Victor Marchessault Advocacy Award
Throughout its history, what has made the Canadian Paediatric Society unique among similar organizations is its relentless advocacy to ensure that children and youth have access to the best possible care.
The CPS established the Victor Marchessault Advocacy Award to honour individuals or organizations who have made outstanding contributions to Canada’s children and youth at the local, provincial, or national level. Presented every two years, this award recognizes the diverse ways that Canadians help make life better for children and youth.
The award is presented during the CPS Annual Conference. The recipient is awarded a commemorative plaque and a $1,000 prize. Recipients also receive a complimentary one year membership to the CPS.
Awarded every other year, the next award will be presented in 2026.
Current recipient(s): Dr. Natasha Saunders
Our winner of the Victor Marchessault Award, Dr. Natasha Saunders, been a remarkable researcher of— and advocate for—injury prevention in Canada. She is a general paediatrician at the Hospital for Sick Children, a Senior Associate Scientist at SickKids Research Institute, and an Associate Professor at Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto.
Dr. Saunders looks to policy and public health as the twin pillars of injury prevention, and she leads an applied health system and policy research program that produces evidence to help guide and advocate for policies to support and protect children and youth.
A primary focus of Dr. Saunders’ scholarship has been firearm injury epidemiology in Canada. Her landmark studies on the extent of, and risk factors for, gun-related injuries in young people have been instrumental to inform injury prevention through policy change. Specifically, her work has led to broad collaborations to unite firearm injury prevention advocates and has been used as evidence for federal legislative change to pass two key firearm bills: Bill C-71 and Bill C-21. Dr. Saunders has published extensively both in Canada and abroad, and her opinion as a national expert on unintentional, assault-related, and self-inflicted firearm injuries is frequently sought. As recently as last October, she spoke on behalf of the CPS before a Senate Committee meeting to amend gun control legislation.
Dr. Saunders also studies mental health system performance and health system access and outcomes for children and adolescents. Her work in this area too has had substantial provincial and national policy impacts, and she is a tireless advocate for improving access and outcomes for vulnerable populations.
About Dr. Victor Marchessault
Many will remember Dr. Victor Marchessault as the leader of the CPS, where he served as Executive Vice-President from 1964 to 1997. Still others knew him as an infectious disease scholar and recall his skills and warmth as a clinician. An unwavering advocate for children and youth, his contributions to paediatrics in Canada were far-reaching.
He established the CPS as a political force, with advocacy successes on issues such as vitamin D in milk, fluoride in water, seatbelts for children and safety caps on drug containers. He was also instrumental in the introduction of universal measles vaccination for infants in the late 1960s.
Until his death in 2003, Dr. Marchessault was active in paediatrics, serving as Professor of Paediatrics and Infectious Diseases at the University of Ottawa and the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario and as Chair of the National Advisory Committee on Immunization.
Nominations
Nominees should be Canadian residents or not-for-profit Canadian organizations that have made an outstanding contribution to Canada’s children and youth through advocacy work, such as:
- Encouraging legislation that protects kids from harm;
- Making communities more active, safe, and child- and youth-friendly;
- Working to make communities more accessible for kids with special needs.
The Awards Committee will judge candidates based on the impact and scope of their advocacy work.
Nominations must be formally resubmitted each year to be reconsidered. Current CPS board, Awards Committee, and Action Committee for Children and Teens (ACCT) members are not eligible for nomination and cannot nominate candidates while serving their terms.
Submissions
Submissions must include:
- A letter from the nominator clearly describing the specific contribution made by the nominee in the preceding five years, identifying the impact and scope of the advocacy work. Maximum three pages.
- For individuals, a curriculum vitae as well as any documents relating to their advocacy work (if appropriate).
- An organizational profile, including brief history, mission statement and objectives and board of directors.
Submit your nominations using the Submit Nomination button.
This award is sponsored by the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario Foundation.
Past recipients
Dr. Nicholas Chadi
Dr. Christina Grant
Dr. Richard Bélanger
Dr. Mark Tremblay
Dr. Claude Cyr
Dr. Elizabeth Lee Ford-Jones
Dr. Hema Patel
Dr. Natalie Yanchar
Dr. Milton Tenenbein
Ms. Cindy Blackstock
Dr. Gloria Jeliu
Dr. Gilles Fortin & Dr. Jean Labbé
Last updated: Jun 14, 2024