Paying it forward for excellence in health care

This week on Health Matters, Tarah Schwartz discusses the global impact of tuberculosis and the importance of better monitoring techniques to prevent infections with Dr. Jonathon Campbell. Co-chairs of this year’s Le Bal Rouge, Sacha Haque and Maria Della Posta share the importance of supporting excellence in health care and medical research. And, Maria Saros explains what inspired Scotiabank to make a transformative $1.35 million donation to help eliminate hepatitis C in Montreal.

Cette semaine à Questions de santé, Tarah Schwartz discute de l’impact de la tuberculose dans le monde et de l’importance de meilleures techniques de surveillance pour prévenir les infections avec le Dr Jonathon Campbell. Les coprésidentes de la soirée Le Bal Rouge de cette année, Sacha Haque et Maria Della Posta, expliquent l’importance d’appuyer l’excellence des soins de santé et de la recherche médicale. Et Maria Saros explique ce qui a incité la Banque Scotia à faire un don transformateur de 1,35 million de dollars pour contribuer à éliminer l’hépatite C à Montréal.

Transcript

Tarah Schwartz  00:00
Hello there. Thank you for joining us. I'm Tarah Schwartz and this is Health Matters on CJAD 800. Viral hepatitis is one of the world's deadliest infectious diseases, affecting 58 million people worldwide. In Canada. Hepatitis C reduces life expectancy more than any other infectious disease, including HIV. And Hepatitis C is the only chronic viral infection- wait for it- that can be cured. Later in the show, we discuss an incredible $1.35 million donation to the MUHC Foundation to support an ambitious project that hopes to eliminate hepatitis C from Montreal entirely. To begin though tuberculosis. It's a deadly infection that is also curable and preventable. It remains a prevalent infection particularly in Canada's remote northern communities. The World Health Organization has pledged to rid the world of TB by 2030. And many researchers at the RI-MUHC are working towards this goal here in Quebec. Dr. Jonathan Campbell is a Junior Scientist in the Translational Research in Respiratory Diseases Program at the Research Institute at the McGill University Health Centre. And he joins us now. Thanks for being with us, Dr. Campbell.

Dr. Jonathon Campbell  01:16
Thanks so much for having me. I'm happy to be here.

Tarah Schwartz  01:20
We are happy to have you here. Now, Dr. Campbell, start by explaining to us what tuberculosis is.

Dr. Jonathon Campbell  01:27
Right. So tuberculosis is an airborne infectious disease transmitted through aerosols and droplets. And what that means is it basically transmits in a very similar way to COVID-19. And it primarily impacts the respiratory system like COVID-19, but can impact really any organ system.

Tarah Schwartz  01:49
Many listeners, and I probably put myself in that bucket as well; might think that it's sort of like an old illness when that has gone away. But that's not the case, is it?

Dr. Jonathon Campbell  01:59
No, so tuberculosis is a very, very old illness. But it's definitely one that has not gone away. It's the leading cause of death due to infectious disease globally. It was briefly surpassed by COVID-19 in 2020 and 2021. But it's now the leading cause of death. And there's 2 billion people who are infected with tuberculosis, and 10 million of these people each year get sick, and 1.6 million people die each and every year.

Tarah Schwartz  02:32
Those are really shocking numbers.

Dr. Jonathon Campbell  02:35
Yeah, it's, it's a very deadly disease. And it disproportionately impacts different populations. And, while we've seen a lot of progress in terms of reducing overall incidence of the disease. It still takes the lives of far too many people.

Tarah Schwartz  02:55
And why do you think it's still such a prevalent illness? Because those numbers as I said, those are really shocking numbers. Why is it still so significantly a part of our population?

Dr. Jonathon Campbell  03:06
Tuberculosis, really is driven by different social determinants of health. And I think when I say that, I'm talking about issues of access to health care, food insecurity, and housing insecurity. One of the largest drivers of tuberculosis malnutrition, globally. With poor access to health care, people remained sick for long periods of time and can continue transmitting to other people. And with housing insecurity and overcrowding, that provides a lot of opportunities for ongoing transmission. So it's a disease that can't be cured with a bandaid. It's something that needs to be addressed by looking at the root causes.

Tarah Schwartz  03:54
We're speaking with Dr. Jonathan Campbell, and we're talking about TB, tuberculosis. How do you catch it? How does it move from person to person?

