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null Happy first anniversary to the Quebec SmartCare Consortium!

Led by the Opal group at the RI-MUHC, the consortium has already made advances in data infrastructure and governance, as well as improving and expanding use of the Opal patient portal

SOURCE: RI-MUHC

Tuesday, December 13th, 2022 marks the one-year anniversary of the creation of the Quebec SmartCare Consortium (QSCC). Led by the Opal Health Informatics Group (OHIG) at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC), the QSCC brings together patients, clinicians, researchers, and diverse industry partners. These groups are working together to use the technology of the Opal patient portal to provide patients with access to their medical data and to contribute new data for research.

One year ago, the QSCC was awarded $10.18 million over three years from the Quebec Ministry of Enterprise and Innovation and a number of private partners to achieve its ambitious objectives. Over the last twelve months, the OHIG has been working hard with all QSCC partners to build the necessary infrastructure to make data flow between patients, their clinicians, and researchers at the RI-MUHC. The RI-MUHC-based research team has marked the anniversary by highlighting the consortium’s different partners on its LinkedIn and Facebook platforms.

"In sharing our partners’ experiences in working in the QSCC, we can showcase their tremendous enthusiasm for making data flow between patients, clinicians, and researchers,” says Tristan Williams, social media coordinator and patient partner for OHIG. “We are very excited to move into year two of this project.”

"During our first year, we worked with all our consortium partners to co-design Opal's updated infrastructure around their data needs, and to build a solid data governance framework," says RI-MUHC scientist John Kildea, PhD, principal investigator for the QSCC, and a scientist in the Cancer Research Program at the RI-MUHC. "We added new research and electronic consent menus in the Opal patient portal, and we have also expanded Opal’s use, to both the G astrointestinal C linic at the Montreal General Hospital and the Nephrology Division at the Montreal Children's Hospital. Stay tuned for exciting developments to come in 2023!"

Tristan Williams is the social media coordinator and patient partner of the Opal Health Informatics Group (OHIG). The project’s principal investigator John Kildea, PhD, is a scientist in the Cancer Research Program at the RI-MUHC, as well as co-founder and Research and Development director of the OHIG. Informatics Group.
Tristan Williams is the social media coordinator and patient partner of the Opal Health Informatics Group (OHIG). The project’s principal investigator John Kildea, PhD, is a scientist in the Cancer Research Program at the RI-MUHC, as well as co-founder and Research and Development director of the OHIG. Informatics Group.

QSCC partners include Hoffman-La Roche, Novartis Canada, the MUHC Foundation, the Cedars Cancer Foundation, VitalTracer, iMD Research, Mila, Injoy, My Intelligent Machines, the McGill Centre for Genomics and Policy, CHU Ste-Justine, LabTNS, and the MUHC Technology Assessment Unit.

The Opal Health Informatics Group acknowledges all hospital foundations and research funding agencies who have generously supported Opal’s development over the years, including the MUHC Foundation, the Montreal Children’s Hospital Foundation, the Montreal General Hospital Foundation, and the Cedars Cancer Foundation.

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December 13, 2022