local and global urgency to focus on making peace with nature. According to the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, “Humanity is waging war on nature. This is suicidal” (December 2020). The UN 2021 report Making Peace with Nature further identified climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution as a “triple crisis” that threatens our well-being.

Creating well-being societies is dependent on making peace with nature and focusing on ecojustice and applying an eco-social approach to everything we do. The public health community has an opportunity to weave eco-social approaches into their work to address both ecological and social injustices.

Creating a truly healthy public will only be possible if we work together to create healthy, sustainable and equitable communities.

Conference Details

Dates: November 9th and 10th
Venue: Victoria Conference Centre
Address: 720 Douglas Street Victoria, BC

Early-Bird Registration

 

Conference Sponsorship Opportunities

 

Our conference is only possible thanks to the continued efforts of numerous volunteers and the support of various partners and sponsors. Your support will help ensure public health professionals and community partners have access to evidence-based knowledge to improve public health and environmental health outcomes locally, and globally.

If you are interested in sponsoring the PHABC conference, or if you would like more information about the details of our request, feel free to connect. We welcome the opportunity to discuss any arrangements with you and answer any questions you may have.

As a sponsor for this event, your organization can be seen as a positive force for change in this province and beyond.

For more information and to become a sponsor, email conference@phabc.org

 

Conference Promotions

Hotel Discounts: Conference attendees will receive discounts to partner hotels. Once registered, you will be provided with a discount code.

Volunteers: All volunteers will be provided FREE tickets to the event. For more information on volunteering, contact conference@phabc.org.

 

 

Join PHABC’s Board of Directors

We’re looking for dedicated public health professionals to join our board for the 2022-2024 term. Help make a difference in the province by joining our board!

Nominations open August 2, deadline for applying is September 16.

Learn about what it means to be a board member and fill out the application. Learn More

 

Awards Nominations Open

Do you know someone or an organization in the public health community whose hard work and dedication deserves recognition? Nominate them for a PHABC award!

Check out the award categories and nominate today.

Winners will be announced at the annual PHABC conference. Learn More

 

Conference Promotions Toolkit

Is your organization interested in further amplifying the conference promotions?

PHABC has a promotions toolkit prepared for partners’ dissemination. The toolkit includes graphics and templates for social media, newsletters, and an About the Conference booklet.

To request the toolkit, which will be circulated in September, please contact Selenna Ho, PHABC’s Communications Director. communications@phabc.org

 

 

Bursaries for Post-secondary Students in Public Health Related Fields

Posted on August 10, 2022

The Health Officers Council of BC administers several bursaries for post-secondary students in public health related fields. Amounts up to $5000 may be available to eligible candidates enrolled in post-graduate studies in a field of public or community health including public health nursing, nutrition, environmental health, etc. Deadline to apply is August 30.

For more information and how to apply go HERE

Conference 2022 Featured Speaker – Dr. Lindsay McLaren

Posted on August 8, 2022

Dr. Lindsay McLaren. Professor of Population and Public Health, University of Calgary. Lindsay’s research primarily focuses on healthy public policy and social and ecological determinants of health. She’s won multiple awards for her exceptional contributions. Head shot of Dr. Lindsay McLaren within an Indigenous illustration of an eagle and a bear. Artwork is credited to Nisga’a nation artist Peter Thomas McKay.

Dr. Lindsay McLaren

Lindsay McLaren PhD is a Professor of Population and Public Health at the University of Calgary where her research and teaching focus on healthy public policy and social and ecological determinants of health. She is also a Research Associate with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, National Office.

Lindsay held an Applied Public Health Chair research award, 2014-19 (funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Public Health Agency of Canada, and Alberta Innovates – Health Solutions) and she received the 2019 CIHR-IPPH (CIHR Institute of Population and Public Health) Trailblazer Award (mid-career category), a career achievement award that recognizes exceptional contributions in population and public health research.

Lindsay is past-president (2014-18) of the Alberta Public Health Association, and currently serves as Senior Editor for the Canadian Journal of Public Health and as Co-Editor for the international peer-reviewed journal, Critical Public Health.

 

See the full list of PHABC’s 2022 Conference speakers here.

Conference 2022 Featured Speaker – Dr. Shannon Waters

Posted on July 25, 2022

Dr. Shannon Waters. Medical Health Officer, Island Health. Dr. Shannon Waters has extensive leadership experiences with Indigenous health, health authorities, and the Ministry of Health. Head shot of Shannon Waters within an Indigenous illustration of an eagle and a bear. Artwork is credited to Nisga’a nation artist Peter Thomas McKay.

