These webinars are intended for members of the PCMCH Paediatric Diabetes Network (PDN) and the Ontario Paediatric Bariatric Network (OPBN), healthcare providers and educators, and others interested in learning more about current practices and novel approaches in the care of children and youth living with diabetes and obesity management. Watch past webinar presentations below.
In 2024, PCMCH also started hosting PDN Complex Case Rounds for members of the PDN only. These Rounds showcase the work of paediatric diabetes education programs (PDEPs) across the province. They are intended to serve as practical learning opportunities, facilitate knowledge sharing, capacity building, and networking across the PDN.
Past Presentations
Learning Objectives
- Discuss findings on type 1 diabetes stigma across ages in Canada
- Inform on factors associated to insulin omission to lose weight
- Learn about the BETTER project: Registry, training platform, patient engagement
About the Speakers
Amélie Roy-Fleming, RD, CDE, MSc
Support Platform Coordinator, The BETTER project
Asmaa Housni, RD, PhD Candidate
McGill University
Anne-Sophie Brazeau, RD, PhD
Associate Professor and Associate Director, School of Human Nutrition, McGill University
Co-Founder and Co-Director, The BETTER project
Learning Objectives
- To understand challenges and stressors associated with starting post-secondary school
- To understand how to support youth as they prepare for post-secondary school
- To learn about the Diabetes Hope Foundation’s free programs and resources designed to help students living with type 1 diabetes navigate post-secondary school
About the Speakers
Heather Miller is Executive Director of the Diabetes Hope Foundation (DHF).
Heather Cadigan is a fourth-year university student living with type 1 diabetes, DHF peer mentor, and co-author of the DHF student transition planner.
Debby Pavlove and Andrew Cunsolo are parents to a second-year university student living with type 1 diabetes.
Equitable Access to Paediatric Diabetes Care
Presented: Nov. 14, 2023
November 14th marks World Diabetes Day. In recognition of the 2023 theme – “access
to diabetes care” – three leaders in paediatric diabetes presented on key issues
and solutions regarding equitable access to paediatric diabetes care in Ontario and
Manitoba, with an emphasis on Indigenous communities and the COVID-19 pandemic.
About the Speakers
Dr. Sarah Dineen is a General Paediatrician practicing in Thunder Bay and the Physician Lead for the Thunder Bay Paediatric Diabetes Education Program (PDEP). She provides care to people in Northwestern Ontario, including to Indigenous fly-in reserve communities. She also has a special interest in providing care to gender diverse children and youth.
Dr. Rayzel Shulman is a Pediatric Endocrinologist in the Division of Endocrinology, Department of Pediatrics at The Hospital for Sick Children, an Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the 
University of Toronto, a Scientist in the Child Health and Evaluative Sciences Program at the SickKids Research Institute, and an Adjunct Scientist at ICES. Her research program is focused on developing and evaluating health services interventions to improve health outcomes and the quality of care for youth living with diabetes. She is particularly interested in developing and evaluating interventions that leverage existing population-level administrative datasets to inform health system change. Areas of focus include transition to adult care, prevention of diabetic ketoacidosis at diagnosis, and reducing socioeconomic disparities in diabetes management and outcomes.
Dr. Brandy Wicklow is a Pediatric Endocrinologist, Head of the Section of Pediatric Endocrinology and Metabolism in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Associate Professor at the University of Manitoba, and 
Clinician Researcher at the Children’s Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba. Her clinical career focuses on healthcare provision to underserviced children and youth, including outreach type 2 diabetes subspeciality care to Indigenous children living on reserve in Northern communities. Her clinical research focuses on the intergenerational and early life determinants of type 2 diabetes and renal disease in children and adolescents, with a particular interest in the impacts of the psychological, economic, and social and structural impacts on the wholistic health of all children living with diabetes.
The Role of Wearable Devices in Supporting Family-based Pediatric Obesity Interventions at a Federally Qualified Health Center
Presented: March 22, 2023
About the Speaker
Juan Espinoza graduated from the USC Keck School of Medicine and completed his pediatric residency at Children’s Hospital Los 
Angeles in 2013 and, in 2014, he became an Assistant Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and the USC Keck School of Medicine.
