Centenary Committees

Steering Committee

Mandate: To develop, plan and implement special activities to mark the Association’s 100th anniversary.

Gerry Dafoe, Chair, was the Chief Executive Officer of CPHA from 1973-2003 and was honoured with CPHA’s highest award, the R.D. Defries Award, in 2004. Over the course of his thirty years of leadership, CPHA grew to become a leading voice for public health in Canada and internationally. More recently, Mr. Dafoe has been an advisor to the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) on the Millennium Development Goals.

Dr. Luis Barreto is Vice President, Immunization Policy & Scientific and Medical Affairs for Sanofi Pasteur Limited. He has been involved with clinical trials in Canada, the United States and internationally on a variety of health problems; helped organize the Canadian Conference on Counter-Terrorism and Public Health; coordinated the production and delivery of smallpox vaccine for the Canadian government; was part of the Canadian SARS Consortium; and is a member of BIOTECanada’s Health Policy and Government Relations Committee.

Dr. John Blatherwick was the longest-serving medical health officer in Canada when he retired in 2007. As the medical health officer for the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority, he was the moving force behind a number of important programs, especially those involving youth, people with disabilities, people living with AIDS, those combating drug addictions, and the move to abolish smoking in the workplace. Insite, the first legal supervised safe injection site in North America, opened during his tenure. Dr. Blatherwick also led Vancouver’s public health response to the SARS epidemic.

Ron de Burger is the past Chair of CPHA’s Board of Directors. He has been involved in public health in Canada for more than 45 years in various capacities. He was Assistant Deputy Minister of Preventive Health Services in British Columbia; Dean of the Faculty of Health Professions, Dalhousie University; and Director of the AIDS Program at CPHA. He is currently the Director of Healthy Environments at Toronto Public Health. Mr. de Burger is also past President of the Canadian Institute of Public Health Inspectors.

Peggy Edwards has worked for more than 25 years as a facilitator, trainer and writer in the health field and is a recognized leader in health promotion. Long before it became fashionable, Ms. Edwards took a holistic approach to her work in fitness and tobacco reduction with the community as the arena for change. A focus of her work has been prenatal health, healthy child development, tobacco cessation, national health goals, health literacy, active aging, and midlife health. Ms Edwards was honoured with CPHA’s Ron Draper Health Promotion Award in 2002.

Margaret Hilson was the Director of Global Health Programs at CPHA for 22 years. She began her career as a community health nurse educator in India. She has been a global health advisor for the Canadian International Development Agency, Health Canada, the World Health Organization, Canadian University Services Overseas, the Pan American Health Organization, and the United Nations Population Fund. Her commitment to public health has been recognized by various awards including the Order of Canada (2004), the ICN Florence Nightingale Award for International Achievement, and the Queen’s Silver Jubilee Medal. Margaret recently retired from the Faculty of Health Sciences Program at Simon Fraser University.

Dr. Richard Lessard is a physician specializing in community health and the Director of Public Health of the Montréal Regional Health and Social Services Board. He was Assistant Clinical Professor with Université de Montréal’s Department of Social and Preventive Medicine and McGill University’s Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics. He has presided over the International Francophone Heart Health Network, and was the principal investigator for the Federal-Provincial Heart Health Initiative. Dr. Lessard was a consultant for the World Bank, worked as a public health consultant for the Department of Health and Sustainable Development of the World Health Organization in Geneva, and is currently the Chair of the Canadian Population Health Initiative Council, which is part of the Canadian Institute for Health Information.

Dr. John Lynch is a Director General in the Infectious Disease and Emergency Preparedness Branch of the Public Health Agency of Canada. As a veterinarian and microbiologist, he has held a series of progressively more responsible management positions touching on regulatory public health and research, at both the provincial and federal levels, in the areas of agriculture, food, environment and emergency preparedness and response. He led the development of the legislative, regulatory and program components of the response to the Report on the Walkerton Commission of Inquiry that related to licensing and inspection of Ontario drinking-water testing laboratories.

