Dear BPAO Members,

2020 is off to a great start! A great sign is that below I’ve got a special message from the President of BPAO’s brand new Resident group! Dr. Teresa Semalulu is a resident at McMaster University, the newest member of the BPAO board, and the President of the BPAO Resident subcommittee.

Of course we also want to take a moment of gratitude to reflect on 2019, where we grew in membership, saw an increase in the number of Black medical students and created new partnerships! BPAO now has over 60 Black medical student members across the province! This is historic and largely due to our partnership with innovative leaders at the university of Toronto like Ike Okafor, leading outreach programs like the Summer Mentorship Program for high school students,  the Community Of Support and Black Student Application Program for undergraduate students, in collaboration with BPAO, and Dr Renée Beach.

The Annual Black Health Symposium will be held on February 29, 2020. Our keynote speaker will be Dr. Lisa Robinson, Associate Dean of Diversity and Inclusion, University of Toronto! Register today!

Another significant partnership that we are proud of is with the Black Business and Professional Association. Through this partnership we will provide scholarships to in training physicians/residents, but also fund outreach endeavours, many of which are focused on youth interested in a career in medicine. Now BPAO members can make donations to support our great work!

And we continue to appreciate ongoing support from our platinum sponsor, MDFM. Through their support and those of our other sponsors we have been able to host events for Black medical students and residents as part of our S.M.A.R.T. pilot program (Success through Mentorship, Achievement, Research and Teaching).

And finally, we recognize the need to ensure that our membership is connecting and engaged and getting a break from feeling like the only one, which can take a toll on well being. We continue to increase the number of social events, education events and also continue to advocate for equitable outcomes for Black medical trainees and Black patients. We have some exciting publications coming out soon! Stay tuned!

Now a message from the leader of the ‘change agents of the future’, the BPAO Resident subcommittee!

Regards,

Onye Nnorom, MD

BPAO President