Daily News

Posted on May 3: Rick Hansen tours Centre for Health Promotion and Rehabilitation

Canada's Man in Motion, Rick Hansen, took his first tour of McMaster's Centre for Health Promotion and Rehabilitation on Friday. Hansen spent about 45 minutes meeting some of the people who use the exercise rehabilitation facility on a regular basis. Kinesiology professors Neil McCartney and Audrey Hicks hosted the informal tour which included demonstrations of the various pieces of equipment used in rehabilitation training. Members of the MacWheelers, numerous volunteers and other researchers who are involved in the centre were also on hand to talk to Hansen. The Centre for Health Promotion and Rehabilitation, established in 2000, is home to a group of multidisciplinary researchers who study the effects of exercise on the well-being of seniors and various patient populations. The centre has a pioneering robotic device called a Lokomat - the only one in Canada - designed for gait retraining in persons with spinal cord injuries. The centre is also one of the few locations in North America that incorporates body weight support treadmill training in the rehabilitation of people with spinal cord injuries and other movement disorders. Hansen received an honorary doctorate from McMaster University in 1999.

Posted on May 3: Carl Moore Lecture to explore humanity in long-term care

Long-term care and care of the elderly cited among the top health related concerns for Canadians will be explored at the sixth annual Carl Moore Lecture in Primary Care on May 5. Michael Gordon, vice-president of medical services and head of geriatrics and internal medicine at the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care, will present this year's lecture, hosted by McMaster's Department of Family Medicine. He will speak on Humanity in Long Term Care Ethical, Clinical and Social Challenges', and will address several dimensions of the topic, including: the long term care system, the decision to choose long term care, and geriatrics and long term care as a career. Gordon is also head of the division of geriatrics at Mount Sinai Hospital, and a professor of medicine at the University of Toronto. He has published widely on health and aging and is a regular contributor and commentator on the joys and problems of the elderly for various TV programs and radio shows. His books include Old enough to feel Better - A Medical Guide For Seniors and An Ounce Of Prevention - The Canadian Guide To Healthy And Successful Retirement. He is co-author of Parenting your Parents, and a new edition of the Encyclopedia of Health & Aging.

Posted on April 30: McMaster professor named one of Canada’s Top 40 Under 40

Shamir Mehta's innovative research at McMaster University has earned him a national and international reputation as a highly respected researcher in the treatment of acute coronary heart disease. Now, Mehta, a cardiologist with the department of medicine at McMaster, has been recognized for the large impact he has had on patients and the practice of medicine by being named one of Canada's Top 40 Under 40. The Top 40 Under 40 program, now in its ninth year, was established to recognize the achievements of outstanding Canadians under the age of 40. Recipients of the award represent Canada's best and brightest. "Dr. Mehta represents McMaster's premier candidate for this prestigious award," says John Kelton, dean and vice-president of the Faculty of Health Sciences. "I believe that Dr. Mehta is an ideal candidate because he is a "triple threat," having made major contributions in patient care, research, and education." Mehta is one of a small number of physicians who performs complex and lifesaving interventional cardiac procedures. These procedures are minimally invasive, yet have profound health impacts. The techniques used by Mehta bring together major advances in diagnosis, anticoagulation, and technology.

Posted on April 29: Launch sequence started for Michael G. DeGroote Centre for Learning and Discovery

Down corridors, workers install lighting; in classrooms, they place rows upon rows of seating, they carpet floors and plaster the walls, and put the finishing touches on doors and windows. These are the final details going into the Michael G. DeGroote Centre for Learning and Discovery (MDCL), the 300,000-square-foot building to the north side of the McMaster Health Sciences Centre. With approximately 100 construction workers toiling away each day, the building is getting closer to completion. It is expected that MDCL will be ready for the move-in of researchers, staff and faculty over the next few months and it will be ready for classes late this summer. Amid the dust and the sound of drills and hammers, the sign of an innovative facility peaks through. A light shines down from a skylight, floor to ceiling windows stretch down long corridors and state-of-the-art lecture theatres and classrooms begin to exhibit the state of the art. (Click here for a slideshow) "This is going to be a wonderful space for students, researchers, faculty and staff," says John Kelton, dean and vice-president of the faculty of health sciences. "It's going to house state-of-the-art infrastructure, meaning there will be many amenities, from audio visual to the Internet. It will have everything a student needs. I'm really enthusiastic about what is going to happen when students start using the building this summer and fall."

Posted on April 28: Community blood pressure sessions ‘closing the loop’

McMaster's Department of Family Medicine is helping raise awareness of the importance of regular blood pressure monitoring. A recently launched "Community Hypertension Awareness Program" (CHAP) is 'closing the loop' between health promotion activities in the community, and clinical care by family doctors. Steady attendance at the CHAP' blood pressure sessions reveals that many older adults are interested in having their blood pressure measured and their cardiovascular risk factors recorded and sent to their family doctor, according to Janusz Kaczorowski, research director in the Department of Family Medicine. To date, more than 600 Grimsby-area residents have attended sessions for blood pressure monitoring and cardiovascular risk assessment in local pharmacies.