The Culture of Academic Medicine Initiative (CAMi) aims to create a culture of health and well-being through equity, compassion, and respect. According to an environmental scan by the AFMC, the culture of academic medicine is perceived as toxic with concerns about racism and the lack of psychologically safe environments. Burnout rates among Canadian physicians and medical trainees are also alarmingly high, estimated to be as high as 75% in some studies.
CAMi was created to address the urgent and ongoing health and wellbeing needs of learners, faculty and administrators in academic medicine. At the institutional level, this involves the implementation of the Okanagan Charter: An International Charter for Health Promoting Universities and Colleges within faculties of medicine. The initiative also seeks to highlight stories of learners, educators, researchers, and administrative staff who are making a positive impact on those around them so that we can, together, foster connection and contribute to the change that we all want to see in our academic medicine community.
Learn more about CAMi by visiting our website: https://cami-icmu.ca/
This initiative is made possible thanks to a grant from the Physician Wellness+Initiative, an initiative by Scotiabank, the Canadian Medical Association (CMA), and MD Financial Management (MD), and the support of the Canadian Federation of Medical Students (CFMS).
Please share a positive story!
Through CAMi, the AFMC wants to share stories of positive impact experienced by patients, learners, faculty, and administrators in academic medicine, in hopes to inspire us to find new ways to create a kinder, more compassionate and more inclusive culture. These stories help us gain perspective and, as a result, shape our interactions and the culture of academic medicine.
Are you inspired to share an experience that has impacted you in a meaningful way, thank someone you appreciate, or tell the story of a small gesture that made a difference? We would love to hear from you!
To share you story with the academic medicine community: https://cami-icmu.ca/my-story/
We would be honored to post your story on the CAMi website and share it across AFMC social media channels.
Read the stories of individuals who came forward to share: https://cami-icmu.ca/stories/
Okanagan Charter Collaborative
The Okanagan Charter Collaborative (OCC) was established to advance CAMi’s institutional strategy with representatives from all seventeen faculties of medicine as well as a patient representative, a LGBTQ2S+ representative, a graduate student representative and members of Canadian Federation of Medical Students (CFMS), Black Physicians of Canada, the Indigenous Physician Association of Canada (IPAC) and the Canadian Association of Physicians with Disabilities (CAPD). The OCC develops resources and shares best practices to enable the implementation of the Okanagan Charter: An International Charter for Health Promoting Universities and Colleges within Canadian Faculties of Medicine.
An in-person meeting of the OCC was held during the International Congress on Academic Medicine (ICAM) on April 13. The meeting was an opportunity for OCC representatives to discuss equity, diversity, inclusivity, anti-racism and anti-colonialism in the implementation of the Okanagan Charter and work together to develop resources for an implementation toolkit.
