June 2011 - Constituent Society and Partnership Corner

10Th Annual Ontario Healthy Schools Coalition Forum Explores Resiliency and the School Community

The Sudbury & District Health Unit (SDHU) hosted the Ontario Healthy Schools Coalition (OHSC) 10th Annual Forum on Thursday and Friday, May 12 and 13, 2011, at the Holiday Inn in Sudbury. The theme was “Resiliency and the School Community”.

The Sudbury & District Health Unit partnered with the Porcupine, Timiskaming, North Bay Parry Sound, and Algoma health units to ensure the forum’s success. Other contributors included the Rainbow District School Board, the Sudbury Catholic District School Board, Conseil scolaire catholique du nouvel-Ontario and Conseil scolaire public du grand nord de l’Ontario. 

“The forum gave delegates an opportunity to learn about resources and tools that have proven to be effective in helping foster resilient school communities,” said Janet Spergel, a public health nurse with the Health Unit’s School Health Promotion Team and chair of this year’s OHSC Forum.

In a resilient school community, students, teachers, and parents learn skills and reinforce their ability to bounce back from adversity. They are able to recognize that change is constant, identify the stressors in their lives, control their reactions, and feel empowered.

Attendees of the forum represented the education and health care sectors, public health, as well as many community agencies, all having a vested interest in the health and well-being of schools and school communities at large.

The forum drew over 170 participants from across Ontario, from 60 different agencies, including 21 health units thanks to dynamic speakers, interactive workshops, and networking opportunities. In addition, Thursday evening’s 10th anniversary gala celebration featured a keynote address by Joseph Boyden, award-winning Canadian author of Three Day Road and Through Black Spruce, and entertainment by cast members of Rent, produced by Y.E.S Theatre (Youth Entertaining Sudbury).

The forum featured 20 breakout sessions that included research based, human interest, French and Aboriginal content as well as keynote addresses by:

  • Dr. Wayne Hammond, PhD, President and Executive Director Resiliency Initiatives, Calgary, Alberta. 
  • Waneek Horn-Miller, former Canadian Olympic water polo player and long-time Aboriginal rights advocate
  • Dr. Gail McVey, Psychologist and Health Systems Research Scientist at The Hospital for Sick Children
  • Sergeant (Ret’d) Steve Daniel, award-winning Paralympian and advocate for the  Canadian Paralympic movement

The forum was kicked-off by the Sudbury & District Health Unit with the launch a one-of-a-kind resource to help teachers broach the topic of stress with students in the classroom called, “Can You Feel It?” The impetus for creating the resource was that a significant number of local students identified stress and stress management strategies as their number one health priority in a survey conducted by the Health Unit’s School Health Promotion Team. Local high school youth helped develop the resource, which includes a workshop, multimedia materials, as well as an insightful video that features local actors Alessandro Costantini and Brianne Benoit.  These youth and others were involved in the forum in various aspects such as break-out sessions presenters and display presenters as well contributing art work to the forum.

In addition to other youth involvement, Josh Osika, a student from Laurentian University’s Science Communication program created a blog (http://ohsc-resiliency.blogspot.com/) to help share the conference experience with those who were unable to attend.  The blog contained an overview of some of the breakout sessions, keynote speakers, and interviews with some of the presenters.  The blog has received over 700 hits and the SDHU invites you to access the blog and comment on the posts and content.

The data from the evaluations of the break-out sessions and the overall forum is presently being compiled but the e-mails we have received have indicated it has been a “smashing success”.

Janet Spergel
SDHU
PHN, BScN
Chair of OHSC Forum 2011