A global focus on women’s health
Civil coalition is made up of 94 Canadian organizations
I have long been curious about the phenomenon of virtual offices.
These are instruments of organization and action that operate with maximum use of technology to link up employees and volunteers without their ever having to leave their homes.
Virtual offices are particularly suited to these times, since they leave little carbon footprint, eliminate commuting time, can be managed across time zones and, when it is made intentional, can foster collaboration that often physical presence in an office cubicle does not.
They are also of course empowering for a person in the global south, anyone with a computer and internet and basic skills.
Hence the virtual office suits a Peterborough- based civil society organization called CanWaCH to a T.
CanWaCH, is a 94-member coalition of Canadian organizations: health-profession organizations, research institutes, and non-governmental organizations, all with deep involvement in women’s and children’s health around the world.
Formed in 2010, it is headed by Dr Helen Scott, an epidemiologist, and Julia Anderson, an experienced international development practitioner whose former work included Jamaican Self-Help and Trent University in human rights activity.
In 2010, the G7 countries, which was then the G8 (Russia being expelled a couple of years later because it invaded Ukraine), met in Muskoka. The member nations pledged $5 billion over five years in support of maternal and child health around the world.
I remember at the time being both pleased and suspicious, suspicious because it absolutely did not include reproductive health services. Touchy subject then and still, though a little less touchy today. (Witness Ireland’s overwhelming vote to repeal its abortion ban, just two weeks ago).
A mechanism was needed to disburse this money effectively through new partnerships, while gathering data on the state of female health, and sharing insights and best practices among Canadians already involved.
CanWaCH , the Canadian Partnership for Women and Children’s Health, was incorporated in 2015. Its focus is first of all on collecting good data about the state of affairs for women and children.
In my recent work with the Gender Equality Advisory Council, I have noticed that all initiatives around the status of women lament a scarcity of good data on which to base decisions.
“Canada has a very good reputation as an international leader in global health,” says Anderson. “We intend to build on it. We work with researchers developing innovative programs such as the one by Dr Stanley Zlotkin, of Sick Kids Global Health. He originated 'sprinkles,' a child nutrient. We also support work in Haiti.”
Member groups of CanWaCH include Horizons of Friendship in Cobourg, UNICEF, the Red Cross, and other major Canadian hospitals with medical schools.
Fees to belong are high, from $500 to $1,000 , but for small groups they are waived.
The office hours of CanWaCH are 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. across Canada, and each employee (there are 13) works an eight-hour day. The software that enables this work to be done is called GLIP.
When a lay person thinks of health around the world, one thinks of malnutrition, vaccinations, and the risks of Ebola and dengue fever through travel. CanWaCH also encourages us to think of women’s fertility control and of newborn babies’ chances of survival in what are now called “fragile situations” (such as refugee camps.)
In a side note, Anderson told me about the impressive project of Hayley Wickenheiser, a Canadian Olympic heroine, who is starting medical school in Calgary at age 39. Called WICKFEST, it is a biennial project for 12-14-year-old girls who play hockey anywhere in the world. They are brought to Calgary to compete, but more than that, they are offered four days of leadership training, along with their parents, siblings and coaches.
It is an international program that will influence a generation and a community.
Readers can call up the CanWaCH website (www.CanWaCH.ca) and get the newsletter. And be proud that its work and its vibes are here among us.
‘Canada has a very good reputation as an international leader in global health.’
JULIA ANDERSON, CANWACH