MONTRÉAL, Nov. 2, 2015 /CNW/ - The Canadian Cancer Research Alliance (CCRA) announced that Dr. Michael Evans is the recipient of its award for Distinguished Service to Cancer Research.
Dr. Evans is known worldwide for his work in innovative health messaging to the public. The premise of his work is that most healthcare happens at home and that the biggest missing workforce is the public. His goal is to create high quality, "infectious" health media that facilitates "peer-to-peer healthcare." His media lab engages patients with creatives (filmmakers, designers, writers) and expert clinician-researchers. Dr. Evans is also founder of the renowned Mini-Med School at the University of Toronto, a medical school for the public that puts the lay people together with the University's best medical professors.
Dr. Evans tells evidence-based stories and then imbeds them in the relationships of care: friend to friend or caregiver to patient. This ranges from documentary style unscripted interviews of patients with cancer in the "The Truth of It" film series (candid accounts of the personal impact of cancer funded by the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer) to health info-graphics, curation, and as radio show contributor on CBC's Fresh Air. There have been more than 12 million views of his famous "Whiteboard Med School" series on YouTube. A wide range of health topics are covered in these videos, including smoking cessation, childhood obesity prevention, melanoma detection, and reducing cancer-related fatigue.
"Dr. Evans has played a significant role in the health promotion and patient education landscape in Canada and internationally," says Mr. Patrick Sullivan, Patient/Public representative for the CCRA. "This award recognizes his innovative contribution to promoting healthy lifestyles and communicating best evidence on topics of relevance to cancer control and other health issues. His work fills an important role in our efforts to reduce the cancer burden and improve health outcomes for people."
Dr. Evans will be presented his award during the CCRA's Canadian Cancer Research Conference held in Montréal from November 8-10, 2015. For more information, please visit http://www.ccra-acrc.ca
Dr. Michael F. Evans, Toronto, ON: Dr. Evans' current roles at St. Michael's Hospital (Toronto) include: Director, Health Design Lab; Scientist, Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, and staff physician. He is also an Associate Professor in the Departments of Family Medicine and Public Health at the University of Toronto. Dr. Evans received his MD in 1993 from McMaster University.
In 2014, Dr. Evans became the first worldwide endowed chair in Patient Engagement in Childhood Nutrition at the University of Toronto. He was also awarded the McNeil Medal from the Royal Society of Canada in recognition of his outstanding ability to promote and communicate science to the public. His work has been profiled in a diverse range of publications (e.g., Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), British Medical Journal, Walrus, Reader's Digest) as well as the hit Netflix series, "Orange is the New Black." Recent awards include being chosen as one of the Top 10 Innovators in Health by the Canadian Medical Association, Top 45 Canadians Over 45, and the Gold Medal in Social Media at the Web Health Awards.
The Canadian Cancer Research Alliance (CCRA) is comprised of 35 organizations that collectively fund most of the cancer research conducted in Canada—research that will lead to better ways to prevent, diagnose, and treat cancer and improve survivor outcomes. Its members include federal research funding programs/agencies, provincial research agencies, provincial cancer care agencies, cancer charities, and other voluntary associations. CCRA is motivated by the belief that, through effective collaboration, Canadian cancer research funding organizations can maximize their collective impact on cancer control and accelerate discovery for the ultimate benefit of Canadians affected by cancer. The CCRA is supported by the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer through a financial contribution from Health Canada. For more information, please visit: http://www.ccra-acrc.ca
SOURCE Canadian Cancer Research Alliance
Image with caption: "2015 CCRA Awards (CNW Group/Canadian Cancer Research Alliance)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20151102_C2494_PHOTO_EN_532532.jpg
For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact: Mike Heinrich, Director of Operations, Evans Health Lab, (416) 450-2938, [email protected]; Kim Badovinac, Canadian Cancer Research Alliance (CCRA), (416) 915-9222 x 5739, [email protected]
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