While at CHLA, Dr. Espinoza’s clinical time focused on complex care coordination and obesity management, while his research focuses on informatics, medical devices, health equity and global health. His overarching career goal as a researcher, physician and advocate is to identify, refine and innovate approaches to using data and technology to improve health outcomes and narrow the health gap faced by marginalized communities in the US and abroad. In January 2023, Dr. Espinoza joined Lurie Children’s Hospital as the inaugural Chief Research Informatics Officer and Associate Director of the Center for Biomedical Informatics and Data Science at Northwestern University. In this new role, he provides expertise and oversight of research informatics and analytics as applied to basic, translational, clinical, and population health sciences.
Webinar Objectives
- Describe the digital divide as a concept and its implication in healthcare
- Understand the role of physical activity trackers in obesity intervention programs
- Identify strategies to incorporate technology enabled health interventions in low-resource settings
Multidisciplinary Paediatric Weight Management: Insights Learned from the Team to Address Bariatric Care in Canadian Children
Presented: Feb. 15, 2023
About the Speakers
Geoff Ball is a Professor of Pediatrics and the Alberta Health Services Chair in Obesity Research at the University of Alberta in Edmonton. His research applies diverse approaches (clinical trials, qualitative, epidemiology, and knowledge syntheses) to generate, evaluate, and apply new knowledg
e to optimize obesity management and prevention in children and families. In partnership with Obesity Canada, he's working with a national committee of parents, clinicians, and researchers to update Canada's clinical practice guideline for managing pediatric obesity.
Nicole Gehring (she/her) is a Senior Program Lead with the University of Alberta School of Public Health in Edmonton and holds a Master of Science in Health Policy Research. Her research includes health systems, services, and policies with a particular focus on health and social equity. She works closely with ser
vice providers, health authorities, and governments to identify, evaluate, and scale systems for improving health outcomes and advancing health equity.
Webinar Objectives
- Learn about the Team to Address Bariatric Care in Canadian Children (Team ABC3) - a CIHR Team Grant
- Understand predictors of enrollment and referral to multidisciplinary paediatric weight management
- Explore how health care professionals can support families to engage in multidisciplinary paediatric weight management
Traditional Knowledge-based Lifestyle Interventions in the Prevention of Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes in Indigenous Children in Canada
Presented January 25, 2023
About the Speaker
Dr. M. Constantine Samaan is an Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics, McMaster University and a Staff Physician, Division of 
Pediatric Endocrinology, McMaster Children's Hospital. He is also an Associate Member, Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence, and Impact, Associate Faculty, Global Health Program, and the Director of Research & Scholarship at the Michael G. de Groote School of Medicine, McMaster University. Dr. Samaan completed his training in Pediatric Endocrinology at the Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto.
Dr. Samaan leads the type 2 diabetes program and runs obesity, general endocrine, and diabetes clinics at McMaster Children’s Hospital. His program of research focuses on defining the determinants of obesity and type 2 diabetes in pediatric populations, and the development of interventions to treat and prevent these conditions. In addition, knowledge synthesis and translation are other components of the program. The program has received funding from CIHR and other funding agencies.
Webinar Objectives
1. Review the association of obesity with type 2 diabetes (T2D) in children.
2. Review existing interventions to prevent obesity and T2D in Indigenous children in Canada.
3. Discuss leadership by and partnership with Indigenous communities to prevent obesity and T2D in Indigenous children in Canada.
Evaluation of a Province-Wide Type 1 Diabetes Care Plan for Children in the School Setting
Presented December 7, 2022
About the Speaker
Dr. Brenden Hursh, MD, MHSc, FRCPC is a Pediatric Endocrinologist at BC Children’s Hospital in Vancouver, and works in the multidisciplinary pediatric diabetes clinic. He also provides care for families across BC by telehealth. Dr. Hursh has a specific interest in the development and assessment of diabetes care for children in the school setting. He is a consultant for BC’s provincial diabetes at school program (2014-present), where they currently provide daily diabetes care at school to nearly 400 children from across BC each year. In other related work, he has been the medical director of BC’s provincial diabetes summer camp for the past nine years, and his academic interests include the evaluation of telehealth care for children with diabetes.
Webinar Objectives
- Historical framework: To learn about the development of diabetes care in school in BC.
- How is care provided in school: To understand what diabetes care looks like in the school setting in BC.
- Evaluation of care in school: To learn from family and child evaluations of diabetes care in the school setting.
- Translation: To gain some key learnings from BC that could be helpful for other provinces.
- Bigger picture thinking: To think about what all of this tells us about diabetes care more generally.