View this email in your browser

Welcome to the SPARK Newsletter!

Delivered twice monthly, the SPARK: News e-bulletin provides members and other subscribers with valuable information through the following sections:

Children's Healthcare Canada news and announcements
SPARK: Theme of the month with related upcoming webinars, podcasts, pop-up events (mini-conferences), and more
Member Spotlight: Articles profiling our members and their work - research, innovations, emerging issues
Advocacy: Policy briefs, engagements, and opportunities to become involved
Other child health news: Research, government announcements, and more

Children's Healthcare Canada members are invited to submit content (300-word submission with a banner image and URL link). If you are interested in posting an article, resource, or news via SPARK: News, please contact us at spark@childrenshealthcarecanada.ca.

Jump to: Top Stories | Upcoming Events | SPARK: Ideas

From research & innovation to mental health, pain management, family centred care and nursing excellence; the “hive mind” will be in full force at #ChildHealthCan2022!

This year's conference is a celebration of our leaders in child health with our theme of Energy, Optimism and Leadership: A bright future for child health in Canada. Join us in Ottawa, Ontario from November 29 - December 1, 2022! (A virtual option is also available for a portion of the event)

New to the conference lineup this year are our Leadership Hives! These hives are designed to provide delegates the opportunity to join discussions with peers who share common interests, areas of practice or expertise. Discussions will be solutions-focused, enable knowledge sharing and support child health leaders grow their professional networks.

Register today to join your colleagues from across the country for discussions, presentations, priority setting exercises and more!

National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

This year, to commemorate the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, Children’s Healthcare Canada and the Pediatric Chairs of Canada are encouraging front line leaders, administrators, faculty, and others to reflect on reconciliation and decolonization in the context of the healthcare institutions and children, youth, and families they serve.

Read our full statement.

Emily Gruenwoldt's opening statement at the Parliamentary Study on Children's Health

Children’s Healthcare Canada President and CEO, Emily Gruenwoldt, was invited to speak to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health on September 27. In her statement, Emily detailed the unprecedented demands and challenges facing children’s healthcare systems, and called for national leadership on a pan-Canadian child and youth health strategy.

Read the full statement.

October SPARK Theme: Child Health in the Community

Now Available
Podcast
Getting the Facts Straight: Tackling mis/disinformation through patient-provider relationships

Listen now!

October 26
Webinar
Creating Community Partnerships for Greater Equity and Access to Children’s Health

Details coming soon

Now Available
Podcast
Healing the Healthcare System: Staff burnout, honest leadership, and collaboration

Listen now!

October 31
Podcast
Community hospitals: Key to an integrated healthcare system for children and youth

Details coming soon

Nov 29 - Dec 1, 2022
Annual Conference
Energy, Optimism and Leadership: A Bright Future for Child Health in Canada

Visit our website for more info!

Every child matters: Yesterday, today, and tomorrow

In this open-access advocacy paper entitled Every Child Matters: yesterday, today, and tomorrow which was published in the Lancet Child and Adolescent Health, Dr. Schiariti raises awareness about the impact of residential schools on Indigenous children, and proposes actions to improve children's participation in decision-making, and shape a better future globally.

Read it online today: Every child matters: yesterday, today, and tomorrow - The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health

Verónica Schiariti MD MHSc PhD
Developmental Pediatrician
Adjunct Associate Professor – Division of Medical Sciences
University of Victoria

2022 Minding Pain Conference

Please join our #PatientsIncluded, hybrid (virtual/in-person) Minding Pain Conference on November 7^th and 8^th at the Peter Gilgan Centre for Research and Learning! This two-day event, hosted by the SickKids Pain Centre and Garry Hurvitz Centre for Brain and Mental Health in partnership with Pain in Child Health and Solutions for Kids in Pain will take place during National Pain Awareness Week #NPAW and feature inspiring keynotes from Dr. Michael Salter, Dr. Christine Chambers, Isabel Jordan, Dr. Peter Szatmari, Dr. Steven Miller and Dr. Gregory Wells. It will address themes; mental health & pain, knowledge mobilization, health equity and pain in the developing brain.

This conference is welcome to all health-care professionals/trainees, researchers, policy makers, and patients and families! In-person seats are limited and early-bird registration is only available until Friday, October 7th! Persons with lived experience and persons from low-to-middle income countries can register for free!

Click here to register for the Conference

Developmental Screening and Strategies for Support Training

Registration for the Developmental Screening and Strategies for Support Training is now open! All practitioners from any sector that are working with young children and their families to support optimal early development and overall well-being are encouraged to register. This training will foster your ability to recognize and respond to the needs of the infants, young children and the families you serve.

Register online today.

MHRC-IAM 2022 Mental Health Innovation Prize: Application of Artificial Intelligence in Mental Health

Mental Health Research Canada (MHRC) and the Institute for Advancements in Mental Health (IAM) are investing up to $100,000 in funding to support research in artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, and/or big data to improve mental health in Canada.

We are seeking to fund one or more project(s) that employ a novel application of these systems. Our purpose is to advance the development of mental health care interventions or systems using AI to support treatment(s) and diagnoses—where we know the potential for impact is significant.

To best understand the scope of projects we may fund, and to limit the initial effort required by the applicant(s), we are first seeking out Letters of Interest before inviting full proposals. Letters of Interest are due October 30, 2022, by 5 p.m. ET. Please submit all letters electronically to grants@mhrc.ca.

Additional information can be found online.

National Breastfeeding Week – Information from AboutKidsHealth

National Breastfeeding Week is October 1–7. AboutKidsHealth has information for parents about breastfeeding and how to troubleshoot breastfeeding problems. The resource Breast changes and conditions provides information for breastfeeding parents on the changes their breasts will go through after childbirth and the various complications that can interfere with breastfeeding. After childbirth, changes will occur as a parent starts to produce milk. Complications that can occur during lactation include:

breast engorgement — swelling and increased pressure caused by too much breast milk and other fluids
plugged milk ducts — an area in the breast that is not draining well
mastitis — inflammation of breast tissue, which can cause swelling and redness and sometimes occurs with an infection

The best way to prevent complications while lactating is to empty the breasts frequently. For more information on managing and preventing complications, as well as where to get help with breastfeeding issues, please see the article Breast changes and conditions.

AboutKidsHealth is SickKids’ health-education website and features more than 3,500 articles on a range of health topics. For more information on breastfeeding and other health topics, visit www.aboutkidshealth.ca.

Forward to a Friend