An initiative supported by a $2M donation from Novo Nordisk

MONTREAL, April 5, 2022 /CNW Telbec/ – The Réseau d’action en santé cardiovasculaire (RASC, or Cardiovascular Health Action Network), a Quebec-based non-profit organization founded by Dr. Julie St-Pierre, Director of Maison de Santé Prévention – Approche 180, is pleased to announce the creation of a new interdisciplinary training program for healthcare professionals and students involved in obesity prevention and care of obesity and related complications. The program will be available in English and French and adapted for Indigenous communities in Quebec.

This initiative is made possible in part by a philanthropic donation of $2M from Novo Nordisk, for the creation of an educational chair that will support patient-centred prevention and management of obesity and related complications.

Novo Nordisk’s funding to the RASC will support Maison de Santé Prévention – Approche 180 in developing a new training program, which seeks to teach healthcare professionals and students all of the aspects that must be addressed, without bias, when supporting a person living with obesity. As a result, they will be better equipped to apply Approche 180, a multidisciplinary, educational, intensive and holistic methodology, focused on a young person’s family environment. It covers all medical aspects, but also leads to the modification of the psychosocial environment of the young person, starting with the promotion of healthy lifestyle habits and prevention, to specialized services, when necessary.

“It is with immense pleasure that the RASC is accepting Novo Nordisk’s donation. Based on Approche 180, the new interdisciplinary training program totalling roughly 12 hours will move the needle on changing the perception of caregivers and workers towards people living with obesity. This will therefore offer their patients – both young and old – an approach centred on the patient and their environment. It will also help to ensure that those living with obesity are no longer afraid to access the prevention and treatment they need,” said Dr. Julie St-Pierre, founder of the RASC and Director of the Maison de Santé Prévention – Approche 180.

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Supporting Local Initiatives with National Scope

The $2M donation builds on Novo Nordisk’s commitment to the Quebec community. In November 2021, Novo Nordisk announced a $5M donation to the Centre hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal (CHUM) to support the creation of a Centre of Expertise in Diabetes (CED).

“This interdisciplinary training program in obesity prevention and management is important. I applaud this partnership model, which provides the necessary means and support to health teams to better advise and care for patients. We will follow its development and results in preventing the health problem of obesity in our society with great interest,” said Christian Dubé, Minister of Health and Social Services.

“With the RASC, we found a partner that will directly enhance and improve health care delivery in Quebec. We are extremely proud to support the RASC in the development of a new training program for professionals involved in obesity prevention and care. Together, the RASC and Novo Nordisk can address the care gaps and challenges for people living with obesity in the province of Quebec and beyond,” said Novo Nordisk Canada’s CEO, Béatrice Clerc.

Fighting the Global Obesity Epidemic

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the World Health Organization (WHO) recognizing obesity as a disease. An escalating global epidemic of overweight and obesity is an increasing concern around the world. If immediate action is not taken, millions will suffer from an array of considerable complications for our society and individual’s quality of life.

About Réseau d’action en santé cardiovasculaire (RASC)

Founded in 2014, the RASC is a non-profit organization whose mission is to fight the high prevalence of obesity and its many complications among families who are affected by it by developing concrete educational solutions, notably by deploying Approche 180 in Quebec. Approach 180 is an innovative, intensive and participatory interdisciplinary outreach approach to obesity prevention and treatment. The Maison de Santé Prévention – Approche 180 offers services with the help of both a social program supported by the Ministry of Health and Social Services of Quebec Ministère de la Santé et des Services Sociaux and a joint program of private donations.

About Obesity

Obesity is a complex chronic disease that is the leading cause of type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, arthritis, cancer, and other health problems. Approximately 1 in 4 Canadian adults and 1 in 10 children are currently living with obesity, with roughly 1 in 10 premature deaths among Canadian adults aged 20 to 64 directly attributable to obesity. Obesity is a growing public health crisis in Canada and Quebec that requires immediate attention: the prevalence of obesity has doubled over the past 25 years, with the proportion of adult Quebecers reporting living with obesity being 25%. Obesity and related complications are a significant economic burden in Quebec, estimated at 3 billion dollars per year in direct public health system costs.

About Novo Nordisk

Novo Nordisk is a leading global healthcare company, founded in 1923 and headquartered in Denmark. Our purpose is to drive change to defeat diabetes and other serious chronic diseases such as obesity and rare blood and endocrine disorders. We do so by pioneering scientific breakthroughs, expanding access to our medicines and working to prevent and ultimately cure disease. Novo Nordisk employs about 45,000 people in 80 countries and markets its products in around 170 countries. For more information, visit novonordisk.com, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube.

SOURCE Réseau d’action en santé cardiovasculaire (RASC)

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