U of C, U of A and U of L lead creation of pan-Alberta public health coalition

Three Alberta universities are at the forefront of a growing trend to reconceptualize the best ways to keep people healthy. The new pan-Alberta Public Health Coalition, a partnership of the Universities of Calgary, Alberta, and Lethbridge will offer a range of educational programs and a platform for research in population health initiatives.

And it will be a Canadian first. “Putting more resources into health promotion and disease prevention will alleviate some of the pressures we’re currently seeing in the system,” says Dr. David Low, special advisor on public health to U of C president Harvey Weingarten, who is leading the development of the school. “Although many Canadian universities teach some aspects of public health, and some have decided to offer degree programs, there is not a single accredited school of public health in the country,” Low says.

The U of C’s Markin Institute, established with an $18-million donation from Calgary businessman Allan Markin, is the centrepiece of the pan-Alberta Public Health Coalition at the U of C. Researchers and practitioners in the institute will be focused on the design, implementation, and evaluation of solutions at the population level to prevent such health problems as hypertension, diabetes, cancer, and heart disease, to name just a few.

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