Dr. Cordell Neudorf is the Chair of CPHA’s Board of Directors. He is the Chief Medical Health Officer for the Saskatoon Health Region and a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Community Health and Epidemiology, University of Saskatchewan’s College of Medicine. Dr. Neudorf is also Chair of the Canadian Population Health Initiative and a member of the Canadian Community Health Survey Advisory Committee to Statistics Canada.

Debra Lynkowski (ex-officio) has been CPHA’s Chief Executive Officer since August 2007. Prior to joining CPHA, she was the Director of the Canadian Stroke Strategy;  National Director of Public Policy and Government Relations and Executive Director of the Alberta/NWT Division of the Canadian Diabetes Association in Ottawa; and Senior Policy Advisor at Health Canada’s Centre for Chronic Disease Prevention and Control.

History Working Group

Mandate: To provide oversight to the development of historic products for CPHA’s centenary.

Margaret Hilson, Chair, was the Director of Global Health Programs at CPHA for 22 years. She began her career as a community health nurse educator in India. She has been a global health advisor for the Canadian International Development Agency, Health Canada, the World Health Organization, Canadian University Services Overseas, the Pan American Health Organization, and the United Nations Population Fund. Her commitment to public health has been recognized by various awards including the Order of Canada (2004), the ICN Florence Nightingale Award for International Achievement, and the Queen’s Silver Jubilee Medal. Margaret recently retired from the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University.

James Chauvin is the Director of Policy and Global Health Programs at CPHA. He joined the staff at CPHA in 1992, bringing with him expertise gained at the International Development Research Centre, the Canadian International Development Agency, and CARE.

Dr. Robert Clarke recently retired as Assistant Deputy Minister at the Public Health Agency of Canada, responsible for the Infectious Disease and Emergency Preparedness Branch. Dr. Clarke held senior executive and research positions at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Health Canada, and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada; was Visiting Professor of Epidemiology and Community Medicine in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ottawa; and Executive Director of the McLaughlin Centre for Population Health Risk Assessment at the Institute of Population Health.

Peggy Edwards has worked for more than 25 years as a facilitator, trainer and writer in the health field and is a recognized leader in health promotion. Long before it became fashionable, Ms. Edwards took a holistic approach to her work in tobacco reduction and fitness with the community as the arena for change. A focus of her work has been prenatal health, healthy child development, tobacco cessation, national health goals, health literacy, active aging, and midlife health. Ms Edwards was honoured with CPHA’s Ron Draper Health Promotion Award in 2002.

Dr. Jamie Hockin is Director of Professional Development, Office of Public Health Practice at the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) and Adjunct Faculty, Epidemiology and Community Medicine at the University of Ottawa. During his career at Health Canada and the PHAC, he has led the development of the expanded Canadian Field Epidemiology Program, the Skills Enhancement online e-learning program and the recently launched Canadian Public Health Service.

Dr. John Last is Emeritus Professor of Epidemiology at the University of Ottawa. He is the author or editor of 21 books, chapters in 50 books, articles in several encyclopedias, 80 original articles in peer-reviewed journals, over 200 other articles and editorials, and numerous reports and official documents for the World Health Organization, the Governments of Canada and Ontario and other official agencies. He led the initiative of the International Epidemiological Association to develop guidelines on ethical conduct of epidemiological research, practice and teaching. His ‘̀lifetime achievement’ awards include the Duncan Clark Award of the Association of Teachers of Preventive Medicine, the Abraham Lilienfeld Award of the American College of Epidemiology, the R.D. Defries Award – CPHA’s highest honour, and the Sedgwick Memorial Medal of the American Public Health Association for distinguished service to public health.