Dr. Jonathon Campbell  04:03
So it goes just like COVID-19. So it's goes through aerosols. So in the air or through droplet transmission, your risk is, of course, higher the closer you are to someone who is sick and for the longer time you spend with them.

Tarah Schwartz  04:22
And how does it impact the health? What exactly does it do to the body once it's inside?

Dr. Jonathon Campbell  04:29
This is a fascinating question, because it's important to be clear that tuberculosis is not an acute illness. By this I mean, its impacts do not end when treatment is completed. That's a chronic illness that usually has lifelong impacts, and it has biological impacts, but also economic, social, and psychological impacts. I'm happy to expand on each of those.

Tarah Schwartz  04:54
Yeah, well expand enough so that it becomes clear for us exactly like what it's doing to the body. I'm curious about what it does to the physical body? Why don't we start there? What does it do to the lows?

Dr. Jonathon Campbell  05:04
The disease can cause long-term permanent, lasting lung damage. That results in reduced capacity, symptoms of breathlessness, functional limitations. You have trouble climbing stairs, doing the same physical activities you were doing before you develop the disease. And beyond the lungs, there's evidence to suggest that it can even have cardiovascular impacts that can manifest years after the disease, which is common with viral infections. Although, tuberculosis is bacterial.

Tarah Schwartz  05:41
In terms of your projects, because I imagined that tracking it and keeping track of who has it and where it's being caught is a very important part of your work. Is that accurate?

Dr. Jonathon Campbell  05:54
Yeah. And I think you're there's a popular phrase- what gets measured gets done. If you're getting tracked on how many reports you can file in a day, you will only do what you need to do to get those many reports filed. You're not getting measured on other things, you deprioritize it. So I think this is true for TB, it's really important to monitor and track our progress to TB, and our management of it. Otherwise, things don't get done or we end up with the blind leading the blind, where no one really knows what's going on. And we're all going by gut feeling.

Tarah Schwartz  06:34
And so what are you and your colleagues doing in terms of the projects you're working on to track the impact of tuberculosis.

Dr. Jonathon Campbell  06:43
We're doing some quality improvement project. So what we did was, with a few call colleagues at McGill, and also the University of Alberta, we looked at the current tuberculosis surveillance system in Canada. So that refers to what kind of what type of data we collect on people who develop tuberculosis and how frequently we report this data, and which data actually gets reported. And we wanted to identify some opportunities to improve our tuberculosis surveillance system in Canada so that it's useful to inform our efforts to eliminate this disease.

Tarah Schwartz  07:18
And in terms of I mentioned in the introduction, that that it is curable. So how do you cure tuberculosis? Is it a complicated process? Is it long?

Dr. Jonathon Campbell  07:32
For people who have symptomatic disease, they feel sick from tuberculosis, it is curable, it's usually treated with four different drugs over a period of six months, so it is quite intensive. People typically are isolated in hospital for a few weeks at the start of treatment, so that they can be treated long enough so that they're no longer at risk of transmitting to family members and the community. But it is very curable, and it has a high success rate of treatment if it is diagnosed and treated early, especially.

Tarah Schwartz  08:10
I know that this is a huge part of your life's work now- tracking, monitoring, treating tuberculosis. Is there something about this entire process that surprises you, or still surprises you in terms of what you're dealing with now versus how we were dealing with it 5-10-15 years ago.

Dr. Jonathon Campbell  08:29
I'll share a surprising finding. We collect data on every single person who develops tuberculosis; provinces and territories do this. The we haven't actually updated the data we collect on people developing tuberculosis since 2011. So that's over 10 years. So it's surprising to me that we are still using the same methods and techniques to understand tuberculosis since 10 years ago. When really the situation here has changed substantially, and we haven't adapted to the current situation. It's like using the same tools we were using for COVID in 2020 that we're using now. We've adapted quite quickly with COVID. With tuberculosis, we haven't.

Tarah Schwartz  09:17
Why do you think that is just because of who gets it, and how often we hear about it?

Dr. Jonathon Campbell  09:20
I think in part, it's the populations that are impacted by tuberculosis. We look at it at a national level and we say we are a low tuberculosis incidence country. We're one of the lowest in the world. And so perhaps there's some indifference in terms of what we need to do. But when we have high quality data to track and monitor tuberculosis, we know that there are certain communities that are very disproportionately impacted by TB and that includes people born outside of Canada, and indigenous communities, particularly Inuit, that bear a large burden of tuberculosis.

