Past Recipients

RECIPIENTS OF THE CHPCA LEADERSHIP AWARD

AWARD YEARS
2003	2004	2005	2006
2007

2007 Recipient: Ms. June Callwood (awarded posthumously)

The legacy of June Callwood’s work and social activism has not been forgotten by the hospice palliative care community in Canada. For many years June Callwood was recognized as a renowned author, social activist, mentor and leader. She contributed to the founding of many social programs, not least of which was Casey House, a free-standing AIDS hospice in Toronto. In the midst of the HIV epidemic in Toronto, June recognized the need for better end-of-life care for those dying of AIDS. In 1988, she founded Casey House Hospice, the first AIDS Hospice in Canada, and one of the first in the world. In founding Casey House, she used her skills to bring together government, AIDS community organizations, patients and families, philanthropists, hospitals and health care professionals. The CHPCA Board of Directors recognizes her vision and leadership within the hospice palliative care community in Canada.

2006 Recipient: The Pallium Project

The 2006 Leadership award was presented to the Pallium Project, with special recognition of the contribution of Mr. Michael Aherne.

The Pallium Project has truly made a difference in the quality of life of Canadians facing a life-threatening illness and to their loved ones. It has also strengthened the hospice palliative care movement in Canada.

The Pallium Project has done amazing work in every province and territory in Canada . Whether it be support and resources to assist with the creation of national training and educational resources, including the translation of the ‘A Caregiver’s Guide: A Handbook about End-of-Life Care’ in Inuktitut and Inuinnaqtun; facilitation of provincial hospice palliative care capacity building meetings, or development of support tools for family and informal caregivers; the national leadership provided by the Pallium Project has been outstanding.

None of this work would have been possible without the astounding leadership of Michael Aherne. Many of the initiatives undertaken by the Pallium Project were done so due to Michael Aherne’s passion and dedication to increasing national capacity for the provision of quality hospice palliative care in Canada.

2005 Recipient: Frank D. Ferris M.D.

Frank D. Ferris M.D. is the recipient of the 2005 CHPCA Leadership Award in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the field of hospice palliative care in Canada.

Dr. Ferris personifies what it means to be a leader in hospice palliative care by envisioning the path ahead and ensuring that all decisions he is part of puts the patient and his or her family first to ensure quality end-of-life care.

Dr. Ferris is the principal author of the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association’s resource ‘A Model to Guide Hospice Palliative Care: Based on National Principles and Norms of Practice.’ This resource details nationally accepted norms and principles of practice in the field of hospice palliative care. In May 2003, Dr. Ferris was awarded the Golden Jubilee Medal of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by the Governor General of Canada for his boundless dedication to Hospice Palliative Care in Canada. He is also the Co-founder of Toronto’s Hospice Palliative Care Network Project (HPCNet) and he is a consultant to the Temmy Latner Centre for Palliative Care at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto, Ontario.

In accepting his award, Dr. Ferris stated, “It is thrilling that Canada now leads the world with a national model to make hospice palliative care available to every Canadian, urban or rural, in his or her own home, when he or she needs it.” He went on further to state, “I can imagine no greater professional satisfaction than anticipating the relief from pain and suffering to be provided to millions of Canadians. I am very pleased to be part of the hospice palliative care professional family in Canada and I am equally pleased to accept this award.”

Gael Page, President, Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association, stated “Dr. Ferris is a true leader dedicated to ensuring the advancement of hospice palliative care and quality end-of-life care in Canada.” Sharon Baxter, Executive Director, Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association of Canada added, “Now based at the San Diego Hospice & Palliative Care in California, Dr. Ferris continues his commitment to hospice palliative care as a national champion in Canada.”

2004 Recipient: The GlaxoSmithKline Foundation

The Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association (CHPCA) has awarded The GlaxoSmithKline Foundation the 2004 CHPCA Leadership Award in recognition of its outstanding contribution to the field of hospice palliative care in Canada.

