THEnet wins inaugural AFMC - Charles Boelen International Social Accountability Award

The Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada (AFMC) have announced that the Training for Health Equity Network (THEnet) is the very first recipient of the AFMC - Charles Boelen International Social Accountability Award.

Introduced in April 2014, this new award was created to highlight outstanding accomplishments in implementing the principles of social accountability in the health field. With its international scope, it aims to celebrate individuals and organizations from around the world whose accomplishments exemplify the application of the principles of social accountability as defined in the Global Consensus for Social Accountability of Medical Schools and other internationally recognized references.

"I am very pleased with the Award's inaugural year and the associated collaboration with the AFMC," declared Dr. Charles Boelen, a world leader in social accountability. "I would also like to thank the members of the selection committee for their work, as I am sure it was not an easy task to choose a single winner from among all the exceptional nominations submitted."

The Training for Health Equity Network (THEnet) is a global movement of medical schools committed to increasing the impact of academic institutions on health and the development of equitable health care systems, notably by focussing the training of health professionals on improved health equity. It is a learning community where institutions and individuals work to develop a global view of health challenges and try to meet local and national health priorities. THEnet is made up of faculties in Africa, Asia, Europe, the Americas and Australia that are committed to pioneering innovative approaches to facilitate access to care in disadvantaged communities. It helped develop an evaluation framework to assess the social accountability of medical schools.

"It is an honour to present this award to Dr André-Jacques Neusy and Ms Bjorg Palsdottir, the Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director, respectively, of THEnet," noted Dr Geneviève Moineau, President & CEO of AFMC. "The solid international reputation they have built over the years, as well as their positive impact on the communities they serve and their desire to promote social justice and equity truly deserve to be recognized and celebrated by the academic community."

The Award will be presented during the President's Address and awards ceremony on April 26, 2015, as part of the Canadian Conference on Medical Education (CCME).

About AFMC:
The Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada (AFMC) represents the country's 17 faculties of medicine and is the national voice for academic medicine. Our organization was founded in 1943 and functions to support individually and collectively Canada's medical schools through promotion of medical education, research, and clinical care.