Tarah Schwartz  10:08
I think it is wonderful that you are raising this issue bringing it to our attention, because I think your point about being indifferent if it doesn't affect us close to home is a valid one. So, Dr. Jonathan Campbell, I thank you for your time and for the work that you do.

Dr. Jonathon Campbell  10:22
Thank you. Thanks for having me. It was a pleasure to speak about this.

Tarah Schwartz  10:26
The pleasure was mine. Thank you, Dr. Campbell. Next up on Health Matters, four titans of their industries are teaming up in support of our signature fundraising gala for respiratory care. I'm Tarah Schwartz. Welcome back to Health Matters on CJAD 800. Le Bal Rouge is just three weeks away. This is the MUHC Foundation's signature fundraising gala, and it is sure to be a glamorous one with our Roaring 20s Great Gatsby theme. Last year's gala raised a record-breaking $2 million. This year, we're fundraising in support of the Montreal Chest Institute and respiratory care. The MUHC Foundation is thrilled to have four women co-chairing the event. And that's the first time that's ever happened. One of the distinguished co-chairs of the event joins me now. Sacha Haque is Partner, General Counsel and Secretary at Sagard. Thank you so much for being with us, Sacha.

Sacha Haque  11:22
Hi, Tarah. Thanks for having me.

Tarah Schwartz  11:26
As a member of the MUHC Foundation Board of Directors... first of all, how long have you been on the board of directors there?

Sacha Haque  11:31
It's been seven wonderful years. I've really enjoyed my time on the board. Sadly, my term will be up next year. But it's such a wonderful organization. And I really, really enjoyed that time.

Tarah Schwartz  11:44
That's so nice to hear. Now, as a board member, you get to see firsthand, some of the fascinating research that people's donations are actually funding. So tell us what it's like to hear from the doctors and the researchers about these projects.

Sacha Haque  11:59
Tarah, the MUHC is one of the top research and teaching hospitals in the country. And, the support of the foundation really enables an important part of that work. And the projects and the grant requests that the doctors put forward, they're inspirational, and basically they're driving cutting-edge research that directly impacts and changes the course of people's lives and medicine. So when I see that when I see how a project on paper when funded, can effectively change someone's life, that's what really inspires me to be very close to this cause.

Tarah Schwartz  12:45
Yeah, that's a really nice way to say it. Now, what inspired you to accept yet another challenge and responsibility. You're going to be one of four co-chairs for this year's Bal Rouge. Why did you say yes to that request?

Sacha Haque  12:59
It's a privilege. I was asked, and honored to really join these three exceptional women. It was really a no-brainer for me. It's an amazing event, I've attended the events every year. It's an exceptional cause. And, the fact that I would get to do it with these three women was a very, very compelling proposition.

Tarah Schwartz  13:24
It really is. As a woman, I have to say, it's amazing to see it because I've seen we've gone through multiple galas. It's never been- in my history- to see four women co-chair and on all four women who are at the top of their field, who are inspirational to other women, for the first time ever. How did that play into how you're seeing the event is as being led by four exceptional women really?

Sacha Haque  13:34
It's a milestone for us. We usually have a mix of men and women. But we've had years which are just men. They were very successful all around. But I think it's a nice milestone for us to have such exceptional talent in the room at the board, and surrounding the foundation, and supporting the foundation that we were able to get the particular women. I mean, I'm excited about the three other women who are really very talented and I think will bring a lot of energy to this event. All with different networks and I think it's going to be a great evening.

Tarah Schwartz  14:37
So do I. I just want to riff off of that idea. What I love about the idea that there are four women is that I'm a big proponent of if you can see it, you can be it. I love that expression, because I really think it's true. Is that part of how you feel that you want to be inspiring younger women to see look here for women at the top of their fields; you can see it you can be. Do you follow that to that ideology?

Sacha Haque  15:03
It's funny you say that Tarah? I definitely do. When I first started out in philanthropy, I was at a very young age. I joined my first board when I was 19 and my first two boards actually. There were senior women who sought me out. The first board, it was actually professor at Marianopolis college who was my teacher, who asked me to join the board of the South Asian Women's Community Center. That's how I first got my experience and it's always been women in senior roles. The next one was a partner at the law firm, I started my career at. That she brought me into an organization to join the fight against poverty as it pertains to women. For me, it's, it's like coming full circle, to do this event with these women. Because it's really a lot of inspiring women figures, senior figures in my life that initially brought me into the space.