The CHPCA Leadership Award is given to an individual or group, in this case The GlaxoSmithKline Foundation, in recognition of their exceptional leadership, dedication and vision in advancing hospice palliative care for all Canadians. The Foundation has helped to achieve significant progress in hospice palliative care by initiating and supporting ground-breaking programs and bringing much needed attention to this issue.

Hospice palliative care – or end of life care – is a compassionate and comprehensive approach to helping the terminally ill and their family members. It involves emotional, practical and medical support at home, or in a hospital or community hospice.

From Left to Right: Dr. Larry Librach (CHPCA Board of Directors),
Mr. Paul Lucas (President, The GlaxoSmithKline Foundation),
Ms. Sharon Baxter (Executive Director, CHPCA)

“GlaxoSmithKline and our employees are honoured to receive this award from the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association,” says Paul Lucas, President of The GlaxoSmithKline Foundation. “It’s tremendously rewarding to know that the Foundation is contributing to a cause that will help so many Canadians.”

Commitment in Action
GlaxoSmithKline Inc. (GSK) employees chose hospice palliative care as the company’s cause of choice in 1997. Since then, the company has spearheaded a number of initiatives to assist the three million Canadians who care for terminally ill family members.

Living Lessons^®, a collaborative effort by The GlaxoSmithKline Foundation and CHPCA, has contributed to a marked growth in public awareness. Living Lessons helps to educate patients, family caregivers, medical professionals, policy makers and the public-at-large about the resources and expertise that are available in their communities and advocates for additional programs and funding. As part of the program, A Guide for Caregivers offers practical advice and a collection of compelling personal stories to support caregivers.

GSK reaffirmed its commitment to the hospice palliative care movement by becoming the first company in Canada to establish an extended leave benefit for employees needing time off from work to care for critically or terminally ill family members.

“The need for quality hospice palliative care is becoming more and more critical,” says Sharon Baxter, Executive Director of the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association (CHPCA). “Currently the Canadian health care system cannot meet the present or future demand for end-of-life care. But with partners like The GlaxoSmithKline Foundation, we are having a valuable impact on those in need.”

2003 Recipient: Minister Sharon Carstairs

Minister Sharon Carstairs (right) and Doug Nanton, Public Affairs, GlaxoSmithKline

The first recipient of the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Leadership Award is Minister Sharon Carstairs. Minister Carstairs was presented with the award in her home province of Manitoba on Friday, May 2^nd, 2003, at the 8^th Annual Hospice & Palliative Care Manitoba Celebrate Life Fundraising Breakfast. Dr. Paul Henteleff introduced this new award and this year’s recipient, and CHPCA Board Member Merle MacAulay presented Minister Carstairs with the award on behalf of the CHPCA.

Hospice palliative care is an issue that has been of interest to Minister Carstairs for many years. In the Fall of 1999, Minister Carstairs chaired a Subcommittee of the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology, that reviewed the federal government’s response to a 1995 Senate report entitled Of Life and Death. The final report from this

Subcommittee was released in June 2000 in a document entitled, Quality End-of-Life Care: The Right of Every Canadian. This report made 14 key recommendations to the federal government and since its release, has had an impact on the government’s response to end-of-life care issues in Canada.

On March 14, 2001, Prime Minister Jean Chrétien appointed Minister Carstairs as Minister with Special Responsibility for Palliative Care. In this new role, Minister Carstairs has been working with Health Minister Anne McLellan to support the federal government's interest in the development of hospice palliative care by working with provinces, territories and non-governmental organizations, to ensure that hospice palliative care services are meeting the needs of Canadian patients, families and caregivers. This new appointment was a positive step forward in the federal government’s commitment to quality end-of-life care in Canada.

In March 2002, Health Canada’s Secretariat on Palliative and End-of-Life Care, which supports the work of Minister Carstairs, began working on the development of a Canadian Strategy on Palliative and End-of-Life Care. Five Working Groups and a Coordinating Committee have been created and work is progressing.

Minister Carstairs has truly been a leader and champion for hospice palliative care in Canada.