News Release
The Council is pleased to announce the appointment of Professor Annette O’Connor as Chair of the Expert Panel on Effectiveness of Health Risk Communication. Health Canada has asked the Council of Canadian Academies to assess the evidence as it pertains to the evaluation and measurement of health risk communication.
As Chair of the Council’s Expert Panel, Professor O’Connor will work with a multidisciplinary group of experts, to be appointed by the Council’s Board of Governors, to address the following question: How can the effectiveness of health risk communications be measured and evaluated?
Annette O’Connor is an internationally recognized leader and scholar in the field of health research. Her novel measures, frameworks, and interventions have contributed to the emergence of a new field known as “shared decision-making.” Professor O’Connor’s ground-breaking studies have created new knowledge, tools, and standards for informing patients about difficult treatment decisions and have underpinned new policies and legislation internationally to promote shared decision-making between patients and health professionals. She is Professor Emerita of the School of Nursing at the University of Ottawa, a Fellow of the Royal Society and the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences, and has received international recognition and numerous awards for her work. Dr. O’Connor co-leads a 14-country international consensus process on standards for developing and evaluating patient decision aids (IPDAS). Read Professor O’Connor’s full bio.
The Council, under the guidance of its Scientific Advisory Committee, is finalizing recruitment of an expert panel to complete its assessment on health risk communication measurement. The panel will consist of experts from a wide range of disciplines and backgrounds to ensure the most authoritative, credible, and independent response to the question.
For continued updates on the status of the assessment, visit the Effectiveness of Health Risk Communication Assessment page.