Tarah Schwartz  16:00
I love that. It's so inspiring to hear that I think it's just wonderful. We're speaking with Sacha Haque, Partner and General Counsel at Sagard, also a board member at the MUHC Foundation, and one of this year's four co-chairs of Le Bal Rouge. Now this event raises considerable funds, a record-breaking $2 million last year. So you touched on it briefly, but why is giving back and philanthropy important to you in your life in general?

Sacha Haque  16:29
I think that it's very important to give back to the community for me. It's always been something that I do alongside my career. I always have something on the go and that's just paying it forward. And giving back, as pertains to the hospitals specifically; as I mentioned, the foundation enables, like an important part of the work of the hospital. It drives cutting-edge research that impacts people's lives. It supports the excellent patient care. And public budgets, as we know, are finite. Without the support of the foundation and the community at large, many ongoing projects and services would not be possible. And so there's a real impact. And I think it's important for people to choose their cause and something that they're passionate about. For me, health care is way up there on the list. I've done education, environment, governance, women's groups, but health has a particular place in my heart in terms of the direct impact. If you don't have your health, you don't have anything. For me, it's been a privilege to be a part of this.

Tarah Schwartz  17:47
That's great. Yeah, that's so true. You need the health more than anything else. What are you most excited about? In terms of the night of the event, the gala takes place on May 26. What are you looking forward to most?

Sacha Haque  17:59
Well, if I can be honest, the party. The party, the band is phenomenal. The people, the energy in that room, Tarah. The energy in that room is always incredible. People are always having a great time. It's a Friday evening. It's not a very corporate event where people feel like they need to leave early. So I've always really enjoyed the party. And of course, at the end of the night after all of that; being able to have made a contribution to a very important cause in our community definitely feels great.

Tarah Schwartz  18:36
What stood out for you about last year's Le Bal Rouge because that was the first gala since COVID. There was three years with a gala didn't happen. Then all of a sudden, the world started to open up again and we held our first gala. And it was spectacular. What stood out for you?

Sacha Haque  18:54
First, the fact that it was one of the first galas that we went to post-COVID made it extra special. I loved hearing from the doctors about the impact of our contributions. I thought that that really meant a lot to me. And I thought that it was terrific. The amount of people that we were able to get into the room; immediately post-COVID to have such a wonderful event.

Tarah Schwartz  19:26
Amazing. We thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to not just be a part of the MUHC Foundation Board of Directors but to have accepted to co-chair this wonderful event. We're really excited about it. Sacha Haque, thank you for everything that you do. I think it's amazing you did your first two boards at 19 years old. It's pretty impressive.

Sacha Haque  19:44
The first was at 19; the second was at 24 I believe.

Tarah Schwartz  19:46
That's amazing. I think my first one was like at 40.

Sacha Haque  19:54
I was lucky. I had these women that... I don't think I would have done it on my own. I think it was really the modeling that people did for me. I think that that was really what brought me in. And I think I was lucky to come across these women and be involved at such an early age and then it just stuck with me.

Tarah Schwartz  20:15
I think that's so true. And I love the idea of you know how you're paying that forward, because I think that's so important, too. Sasha, thank you so much for coming on the show. It's been a real pleasure to talk to you.

Sacha Haque  20:23
You as well. Thank you for having me.

Tarah Schwartz  20:25
Thank you so much. Coming up next on Health Matters, the president of a major aviation company shares why she wanted to support the Montreal Chest Institute. As you heard in our earlier segment, for the first time ever, we have four women co-chairs for Le Bal Rouge. They are each titans in their industries from finance and assets management to aviation, we are fortunate to have these powerhouses supporting respiratory care. One of the co-chairs of this year's event on May 26 is Maria Della Posta. She is the President of Pratt and Whitney Canada and a member of the MUHC Foundation's Board of Directors. Thank you so much for joining us, Maria.

Maria Della Posta  21:05
Thank you, Tarah, great to be with you.

Tarah Schwartz  21:08
Now I'm so fascinated about your professional trajectory. Tell me about how you went from where you began to becoming president of Pratt and Whitney Canada?

Maria Della Posta  21:18
I'm very fortunate. I grew with the company, we went from a one product line company to today, more than 12 product families. And every one of those, we entered new segments, and I had the opportunity to learn about the business at every step of the way. So I've had many careers in my time here, and I've grown with the company with the business.

Tarah Schwartz  21:40
So how long have you been at the company then?

