2004-06-01 Ontario Medical Student Bursary Fund 2003 annual report

Feature

Ontario Medical Student Bursary Fund 2003 annual report

by Sandra Zidaric Campaign Director, Ontario Medical Student Bursary Fund

The Ontario Medical Student Bursary Fund(OMSBF), through the Ontario Medical Foundation (OMF), continues to raise awareness of the financial challenges faced by medical students, and to increase funding in the form of non-repayable bursaries available to students in financial need.

Background
In December 1997, the provincial government announced the deregulation of tuition fees for specific undergraduate professional programs, including medicine. As a result, medical students are struggling with unprecedented financial challenges.

In 2003, first-year medical students at the University of Toronto paid more than $16,000 in tuition - the highest annual fee among Ontario's five medical schools; in fact, the highest tuition fee in all of Canada.

The Ontario Medical Student Bursary Fund was established in 1999 by the OMA governing Council in response to a request by OMA student members concerned about their colleagues' ability to cope with increasing tuition fees.

OMSBF fundraising
Principal sponsors of the OMSBF campaign include the Canadian Medical Association/MD Management, through the Canadian Medical Foundation (CMF) and the OMA, who each pledged $500,000 over five years. Both CMA and OMA gifts will be completed by 2004. More than 4,000 physicians contacted by phone since February 2000 have pledged approximately $2.8 million to the OMSBF. Along with its primary method of fundraising via telephone, $283,000 was raised through an appeal included in the annual OMA Members' Renewal.

Special events, such as an annual golf tournament hosted by the Academy of Medicine Ottawa (AMO), have proven to be both popular and successful, raising more than $11,000 in 2003. This money is being used by the AMO to help establish the Academy of Medicine Ottawa Medical Student Bursary.

A major OMF/OMSBF golf tournament is being planned for the spring of 2005.

Corporate fundraising
Numerous corporate donors have also generously supported the objectives of the OMSBF, including Glaxo- SmithKline, AstraZeneca Canada Inc., Abelsoft Corporation, KPMG Charitable Foundation, MDS Inc., Merck Frosst Canada, Pfizer, and the Royal Bank of Canada.

The OMF is continuing to manage its corporate campaign by approaching a variety of industry sectors in order to provide them with an opportunity to show their commitment to maintaining accessible, quality medical education in Ontario.

School campaign
The OMF continued its partnership in 2003 with the University of Toronto Medical Alumni Association (U of T/ MAA) by contracting to conduct a telefundraising campaign on their behalf. Through this ongoing joint arrangement since 2001, the MAA has been able to award an additional 84 OMSBF bursaries to U of T students.

Bequests and named bursaries
As the OMSBF program matures, more groups and individuals are beginning to recognize it as a wonderful opportunity to honour fellow physicians' accomplishments, or to acknowledge their life's work.

A number of OMSBF named bursaries have also been established:

Pauline Yee Harrison Bursary
Established by Dr. George Edward Yee in memory of his late mother, to be awarded each year to a financially needy female Ontario medical student who is originally from Manitoba.
Burlington Medical Student Bursary
The Burlington Medical Society partnered with the Burlington Community Foundation to establish a bursary that is to be awarded each year to a financially needy Ontario medical student who is either a current resident of Burlington, or a graduate of a Burlington high school.
Dr. Arlene MacIntyre Medical Student Bursary
Established by the estate of the late Doris C. Boes in honour of Dr. Arlene MacIntyre for her compassionate care to patients. To be awarded to a financially needy Ontario medical student who plans to pursue family medicine.
Dr. Gilbert Hopson Medical Student Bursary
Established by the Algoma West Academy of Medicine in memory of the late Dr. Gilbert Hopson (see sidebar, p. 55). To be awarded to a financially needy Ontario medical student who is either a current resident of Sault Ste. Marie, or a graduate of a Sault Ste. Marie high school.
Academy of Medicine Ottawa Medical Student Bursary
Established by the Academy of Medicine Ottawa. To be awarded to a financially needy Ontario medical student who is a current resident of Ottawa, or a graduate of an Ottawa high school.

Disbursements
Since the inception of the OMSBF program, more than 4,000 donors have pledged approximately $4.6 million over a five-year period.

The OMF was pleased to award a total of 93 bursaries worth $2,000 each for the 2003-2004 school year. Including the 84 bursaries awarded by the U of T/MAA through its joint campaign with the OMF, approximately 275 OMSBF bursaries have been disbursed since 2000.

Ontario medical students can anticipate an additional 100 bursaries being made available from the OMF/OMSBF funds for the 2004- 2005 school year.

Expenses
The OMSBF program is proud of its efforts to make real and successful strides to maximize efficiencies in its management of expenses for fundraising and administration costs. Evidence of results is reflected in the fact that expenses dropped significantly in 2003 to just under $30,000, compared to $46,000 in 2002, and more than $100,000 in 2001.

To view copies of previous annual reports, visit the OMSBF Web site (www.oma.org/student/index.htm).

Recognition
To cap off an exceptional year, the OMSBF hosted its 4th Annual Donor Reception during the OMA Council meeting at the Toronto Hilton Hotel in November 2003.

Guests enjoyed the company of fellow donors and medical students, as OMSBF committee members took the opportunity to honour those physicians, individuals, and organizations that had donated $2,000 or more to the OMSBF in the previous year.

The 2003 reception was generously sponsored by Pfizer Canada Inc.

Following the reception, the 2003 Founders Dinner was held at Adega Restaurant in Toronto. Generously sponsored by RBC Royal Bank, the dinner honoured members of the "Founder's Circle" - donors who were instrumental during the launch of the campaign.

Dr George Yee announced during the dinner that he would increase his pledge to $100,000, making him the first physician to achieve the OMSBF "Ambassador" level of support. Approximately one-third of the original founders have increased their pledge to the next level of giving, while others have committed to continuing their support of the fund.

The OMSBF Implementation Committee and staff are grateful for the support from donors, and are committed to continuing efforts to assist any eligible student to pursue the study of medicine, regardless of his or her financial background.

For further information about the program, visit the OMSBF Web site, or contact Sandra Zidaric, OMSBF Campaign Director, at (416) 340-2913, 1-800-268-7215, ext. 2913, or via e-mail (sandy_zidaric@oma.org).