York recently signed memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with two healthcare facilities north of Toronto — Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre and Waypoint Centre for Mental Health.
The Royal Victoria Hospital, known locally as RVH, is a regional hospital in Barrie, Ontario, which also serves surrounding rural areas.
Waypoint, located in Penetanguishene, Ontario, is a specialty mental health hospital with an adjoining research institute. It hosts 315 beds and provides acute and long-term services to the region.
The MOUs allow students and faculty to engage in experiential learning and academic research at the two facilities.
Lenton signed the RVH agreement alongside RVH CEO Gail Hunt and Dr. Jesse McLean, the hospital’s research director. The MOU with Waypoint was agreed upon by Lenton and Waypoint President and CEO, Dr. Nadiya Sunderji.
“This Memorandum of Understanding marks a celebration of a shared vision and commitment to advance research and academic opportunities,” says Sunderji. The Waypoint Research Institute, which is associated with the mental health hospital, “has been at the forefront of driving positive change with groundbreaking initiatives.” Sunderji credits this largely to “strong partnerships,” referencing the one with York.
In terms of what this partnership means for the York community specifically, Waypoint says they will be “extending the experiential learning opportunities we currently provide across the hospital to York students.” These opportunities would occur across a wide range of areas, including research collaborations on artificial intelligence, data analytics, mental health, medical education, and care across the developmental spectrum.
Lenton believes the partnership will benefit both York and Waypoint. “I am confident that by working together, and leveraging our combined expertise, we will improve health outcomes and make a meaningful impact in this space,” she says.
Sunderji concurs, saying this collaboration “will position both of our organizations to successfully recruit the best students, staff and researchers.”
Meanwhile, in Barrie, RVH signed a memorandum that renewed its “longstanding clinical-academic” partnership with York. In a news release, Hunt stated, “This partnership opens the door for us to ‘imagine the possibilities’ as York University’s faculty and team RVH grow in their own knowledge and skills through a variety of opportunities.”
RVH did not respond to Excalibur’s request for a comment prior to the publication of this article.
York says this partnership will support a range of research interests as well, including aging, epidemiology, informatics, mental health, and healthcare policy.
When asked about the process leading up to the agreements, Sunderji emphasizes it has been in the works for a long time. “Over the past year our senior teams have been exploring with growing excitement as we recognize the alignment of values and goals,” she says. “We know early exposure is critical to recruiting the primary care providers and primary specialties (psychiatry, geriatrics, pediatrics, etc.) that our region so needs.”