Maria Della Posta  21:43
This will be my 38th year.

Tarah Schwartz  21:45
Amazing.

Maria Della Posta  21:45
Yes, quite the love story.

Tarah Schwartz  21:48
That doesn't happen very much anymore, does it? Most people tend to jump around right now. But I love the way you put it. It's a love story. That's amazing.

Maria Della Posta  21:57
I'm very fortunate. I still think that there's an opportunity for in a business like ours, as a global leader, we have something to offer everyone. Around the world we have, we work on some of the most advanced technologies. We have something for everyone, whether you love finance or logistics or are a rocket engineer.

Tarah Schwartz  22:19
Now, there are not a lot of women, not enough women, in my opinion in leadership positions like yours. Do you see yourself as someone who is showing others that it can be done? Mentoring women as they're growing in their careers?

Maria Della Posta  22:34
I think we've all come to appreciate the importance of role models in every part of life. So I don't take that lightly. And I would say that I've worked for generations of leaders here who have been big promoters of diversity, equity and inclusion. And I think that we need to look at that very broadly in society. I do also feel very strongly; that's why I commit a fair amount of my time outside our four walls. Because we need to take an interest in young people. It's very early on that a spark might be created that will lead it to something else. And so the children are really where we need to put a lot more attention. So true. Now, one of the things you do outside of your four walls is being a part of the MUHC Foundation's board of directors. What does that mean for you to work alongside the MUHC Foundation and its mission to change the course of lives and medicine? It's very rewarding, in terms of the positive contribution that we could all make, to bringing what is such an impressive institution to a city like Montreal, a province, a country like Canada. The ability to have the research side, the hospital side, and just the understanding of how diseases can be, hopefully eradicated but how we can become more and more predictive and preventative in making the lives of our community, our friends and families better here in our community.

Tarah Schwartz  24:19
Now, what inspired you on top of your work with the MUHC Foundation's board of directors to become a co-chair of this year's Le Bal Rouge?

Maria Della Posta  24:31
MUHC plays an instrumental role and health care; locally, globally. Most recently, I saw firsthand the role of MUHC in our fight against COVID. It really opened up my eyes and I think all of our eyes to the pressures of our frontline health care workers, across the entire value, chain all the way to research. Who amongst us hasn't been touched. And I found that it was an opportunity I couldn't pass up to get to know a little bit more what I could do, to bring my skills and capabilities to help the foundation to raise more money. So we could do more. There's so much that's required in the area of research and medicine in general and health care in general. Le Bal Rouge is a big component of our fundraising activities. And, I knew that I could help bring the community together to support that.

Tarah Schwartz  25:32
It is a great initiative. I mentioned it when we were talking with Sacha Haque who's also one of the co-chairs. What does it mean to you that there four women, for the first time ever, co-chairing this important fundraiser?

Maria Della Posta  25:45
First, it's a privilege to have the opportunity to co-chair with such strong leaders. Forgetting that they're women or men or other; from our local business community that have achieved so much in their own rights. When we think of care, we do think of women more traditionally in caregiver roles. And, we have that instinct to give. But together, the fact that we're able to bring- each one of us- our business skills, our networks, and everything to make a difference in people's lives is pretty darn special. And honestly, when we're together, I learned at every session. They have achieved so much, and I have so much to offer. It's a privilege.

Tarah Schwartz  26:30
Pretty darn special. I love that we are speaking with Maria Della Posta. She's the president of Pratt and Whitney Canada, a member of the MUHC Foundation's board of directors, and one of four co-chairs of this year's Le Bal Rouge. Has philanthropy always been a part of your life, Maria?

Maria Della Posta  26:47
More so more recently. Actually, another thing that Jean Charest refers to Pratt and Whitney Canada as a Belle Boite. And almost since day one here, I learned about this company's commitment to organizations like Centraide, for example. As a very junior person, I was exposed to the importance of business and those of us who are more fortunate to contribute to making the beautiful community spirit that we have here possible and making sure that everybody gets to rise up. So I was exposed to it early on, but of course, life happens. And, God has graced me with incredible health. But those close to me, have been affected by different diseases, different challenges. And, I think I have the wherewithal and the ability, and it's definitely shown me how important it is to have the kind of care that we are working on at the MUHC. And all of the medical organizations in our midst to bring better care to every one of us. There's just so many different dimensions that need attention. I'm glad to be able to do a little bit more every year, I hope.

