Call to Action

JUNE 1ST 1999

Dear Canadian Vision Scientist,

It's time to act.  The Interim Governing Council (IGC) of the nascent Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) will be meeting in early June to consider the make-up of the Institutes.  We strive to have vision health research, from molecules to the community, given the standing it deserves.  One of the greatest fears people have is blindness, and the amount of blindness that already exists in Canada (CNIB statistics show 10,000 new registrants per year) is going to multiply with the aging of our population.  There must be an Institute that reflects the
importance of vision to our citizens and that further provides a focus for research, education of the public,  rehabilitation and the training of new investigators as well as the enhanced support of our existing scientists.

 The IGC needs to be made aware that there is a large number of scientists engaged in vision health research (this e-mail is going to 412 people, at least 300 of whom are scientists and clinician-scientists).  At the 1999 ARVO meeting, there were at least 220 presentations with Canadian authors.  There were almost 100 people at the ARVO meeting called to discuss the CIHR challenge.   We are organized and have the Vision Health Research Council    (http://www.crc-cuse.usherb.ca/vision/research/website.htm)    actively seeking consensus across the country, the disciplines and the professions that make up our ranks.  The newly formed umbrella group from the
C.N.I.B./E.A. Baker Foundation, the National Coalition on Vision Health, is fully supportive of this effort and has in fact already written to MRC.

Actions to take:

(1)   Write to Dr. Henry Friesen, President of the MRC and Chair of the IGC.
(MRC Main page: http://www.mrc.gc.ca/welcome.html)
Copy the letter to your local MP, the Federal Minister of Health Allan Rock,
and to me. A list of points to make in your individually-written letter:

• Health statistics show 560,000 Canadians are self-identified as having seriously-impaired vision or blindness.
  
• The CNIB is registering 10,000 new cases of blindness every year, and the numbers are growing.
  
• The aging Canadian population is going to cause a tremendous increase in the number of blind and visually-impaired.
  
• There are 300 or more scientists in Canada engaged in research aimed at understanding human vision in health and disease

(2) Look over the list of IGC members below.  (also see the CIHR Web site).

• Are any personally known to you?
  
• Are any local people who you may approach (telephone, lunch, buttonhole at the water
  cooler, etc.) to discuss the importance of an Institute devoted to vision health?
  
• Even if you don't know anyone personally, write to the people in your own geographical or professional areas, making the same points as in your letter to Dr. Friesen.

(3)  It would be helpful to write a separate letter, if you have the time after dealing with the first two items, to your own MP. Everyone, MPs included, knows of someone close to themselves with vision loss.  Remind the MP of how many citizens (read: voters) are affected by vision loss, how damaging it is to a normal quality of life, and how expensive rehabilitation can be.

This, coupled with a statement about how now is the time to do something positive about alleviating visual loss, may raise the consciousness about our cause to a level where positive action begins.
Your letter could be the one that finally gets our message through.
(The Web site for turning e-mails into faxes for MPs is: http://www.net-efx.com/faxfeds/
The Gov't of Canada Primary Internet Site: http://canada.gc.ca/main_e.html)

(4)   Are you associated with some organization that might be enlisted to send a letter (e.g. Lion's Club, Kinsmen etc. or a voluntary fundraising organization such as the Glaucoma Research Society)? The effect of an organization's letter could be very powerful.

There is a need to get this done soon (within days!) if we're going to have an impact on the IGC.  Do it now!

 Many thanks to you all.

