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Renowned leader, scientist in HIV/AIDS step downs
<< BACK | Download Word File Vancouver, January 22, 2004 — Dr. Michael O'Shaughnessy, one of Canada's leading scientists in HIV/AIDS and a passionate advocate for people who are HIV-positive, retires at the end of this month as Vice-President at Providence Health Care. He also recently stepped down as director of the B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS. O'Shaughnessy's retirement brings an end to an accomplished career largely defined by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. While at the Laboratory Centre for Disease Control in Ottawa in 1984, O'Shaughnessy became the first Canadian scientist to isolate and work with the virus. He went on to become director general of the Federal Centre for AIDS before assuming the post of director of the B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS in 1992. "When I came here in 1991, once people with HIV got their AIDS diagnosis, they would likely be dead within two years. We had no real treatment to offer them," says O'Shaughnessy, 59. "Since then, we have put a system in place at the BC Centre for Excellence that permits individuals in this province to get treatment that is better than any other place in this country. Now, life expectancy can be up to 20 years." O'Shaughnessy says, "it's just the right time" to pass the torch to younger investigators who bring new energy and perspective to the fight against HIV/AIDS. Under O'Shaughnessy's leadership, the centre created a world-class drug treatment program to distribute antiretroviral and anti-opportunistic drugs at no cost to HIV-infected residents of BC; was the country's first facility to use triple-drug therapy in a publicly funded plan; published the first HIV Treatment Guidelines in North America to detail how and when to use HIV drugs; and became the first facility to develop and implement resistance testing for people nationwide. The centre has evolved into a unique public-health model combining patient care, cutting-edge research and education. O'Shaughnessy, who received the Order of BC in 1998, is highly regarded as an advocate for persons who are HIV-positive, many of whom face stigma and prejudice. He has also spoken out in support of controversial harm-reduction measures for Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, including needle exchange programs, supervised injection sites and a proposed heroin maintenance study. Maxine Davis, executive director of the Dr. Peter Centre, says his influence will be greatly missed. "The HIV/AIDS community has counted on him to speak out when controversial new ideas need support. He reminds everyone to consider what is socially just," says Davis. "I'm sure we only vaguely grasp the enormity of his influence on HIV/AIDS policy direction in this country." Founded in 1992 by St. Paul's Hospital and the Provincial Ministry of Health, the B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS seeks to improve the health of people with HIV through the development, ongoing monitoring, and dissemination of comprehensive investigative and treatment programs for HIV and related diseases. In January 2001, O'Shaughnessy was appointed Vice-President, Provincial Programs and Research/Academic Affairs at Providence Health Care, a portfolio that included specialty clinical programs in heart, kidney and HIV diseases as well as research and teaching conducted in affiliation with the University of British Columbia. St. Paul's Hospital is one of seven health care facilities operated by Providence Health Care, Canada's largest faith-based health care organization. Contact: Gavin Wilson Providence Health Care Communications Tel. 604-806-8583 << BACK | Download Word File |
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