Board of Directors
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Mary Penner
In 2004, Mary Penner went from a relatively healthy 36 year old to diagnosed with ulcerative colitis and emergency ileostomy surgery in the space of one month. Mary was released from hospital with next to no information about her ostomy other than how to change her bag. An IT professional, Mary immediately hopped on the internet and found support through online forums and chat rooms. Through the internet Mary learned an ostomy was not the end of world and she could return to all of her normal activities. Within a few weeks, she had made friends with persons with an ostomy from all over the world.
Returning to her IT job after 6 months off work, Mary quickly settled back into a routine and began enjoying all of her usual pursuits including an Alaskan cruise and a trip to the 2006 World Figure Skating Championships. A new job and a promotion quickly followed. A second surgery in January 2007 left her off work for several months for a second time. However, a supportive employer has meant this has not hindered her professional career. In 2011, Mary accepted a position in IT asset management where she is responsible for tracking of IT assets for several large clients.
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In her spare time, Mary enjoys photography, traveling, attending cultural and theatre events and watching figure skating and is happiest when she can combine all 4 activities. Mary also does a lot of writing and has her own blog and photography website. In 2009, Mary’s travels took her to New Orleans to the United Ostomy Association of America Conference where she met a number of the friends she had made online including Di Bracken, the then President of Ostomy Toronto. Di encouraged her to become involved in Ostomy Toronto. Mary began attending meetings and in June 2010 she joined the board of directors of Ostomy Toronto. Mary quickly went to work introducing new ideas on how to use technology to reach out and assisting wherever she could.
In April 2011, Mary was appointed President of Ostomy Toronto. Mary is a Director of the UOAC and is active as part of their mailing list, and a project near and dear to her heart, the UOAC Discussion forum, providing a Canadian support forum for persons with an ostomy, as well as the Facebook presence of both Ostomy Toronto and the UOAC. One of Mary’s goals is to increase parent/youth involvement and the use of social media by both Ostomy Toronto and the UOAC. Mary hopes to continue to assist new and existing persons with an ostomy by promoting Ostomy Toronto within the ostomy community in the GTA, embracing new technologies to expand Ostomy Toronto’s reach and increasing public awareness.
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Bulletin Editor & Membership Coordinator
Lorne Aronson
Lorne Aronson had his surgery in 1988 for Ulcerative Colitis. The operation included the removal of his gall bladder as well as the creation of an Ileostomy.
Lorne became involved with Ostomy Toronto six months after his surgery. He served as a director and later served 10 years as President. During that time, Lorne became involved at the national level with UOA becoming a director in 1997. Lorne was involved with the successful implementation of Canada's decision to become an independent National Association. He became the Chair of District Support Services. He later went on to become Vice President of the United Ostomy Association of Canada and in 2002 assumed the responsibilities of President. Lorne continues to serve the Ostomy Toronto Chapter as a director and immediate Past President. Lorne is married and his wife Louise is a member of Ostomy Toronto as well, serving as a member of the Spouses and Significant Others Committee. Lorne continues to help in areas of fundraising and policy.
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Treasurer
Ranjit Hira
Ranjit was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis in 1987. The disease was kept under control until 1992 when an emergency total colectomy was performed. This was followed by two surgeries to fix a hernia and clear a blockage. Since then he has led a very fulfilling life style. He enjoys playing golf, bridge and walking. After living and working in Sudbury for 36 years Ranjit and his wife Malkeet moved to Brampton in 2003, to enjoy their retirement and be closer to their family.
Ranjit was involved with Ostomy Sudbury as a Secretary until 2003. He joined Ostomy Toronto in 2004 and became a Director in 2005. Ranjit is easing slowly into the Chapter's fund raising activities and hopes to be assist in other areas as he gets more comfortable with the workings of the Chapter.
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Carol Rodda
Carol Rodda was diagnosed with Crohn's disease in 1984. After years of in and out of the hospital, she was told in 1993 that she would have to have ostomy surgery. She was devastated; she remembers her gastroenterologist had assured her that he would try everything possible to avoid ostomy surgery. She was given the phone number for Ostomy Toronto and that night an ostomy visitor called her. She remembers they must have talked for an hour. After getting off the phone she felt a little more comfortable with the idea of going through with the surgery. A couple of days before her surgery she went to an ostomy visitor's home.