Tarah Schwartz  28:23
Well, your support really is instrumental to the MUHC Foundation. We're speaking with Maria Della Posta, President of Pratt and Whitney Canada. What do you love most about your job, Maria?

Maria Della Posta  28:37
When I said earlier, it's a love story. It's a love story. Because I've gotten to know so many the hundreds of 1000s of people that have walked through these doors over 38 years. It's such so stimulating. I do work with people who have helped solve and create solutions for some of the most advanced opportunities in the world. There's probably only a couple groups or organizations that do what we do here at Pratt and Whitney Canada. And so it's incredible. It's incredible that we have been able to pull together people, teams of people, that offer what I believe is the world's most dependable engines and a leader in our space.

Tarah Schwartz  29:22
Maria Della Posta, thank you so much for coming on the show for being a member of the MUHC Foundation's board of directors and for agreeing to co-chair the 2023 Le Bal Rouge. What are you looking forward to most on the night of the 26th of May?

Maria Della Posta  29:36
Well, it's a great evening, a great opportunity to interact with people across the community in every walk of life, every industry. In many cases, many of them have been touched, or their families have been touched by illness. Their own contribution and what they've done to help turn some of that around. I also think for me, it's a great opportunity to interact with some of the exceptional doctors and researchers who are making a difference and the MUHC team. You, Tarah, you're a member of that team, but the whole MUHC team is just so talented. It's one of the highlights of the evening for me for sure. I can't say that enough. Great team, thank you for everything you do to help us be able to do what we do.

Tarah Schwartz  30:29
Thank you so much Maria. Thank you so much for coming on the show.

Maria Della Posta  30:32
Appreciate it. Have a great day, Tarah. Take care. Bye.

Tarah Schwartz  30:36
Take care. Next up on Health Matters, a transformative $1.35 million donation to the MUHC Foundation to support the ambitious goal of eliminating hepatitis C. I'm Tarah Schwartz. You're listening to Health Matters. Montreal Sans Hep C is an initiative with an ambitious goal. It plans to eliminate hepatitis C infections in Montreal by working closely with affected communities in affected communities and tailor support to their needs. Led by Dr. Marina Klein, Research Director of the Division of Infectious Diseases and the Chronic Viral Illness Service at the MUHC -we spoke to her a couple of weeks ago- the initiative has partnered with 16 community organizations to create grassroots interventions tailored to five underserved at risk groups. Now Scotiabank, learned about Montreal Sans Hep C and decided they wanted to help by donating a transformative $1.35 million gift in support of this incredible initiative. Because hepatitis C can be cured and eliminated. Maria Saros is Vice-President and Global Head of Social Impact at Scotiabank. And she joins us now. Thank you for being with us, Maria.

Maria Saros  31:46
Thank you, Tarah. Very happy to be here.

Tarah Schwartz  31:48
Now what was it about Dr. Klein's work in eliminating hepatitis C that inspired the leadership at Scotiabank?

Maria Saros  31:55
I think as you outlined, Dr. Klein and MUHC have an ambitious goal to eradicate Hep C in Montreal. And we saw just tremendous alignment between this effort and our social impact focus that really is demonstrated through our program called Scotia Rise. Scotia Rise is a significant financial commitment the bank has made. $500 million over 10 years to improve economic resilience. We do that thinking about sort of the three main drivers that support economic inclusion and prosperity in society. That would be education, supporting newcomers in becoming settled, and removing career barriers for marginalized people. But none of that is possible without health. Like without good health, you can't actually bring people into the path of prosperity. And that's what was I think, particularly exciting about Dr. Klein's work. Because as you know, Hep C in particular affects the most vulnerable citizens in our communities. And that was really what motivated us to support this initiative.

Tarah Schwartz  33:09
Yeah, this is a really great one. I love the fact one that it does support vulnerable communities and to that it's actually something that can be cured. So I'm curious about Scotiabank history in in supporting medical research. Has that always been a part of the pillars that you discussed with Scotia Rise?

Maria Saros  33:25
Yeah, that's a great question. Scotiabank is 190 years old.

Tarah Schwartz  33:29
Oh wow.

Maria Saros  33:29
Yeah! So as long as we've had records and corporate history, we have been big supporters of health care and health research. We actually have this fantastic physician offering through MD financial, as well. So in addition to providing financial services to physicians, we have this commitment that we've established between MDs, ourselves and the Canadian Medical Association, which is actually oriented towards physician health and wellbeing. So that's $150 million over 10 years. So we feel really committed and motivated to strengthening health outcomes through Scotia Rise. And I think it really is that nexus between people who are at the fringes and who face significant challenges in equitable access to health care. That's really where we think the most meaningful role we have to play vis-a-vis economic resilience and health research.