Dr. Maureen Law is a former Deputy Minister of the federal Department of Health and Welfare and recently held the position of Director General of Health Sciences at the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) in Ottawa. Dr. Law was at the Department of Health and Welfare from 1973 to 1989. She was senior adviser to the Privy Council before joining the Ottawa-based IDRC in 1990. Dr. Law has also been Deputy Medical Officer of Health in York County and Assistant Deputy Medical Officer of Health in Carleton County. A past chair of the World Health Organization, she has a wealth of international experience, including being involved in the Global AIDS Policy Coalition and the Global Commission on Women’s Health.

Klaus Seeger’s 35 years in public health stems from an early interest in environmental public health. His involvement with the Canadian Institute of Public Health Inspectors (CIHI) is longstanding. He was Editor of the Ontario Branch News for 10 years, a quarterly publication of the CIHI, President of the CIPHI’s Ontario Branch; recipient of CIHI’s prestigious Alex Cross Award for ‘displaying the highest standard of professional practice’; recipient of their Life Membership Award; and currently is a member of its History Committee. Mr. Seeger was also a director of the Ontario Public Health Association Board, recipient of the Distinguished Services Award from the Association of Local Public Health Agencies (Ontario), and Chair and long-time member of the Environmental Health Foundation of Canada.

Dr. Dennis Wardman is a Director, Health Promotion and Prevention, First Nations and Inuit Health Branch, Health Canada. He was the first Aboriginal person in Canada to complete specialty training in public health. He has served on the Assembly of First Nations’ Public Health advisory committee and the advisory committee for the National Collaborative Centre on Aboriginal Health. Dr. Wardman has published numerous peer-reviewed research papers and serves on the scientific peer review committee for the Canadian Institutes of Health Research–Institute of Aboriginal Peoples’ Health.

Communications Working Group

Mandate: To provide advice and guidance on communications activities and to help ensure coordination and consistent communications among the various groups and activities.

Peggy Edwards, Chair, has worked for more than 25 years as a facilitator, trainer and writer in the health field and is a recognized leader in health promotion. Long before it became fashionable, Ms. Edwards took a holistic approach to her work in tobacco reduction and fitness with the community as the arena for change. A focus of her work has been prenatal health, healthy child development, tobacco cessation, national health goals, health literacy, active aging, and midlife health. Ms Edwards was honoured with CPHA’s Ron Draper Health Promotion Award in 2002.

Brian Bell has 30 years of experience as a specialist in health policy development, exercised through work as a senior manager within the government, the voluntary sector and as a private sector consultant. He is an advocate for population and public health policies and programs generated through evidence and a commitment to social justice and health equity. Mr. Bell is on CPHA’s Board of Directors.

Cathy Campbell joined the Canadian Stroke Network (CSN) as the Communications Director in 2001. A graduate of Carleton University’s School of Journalism, Ms. Campbell worked in the media for 17 years as a reporter, specializing in health issues, and as a news editor. Prior to joining the CSN, she was a communications consultant to municipal government and the non-profit sector.

Ian Culbert has been working in public and population health for over 18 years and has extensive experience in the development and implementation of communications strategies, writing and editing of health promotion materials, and project development, management and evaluation. He is currently the Director of Communications and Development at CPHA.

Dr. Christophe Kouamé worked as a medical doctor in West Africa for eight years and is the CPHA student representative on this committee. He has been on a student placement at the University of Toronto’s Health and Well-being Programs and Services and recently volunteered as a humanitarian doctor with Médecins Sans Frontières. Dr. Kouamé is fluent in English and French.

Sarah Lawley is the Director, Corporate Communications and Business Affairs Division at the Public Health Agency of Canada.

Gene Long is a Senior Policy Advisor at Toronto Public Health (TPH) where he coordinated a year-long 125th Anniversary celebration in 2008 by hosting a symposium on determinants of health, an exhibit at the City Archives and several related initiatives. He was the communications manager for seven years at TPH, having previously worked in the Ontario public service and a diverse range of other sectors as a writer, researcher and policy analyst. Originally from St. John’s, he is the author of a historical monograph on Newfoundland’s journey toward confederation.