For Carol--that was the best thing that could have happened to prepare her for the surgery. As Carol mentions, she saw a living, breathing person that had an Ileostomy yet even when wearing tight pants Carol couldn't tell she had an ostomy pouch. Although she had a few remaining reservations, she was confident going into the surgery. A month later she attended her first ostomy meeting. Everyone was so welcoming. Needless to say Carol kept attending meetings and in the spring of 1994 she joined the Board of Directors for Ostomy Toronto. In the spring of 1999 Ostomy Toronto and UOAC opened the Ostomy Resource Centre at Mt. Sinai Hospital; Carol immediately volunteered as a visitor. She enjoyed talking with the patients who just had their ostomy surgery.
In the spring of 2000 Carol Rodda was appointed the Coordinator of the Ostomy Resource Centre position that she continues to hold. A lot of things of changed since OT's ORC opened. It is now located at 344 Bloor St. W.
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Muriel Kinnear
Muriel had colostomy surgery for cancer in 1980. Soon afterwards she joined Ostomy Toronto. A few years after joining, she adopted the position of Social Convenor, a position which she holds to this day.
She decided to undertake the Visitor Training Program and is quite an active visitor. She volunteers at the Resource Centre every Friday, mails out our monthly newsletter and helps out at the occasional Ostomy Toronto bingo session. She, uncategorically, makes the best shortbread in Toronto and thankfully brings some along to our monthly meetings!
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Robert Wychers
Robert Wychers first experienced Ulcerative Colitis at the age of twenty when he was a student at the University of Guelph in 1970. He suffered an attack every five years until 1990. While he was in remission, he enjoyed life and planned for the future without giving his disease any thought. However, between 1990 and 1994, his health deteriorated progressively as his UC expanded further in the colon.
After gathering enough courage to contact a surgeon, a colonoscopy confirmed that the disease had spread throughout the entire colon. They set a date for an Ileostomy and total proctocolectomy which took place in July of 1994. Robert has enjoyed every year since his surgery and regards it as a blessing! About a year after his surgery, he became a Director with Ostomy Toronto. He has been the Program Director for several years and thoroughly enjoys this position.
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Michelle Wan
Michelle is a mother of two beautiful children –Chloe and Benjamin. At just 1 day old, her daughter Chloe received colostomy surgery at SickKids hospital for a rare condition that was discovered at birth. Since that time, Michelle has been working to promote awareness for families who have children with ostomies in an effort to improve accommodation practices and procedures. She developed an infant ostomy accommodation program in conjunction with Woodgreen Childcare Services, and in 2010, the program was recognized by the Lieutenant Governor on Ontario, David Onley, at the CityKids Inclusion Awards. The success of this program has promoted greater awareness for children with ostomies in Toronto and has paved the way for future families to receive accommodation in typical daycare settings. Michelle also serves on the Family Centred Care Advisory Council at SickKids Hospital, which works to enhance the family-centred approach and strengthen the relationship between hospital staff and the families they care for.
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Di Bracken
I grew up in a small Welsh village but lived and worked in Hong Kong for 10 years, before coming to Canada. In 1980, I was a forty-year-old mother of two teaching English, computer studies and physical education in Oakville, Ontario when quite suddenly, due to colitis, I required ostomy surgery. I wondered how I would go on with my life. My doctor, and personal friend, suggested that I join an association to learn more about my condition as he had no other patient in his practice that lived with a stoma. Little did I know that joining that association would have such a profound impact on my life, and would allow me to help other ostomates on a worldwide basis.
I joined the Hamilton Ostomy Association, and in 1982, helped to form a UOAC chapter in Oakville to serve the Halton Region. Thus began a long, rewarding journey working with those who have had ostomy surgery. The years passed and my involvement in the ostomy world increased. I learned about an association called Friends of Ostomates Worldwide (FOW). Having lived and worked on three continents (teaching in the United Kingdom, Hong Kong and Canada), it was natural for me to be interested in the international scene and I became very active in FOW Canada organizing many shipments of ostomy supplies to developing countries. I continue to act as the international contact for the organization.
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In 1998 I accepted an invitation to become part of the International Ostomy Association; an interest which continues to this day. Elected president at the World Congress in Porto, Portugal in 2000 gave me an opportunity to travel all over the globe and become an ambassador for change in underdeveloped countries.
I remember attending a stoma care training course in Ho Chi Min City, Vietnam at one of the local hospitals. Since ostomy supplies are sparse in Viet Nam, I was asked to teach local people with ostomies how to make their own appliances from plastic bags and crocheted belts. What a revelation this was, as I have always had access to sophisticated ostomy appliances which allow me to lead a perfectly normal life. It is difficult to lead a normal life with an ostomy, if no appliances are available.