Dr. Shannon Waters

Dr. Shannon Waters is Coast Salish and a member of Stz’uminus First Nation on Vancouver Island. She completed the First Nations Family Practice program at the University of British Columbia and worked as a family doctor in Duncan, BC.

While honored to work close to home, Shannon became frustrated with seeing people when they were unwell, and wanted to focus on maintaining health and well-being. She returned to school and completed her specialty training in Public Health and Preventive Medicine.

Shannon worked as the Director of Health Surveillance at First Nations and Inuit Health Branch and, at First Nations Health Authority as the Acting Senior Medical Officer for Vancouver Island Region. She has worked with Vancouver Island Health Authority as a Medical Director and with the Ministry of Health as the Aboriginal Physician Advisor.

She is currently honored to have come full circle and to be working in her home territory as the local Medical Health Officer with Island Health.

See the full list of PHABC’s 2022 Conference speakers here.

 

Monkey Pox Vaccines

Posted on July 18, 2022

Island Health is starting a targeted vaccination campaign for those currently at highest risk of acquiring and spreading monkeypox. We encourage those who meet the following criteria:

  • At least 18 years old and transgender or self-identify as belonging to the gay, bisexual or as other men who have sex with men community and answer yes to any of the following:
    • Have received a diagnosis of chlamydia, gonorrhea, and/or syphilis in the past 2 months;
    • Have had two or more sexual partners within the past 21 days;
    • Have attended venues or other locations for sexual contact within the past 21 days (e.g., bath houses, sex clubs, park play) or may be planning to;
    • Have had anonymous sex in the past 21 days (e.g., using apps, online sites, formal/informal gatherings) or may be planning to;
    • Engage in sex work or may be planning to, either as a worker or a client.

Fore more information and to book an appointment go here: https://www.islandhealth.ca/learn-about-health/diseases-conditions/monkeypox

Conference 2022 July update: Join us for “Our Planet, Our Health” Nov 9 & 10 in Victoria, early bird registration opens soon!

Posted on

Conference Banner

About PHABC’s 2022 Conference

Public Health Association of BC (PHABC) is pleased to share this year’s conference topic: “Our Health, Our Planet: Creating Well-Being Societies and Making Peace with Nature.” The conference topic was inspired by recent WHO and UN initiatives, as well as the importance of recognizing the role Indigenous knowledge has in creating a healthy relationship between humans and the Earth.

There is urgency from globally and locally to focus on making peace with nature. According to the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, “Humanity is waging war on nature. This is suicidal.” (December 2020). The UN 2021 report Making Peace with Nature further identified climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution as a “triple crisis” that threatens our well-being.

Creating well-being societies is dependent on making peace with nature and focusing on ecojustice and applying a eco-social approach to everything we do. The public health community has an opportunity here to weave eco-social approaches into their work to address both ecological and social injustices.

Creating a truly healthy public will only be possible if we work together to create healthy, sustainable and equitable communities.

 

Conference Goal

To bring together public health and other related professionals to work towards improving planetary health and creating well-being societies in ways that will enable progressive and effective policy changes and improve the lives of people and communities in BC and beyond.

Together we will explore the population health and health equity implications of global ecological changes (aka the Anthropocene) and identify innovative, effective societal and community level interventions.

 

Conference Themes and Structure

To invigorate public health practice, education and research towards a healthy, just and sustainable future. The conference plenary sessions will focus on four inter-related themes:

  1. Making Peace with Nature for Public Health
  2. Ecojustice/Eco-social Equity and Public Heath
  3. Well-being Societies
  4. Local (Practice) and Action

Learn More About the Conference

 

Conference Promotions

Hotel Discounts: Conference attendees will receive discounts to partner hotels. Once registered, you will be provided with a discount code.

Volunteers: All volunteers will be provided FREE tickets to the event. For more information on volunteering, contact conference@phabc.org.

 

 

Join PHABC’s Board of Directors

We’re looking for dedicated public health professionals to join our board for the 2022-2024 term. Help make a difference in the province by joining our board!

Nominations open August 2, deadline for applying is September 16.

Learn about what it means to be a board member and fill out the application. Learn More

 

Awards Nominations Open

Do you know someone or an organization in the public health community whose hard work & dedication deserves recognition? Nominate them for a PHABC award!

Check out the award categories & nominate today! Winners will be announced at the annual PHABC conference. Learn More

 

Sponsorship Opportunities

Interested in becoming a sponsor for the conference? Contact us for more details regarding tiers, target audiences, and benefits. Email: conference@phabc.org.