Wong Forum in Medicine 2021

On May 25, 2021 at 5pm, we will host our annual Wong Forum lecture.

The keynote address for our event has been sponsored by the generous donation by Dr. Henry & Mrs. Sylvia Wong. We are very grateful for their support in this area. This year's Invited Speaker for the 2021 Wong Forum is Margaret Hay. She is a Professor with the Portfolio of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Education), and is the Director of the Institute for Clinical and Health Education. 

Synopsis for 2021 Wong Forum

In these strangest of days significant innovations to medical education have and continue to be achieved. Health Professions Education has traditionally been slow to innovate and despite calls for significant reform globally, change was occurring at a snail’s pace. The rapid implementation of innovations in 2020 confirmed that the infrastructure, knowledge, and skills needed to achieve unprecedented innovations were available and accessible before the pandemic. 

As we transition from shutdown to recovery, and begin to determine our next normal, how do we continue and sustain this culture of innovation? Achieving successful innovation is inextricably linked to leadership. The objective of this talk is to explore the question of ‘what does it take to be an effective leader in health professions education now and into the future?, and to identify competencies of leaders that will continue this culture of innovation without the impetus of a global pandemic.

More About the Wong Forum in Medicine

As former students of McMaster University, Henry and Sylvia Wong believe it is one of the best schools in the world, and have provided the financial support to establish an annual forum for the advancement of research and public education in medicine. Dr. Wong, who was part of the second MD class to graduate from McMaster in 1973, said he and his wife established the forum in repayment of both the education and enjoyment they had as McMaster students. Mrs. Wong graduated in 1969 with a BA in psychology, and worked in the Health Sciences library. The couple now lives in California.

"I really enjoyed the problem-based learning method, where we used our leaders as resources, and studied on our own and with the help of fellow students in small groups," said Dr. Wong. "We wanted to set up an annual lecture that would enhance our university."

In honour of Dr. & Mrs. Wong we have invited a guest speaker this year to help us look forward towards the future and think about how we might develop our faculty so they guide students to face an uncertain and ever-changing future.