It was then that I realized that I could help emerging nations develop advocating procedures to encourage the local people to approach their governments for support. This is how we can slowly improve the lives of people with ostomy worldwide. We need proper ostomy supplies to lead productive lives. Part of our help is very practical, like approaching governments to lobby for support, setting up training clinics for doctors and nurses, and creating new ostomy associations where people can get together to offer each other support. I have spent many rewarding years working mainly in Asia and South America but recently my current focus is in Africa where the need for support is so very great.
I am not exactly a stay at home ostomate. I firmly believe that after ostomy surgery you need to get on with your life. There is no reason to sit a home. Once you have rehabilitated yourself, you can start helping others, and travel and see the world. All you need to do is plan where you are going.
When I visit people soon after surgery, I always tell the new ostomate, “you will come to accept the stoma, it is going to take a while, but it need not restrict you.” I also hope that people will think, when they learn about my activities, “Well if she can do it, so can I!” A quote from Mahatma Gandhi has played an important part in my life. “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” I have tried to embody this change and use it to improve the lives of those who have had ostomy surgery in countries where the challenges of living with a stoma are tremendous.
I want people new to ostomy surgery to realize that this is not an end, but rather a new beginning. Life is what you make it, so if I have one message it is, “BE POSITIVE.”
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Maria-Jose Bouey
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Dianne Garde
After being diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis and having surgery for an Ileostomy in December, 1959, Dianne Garde joined the local ostomy association and became involved with the visiting program. As she visited new ostomy patients in the hospital she soon realized that ostomy patients were not being given adequate care and advise. The nurses she met were not trained in managing an ostomy or assessing what ostomy appliances should be used. Through the United Ostomy Association (UOA), she heard about Norma Gill at the Cleveland Clinic. Dianne Garde spoke to a gastroenterologist at Toronto General Hospital and asked if he felt that there were enough ostomy patients to warrant this kind of position. Arrangements were made that she would take her Enterostomal Therapist (ET) training at the Cleveland Clinic in 1969. She returned to Toronto and began working as an ET at the Toronto General Hospital (TGH). She was the third ET in Canada (the first two being in Montreal).
She worked at TGH until 1992 when she lost her position due to a new policy where ET had to also be a nurse. From 1969 to 1992 she saw over 10,000 ostomy patients. She has had four articles published and edited a chapter in the book The Intelligent Patient, and has spoken and organized numerous educational sessions over the years. She still sees some ostomy patients in the community and attends both Ostomy Toronto's two monthly meetings as well as another local chapter's meeting.
Dianne Garde has received the following awards:
1990 CAET President's Award
1992 ConvaTec Award for her outstanding contribution to Enterostomal Therapy
1999 UOA of Canada Enterostomal Therapy Recognition Award
2003 The Dr. Greg Olscamp's Memorial Award for her contributions to Ostomy Toronto for the past 44 years.
2008 Friends of Ostomates Canada award
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Leslie Heath, R.N., E.T.
Leslie Heath is a Certified Enterostomal Therapy Nurse who graduated from the Cleveland Clinic ET/WOCN program in 2009. She started her career at The Wellesley Hospital in 1990 and then moved to work in the community for the last 12 year. She has been a Wound and Ostomy Resource Nurse for her nursing collegues at St. Elizabeth Health Care for many years, providing education to staff and consultation for complex clients. Leslie brings her passion and belief in helping people live life to the fullest as well as her extensive background in Ostomies to help guide and support our group.
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R. Gary Sibbald, MD, FRCPC(Med)(Derm), ABIM,DABD
Associate Professor and Director of Continuing Education
Department of Medicine, University of Toronto
Phone: (416) 978-4499; Fax: (416) 978-4568
Director, Dermatology Daycare and Wound Healing Clinic
Sunnybrook and Women's College Health Sciences Centre
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Marcus J. Burnstein, MD, MSc, FRCSC
Dr. Burnstein trained in general surgery at the University of Toronto and in colorectal surgery at the University of Toronto and at the Lahey Clinic Medical Centre in Boston.
Dr. Burnstein is the Program Director for the University of Toronto Residency Training Program in Colorectal Surgery, Chairman of the Royal College Specialty Committee for Colorectal Surgery, and Vice President of the Canadian Society of Colorectal Surgeons. Dr. Burnstein is an associate examiner for the American Board of Colon and Rectal Surgery, and is an associate editor of Diseases of the Colon and Rectum. He is an Associate Professor of Surgery at the University of Toronto and practices at St. Michael's Hospital.
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