Jocelyne Maurice is a public health nurse at the Sexual Health Centre in Moncton, New Brunswick. She served two terms on CPHA’s Board of Directors, representing the New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island Branch.

Partners Working Group

Mandate: To recommend the overall concept and criteria for partnership engagement in CPHA’s centenary and the partners who should be engaged.

Ron de Burger, Chair, is the past Chair of CPHA’s Board of Directors effective January 2009. He has been involved in public health in Canada for more than 45 years in various capacities. He was Assistant Deputy Minister of Preventive Health Services in British Columbia; Dean of the Faculty of Health Professions, Dalhousie University; and Director of the AIDS Program at CPHA. He is currently the Director of Healthy Environments at Toronto Public Health. Mr. de Burger is also past President of the Canadian Institute of Public Health Inspectors.

Yvette Laforêt-Fliesser has been involved with community health nursing for 30 years, through her work at the Middlesex-London Health Unit, her volunteer activities and her teaching career as a nursing professor at the University of Western Ontario. She helped prepare the first C.N.A. certification exam for community health nurses, is a board member and Treasurer of the Community Health Nurses Association of Canada, and a past President of the Community Health Nurses Initiatives Group. She was awarded the RNAO’s 2007 Award of Merit. Ms. Laforêt-Fliesser represents CPHA’s Advisory Council on this working group.

Dr. Jack Mandel is a Professor and the founding Director of the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto. The school welcomed its first students in September 2008. Prior to this appointment, he was the chair of the department of epidemiology at Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University in Atlanta. Dr. Mandel is well known for his ground-breaking research on the benefits of colorectal cancer screening.

Greg Penney is the Director of National Programs at CPHA. Prior to CPHA he worked in senior leadership positions in private and public sector organizations in community health and home care. His background includes developing a national provider network and rebranding an organization. His expertise includes marketing, fund development, operations and strategic planning.

Dr. Maura Ricketts is a public health physician and the Director of the Office for Public Health at the Canadian Medical Association. She has worked for governments (Canada) and NGOs (WHO and CMA) throughout her professional career, with a focus on blood borne pathogens, Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies and public health policy development.

Carol Timmings has worked in public health for 25 years and is currently the Healthy Living Director in the area of Chronic Disease Prevention with the City of Toronto, Public Health Division. She is the President of the Ontario Public Health Association, was on the Board of Directors for Active Healthy Kids Canada, and was past-President of the Provincial Executive Committee of ANDSOOHA—Public Nursing Management in Ontario. Ms. Timmings represents CPHA’s Advisory Council on this working group.

Dr. Elinor Wilson is the President of Assisted Human Reproduction Canada and former CEO of CPHA. Dr. Wilson is the Chair of the Research and Science Committee at the Health Charities Council of Canada, a past Vice President of the World Heart Federation, former Chair of the Chronic Disease and Health Surveillance Working Group, and past member of the WHO Expert Advisory Group on Global Cessation Policy.

Fund Development Working Group

Mandate: To design a sponsorship program that will be attractive to a wide range of potential private and public-sector sponsors.

Dr. Luis Barreto, Chair, is Vice President, Public Affairs for Sanofi Pasteur Limited. He has been involved with clinical trials in Canada, the United States and internationally on a variety of health problems; helped organize the Canadian Conference on Counter-Terrorism and Public Health; coordinated the production and delivery of smallpox vaccine for the Canadian government; was part of the Canadian SARS Consortium; and is a member of BIOTECanada’s Health Policy and Government Relations Committee.

Ian Culbert has been working in public and population health for over 18 years and has extensive experience in the development and implementation of communications strategies, writing and editing of health promotion materials, and project development, management and evaluation. He is currently the Director of Communications and Development at CPHA.

Colleen Lathan has had leadership positions in stakeholder and sponsorship partnering and strategic fund development. She has been the External Relations Manager and Fund Development Manager with the City of St. Albert, Alberta and the Manager of Individual and Corporate Gifts and the Director of the Fund Development with the Canadian Diabetes Associations.