4th Annual Nursing Students of Ontario Model World Health Organization Conference

    What does health mean to you?  Is it not having to visit a doctor or is it knowing that you have access to medical care when you need it?  Is it making healthy choices in the cafeteria or is it having access to clean water and food? 

    Definitions of health vary widely locally and globally.  For many people, health and well-being are determined by access to the necessities of life: potable water, uncontaminated food, shelter and care in times of illness.  The 4th Annual Nursing Students of Ontario Model World Health Organization (WHO) conference is an opportunity for post-secondary students to come together to explore the social determinants of health and to develop resolutions for more equitable global health.

    Topics for debate at the Model WHO conference on February 18th and 19th, 2011 include: Access to Water as a Human Right, Food Security in the Face of Climate Change, Access to Health Care in Rural and Remote Settings, and Indigenous Health and Resource Extraction.  We are inviting post-secondary students from Peterborough and the surrounding area to come to Trent and learn about environmental health.  The Model WHO is an opportunity for post-secondary students to develop the skills required to address social justice issues and to practice developing achievable strategies for change.
    We are pleased to welcome special guests John Pringle and Jessica Yee.  John has experience working for Medecins Sans Frontieres in Nigeria and along the Eritrean-Ethiopian border.  His appearance is co-sponsored by the Kawartha World Issues Centre and he will speaking on Friday, February 18th.  Jessica is an author, activist and founder of the Native Youth Sexual Health Network and she will be speaking on Saturday, February 19th at 2pm.  Community members are welcome to attend both speaker presentations, but only students may register for the debate and resolution development portion of the conference.  All conference proceedings are free of cost.  Please check our website: www.trentuwho.ca for more details.
    The conference is sponsored by the Nursing Students of Ontario who are a student interest group of the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario, the Trent-Fleming Nursing Students’ Association, the Trent School of Nursing and the Trent Central Student Association.  It is open to post-secondary students in any discipline.  We welcome students and community members to attend the speakers’ presentation and to find out how and why nurses are appropriate agents for change in our community and the world at large.  See you there!


Written by Kate St. Amand, BScN (c)
on behalf of: NSO, TFNSA, TCSA
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