Tarah Schwartz  33:30
I know that Dr. Klein and her colleagues working on Montreal Sans Hep C are very excited and grateful about this donation. They're anxious to continue their work. Are you looking forward to seeing six months- a year down the road, however long it takes them to move the project forward to see what the impact is of a gift of this magnitude from Scotiabank? Are you looking forward to seeing that?

Maria Saros  34:56
Certainly, and I think there's a couple of aspects of that impact. One is obviously the direct impact to rid Montreal of hep C and change the lives of 10s of 1000s, of Montrealers. And I think there's also the broader impact of knowledge transfer and knowledge mobilization that I think will be hugely significant. Not only to the province, but also to the country. And that's what I would say the secondary benefit of supporting a partnership like this is just what can you do to establish this important institution as a leader in research.

Tarah Schwartz  35:33
I'm glad that you brought that up because I love that aspect, too. Because what Dr. Klein is doing here in Montreal, can be used in other provinces, other countries all over the world. This is a problem that certainly affects vulnerable populations and we know there are a lot of those around the world. Have you had the opportunity to meet Dr. Klein yet? Or I believe that's happening soon, isn't it?

Maria Saros  35:50
But it's happening soon. And I can't wait. I'm sure she's incredibly busy. We have quite a bit of time getting to know her team and the MUHC team and we're just blown away by their level of commitment.

Tarah Schwartz  36:06
It really is. What message would you have for people listening? Obviously, the average person cannot make a donation is as transformative as $1.35 million. That's wonderful that the banks are doing it to give back. But what would you say to listeners about making donations of any amount that can contribute?

Maria Saros  36:24
Yeah, it's a great question. Certainly, large corporations like Scotiabank definitely have a role to play. And when you consider the fact that not everybody in our community has the same opportunity. Many of our fellow citizens face systemic barriers. This is a really big imperative for organizations like Scotiabank, to step up and say- hey, we're only going to be successful as a financial institution, if everybody in our community has the opportunity to prosper and thrive. But at an individual and a personal level, giving is just that it's very individual, and it's very personal. And some of the most moving stories that I hear from our employees who are very passionate about giving back to the community is that they make giving a family affair. They use that time and that opportunity to engage their spouses, their partners, their children around what are the causes they care most about. It sometimes can be a question of values, and finding organizations that align to your value set. I think seeing the impact and the effect of your donation and action is so inspiring. And so I would encourage anybody who can give to really make the effort to engage directly with the organization. So that they can then see just what these incredible community partners are able to do. Oftentimes on very small limited budgets; that'll fulfill and inspire anybody who decides to give.

Tarah Schwartz  37:46
That is such a nice answer. I ask this question on a regular basis and I think that's been one of my favorite answers. So thank you for that, Maria. We're speaking with Maria Saros of Scotiabank and we're talking about a donation that will help eliminate hepatitis C from Montreal. I'm curious to know what your colleagues and staff at Scotiabank feel about this gift in terms of how it's helping to eliminate hepatitis C from Montreal. What have you heard from the people on the floor?

Maria Saros  38:12
We love the ambition of the promise of eliminating Hep C in Montreal. We also are really excited about the approach that Dr. Klein and her team are taking. Again, it's culturally sensitive. It's bringing care to those communities, taking a mobile approach, really removing a lot of the barriers that many marginalized people face in terms of prescriptions or treatments on the spot. So there's so much that is so exciting. And so when we think about our primary social impact focus through Scotia Rise, this definitely fulfills a lot of our expectations and our hope for a program such as this.

Tarah Schwartz  38:55
Absolutely. That's great. It's been really a pleasure talking to you, Maria. I find it was a lovely conversation. So thank you for taking the time to come on the show.

Maria Saros  39:03
Thank you, Tarah.

Tarah Schwartz  39:04
I'm Tarah Schwartz. Thank you for tuning in. What would you like to hear about on the show Write to us at healthmatters at MUHCFoundation.com. You can also follow us on social media or sign up for our newsletter, you can see some of that impact that Maria Saros was talking about- the impact of any donation. I hope you'll join me again next Sunday. Thank you so much for listening to Health Matters and stay healthy.