Featured Scientist - Nancy Edwards
| What do HIV/AIDS health-care providers, smoking adolescents and the elderly lady who said: “Help! I’ve fallen and can’t get up!” all have in common? The answer is, of course, Dr. Nancy Edwards - who is a CHSRF/CIHR Nursing Chair; and Professor, in both the School of Nursing and the Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine. She is also the director of the Centre for Multiple Interventions, at the Institute of Population Health. |  |
Dr. Edwards’ work has taken her to the far reaches of the world, where she has conducted research projects designed to move community health issues forward in countries such as China, Pakistan, and Sierra Leone (West Africa) as well as in several Canadian regions. She is a well-known and respected leader in her field, who was honoured last year by the City of Ottawa, when then mayor Bob Chiarelli declared May 10, 2006 “Nancy Edwards Day” as part of National Nursing Week, in recognition of the extensive contributions she has made to the field of community health.
But the accolades don’t stop there: in May 2007, the University of Ottawa bestowed upon her the Award for Excellence in Research. Established in 1963, the Researcher of the Year Award is presented on an annual basis by the University of Ottawa to a professor who has earned distinction as a result of outstanding research work. Dr. Edwards was also presented with the prestigious YMCA/YWCA Women of Distinction Award for the Science, Research and Technology category, on May 17, 2007. On June 8, 2007 Professor Edwards received an Honorary Doctorate from Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops, B.C.
One of Dr. Edwards’ current projects - Strengthening Nurses’ Capacity for HIV Policy Development in sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean - was awarded a Teasdale-Corti Global Health Partnership Program grant of $1.59 million in February 2007. A dynamic team comprised of researchers and decision-makers from five partner countries, six Canadian universities, and the Canadian Nurses Association are leading this initiative. A highlight of this four-year program will be the International Research Internship, a capacity-building initiative which aims to prepare junior nurse researchers for leadership roles.
Innovation and collaboration are at the forefront of Professor Edwards’ approach to mentoring young health care practitioners. The CHNET-works! project, initiated by Dr. Edwards, is an interactive, audio-teleconferencing and on-line forum that includes flash polls, audio debates, commentaries, discussion boards, and fireside chats. These networking tools provide support for participants to discuss “hot” community health topics. Fireside chats offer an opportunity for front-line practitioners and decision-makers to directly connect with experts in their field.
As Director of the Community Health Research Unit (CHRU), Dr. Edwards’ research interests focus on such topics as knowledge translation and exchange, capacity-building for community health research, fall prevention for the elderly, clinical best practice guidelines and health systems change, and maternal and child health programs.
When asked what she is passionate about, she immediately responds: “Making a difference!” Through the programs and projects that she has undertaken and continues to move forward; and the mentoring that she provides in the field of community health, it is clear that Dr. Edwards’ life work allows her to live her passion every day.