 Marty Steinbach on behalf of the VHRC       
 

Interim Governing Council of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (Revised April 19, 1999)  Henry Friesen  CHAIR  President, Medical Research Council of Canada Ottawa, Ontario  Dorothy Lamont  VICE CHAIR CEO, Canadian Cancer Society Toronto, Ontario  Mr. Eric M. Maldoff   VICE CHAIR Partner, Heenan Blaikie Montreal Montreal, Quebec  MEMBERS Dr. Andrea Baumann Associate Dean, Faculty of Health Science,   McMaster University   Hamilton, Ontario  Mr. Rod Bryden Chairman and CEO, World Heart Corporation     Nepean, Ontario  Dr. Michel Bureau  President,  Fonds de la recherche en sant du Qubec      Montreal, Quebec  Dr. Neena L. Chappell   Director, Centre on Aging   University of Victoria   Victoria, British Columbia  Ms. Andre Demers  Directrice,  Le Groupe de recherche sur les aspects sociaux   de la pérvention,  University   of Montreal  Montreal, Quebec  Dr. Peter Glynn President and CEO  Kingston General Hospital     Kingston, Ontario  Ms. Lorraine Greaves Executive Director  B.C. Centre of Excellence for Women and  Health Vancouver, British Columbia  Dr. Kevin Keough  Vice-President (Research and International   Relations)    Memorial University of  Newfoundland   St. John's, Newfoundland  Dr. Bartha Marie Knoppers Adjunct Professor   Faculty of Law   University of Montreal   Montreal, Quebec  Mr. Paul Lucas  President & CEO   Glaxo Wellcome Inc.     Mississauga, Ontario  Dr. Robert MacKenzie  Associate Dean  Graduate Studies and Research   McGill University  Montreal,  Dr. Murray Martin     President & CEO    Vancouver Hospital and   Health Sciences Centre  Vancouver, British Columbia  Dr. Barry McLennan    Chair, Coalition for Biomedical and Health  Research    Saskatoon, Saskatchewan  Dr. Robert McMurtry      Dean,  Faculty of Medicine   University of Western Ontario London, Ontario  Dr. Yves Morin Chief, Cardiologie  Hospital Hotel Dieu  Quebec,Quebec  Dr. Cameron Mustard  Scientific Director,  Institute for Work & Health, Toronto  Toronto,Ontario  Dr. Louise Nadeau  Associate Professor,  Department of Psychology  University of Montreal  Montreal,Quebec  Dr. Robert Perreault  Chief of Preventive Medicine,  Public Health Directorate, Montreal Centre  Montreal,Quebec  Dr. Martha Piper  President and Vice-Chancellor  University of British Columbia  Vancouver, British Columbia  Prof. J. Robert S. Prichard  President  University of Toronto  Toronto, Ontario  Dr. Noralou Roos Co-Director , Manitoba Centre for Health Policy and Evaluation University of Manitoba,  Winnipeg, Manitoba  Dr. Matthew Spence , President  Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research  Edmonton, Alberta  Dr. Franco Vaccarino Vice-President, Research  Research Centre for Addiction and Mental Health  Toronto, Ontario  Dr. Ron Worton  Director of Research  Ottawa Hospital - General Site  Ottawa,Ontario  EX OFFICIO GOVERNMENT APPOINTEES  Dr. Tom Brzustowski   President,      Natural Siences & Engineering Research Council  of Canada   Ottawa, Ontario  Dr. Arthur Carty President,  National Research Council of Canada      Ottawa, Ontario  Mr. David Dodge    Deputy Minister of Health ,      Health Canada   Ottawa, Ontario  Mr. Jonathan Lomas,     Executive Director,  Canadian Health Services Research Foundation  Ottawa, Ontario  Jeff Lozon Deputy Minister of Health   Province of Ontario  Toronto, Ontario  Mr. Kevin G. Lynch Deputy Minister of Industry ,     Industry Canada        Ottawa, Ontario  Dr. Marc Renaud  President, Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario

Martin J. Steinbach, Ph. D., Professor of Psychology & Biology  Centre for Vision Research    Atkinson College  York University  4700 Keele Street North York, Ontario  Canada M3J 1P3  Voice: (416) 736-2100, x. 66472  Fax:   (416) 736-5662 e-mail: mjs@yorku.ca

Professor of Ophthalmology Faculty of Medicine University of Toronto Director,             Eye Research Institute of Canada The Toronto Hospital Western Division 399 Bathurst Street Toronto, Ontario Canada M5T 2S8 Voice: (416) 603-6479 Fax:   (416) 603-5126

 

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