Arthritis chair’s first appointee shares vision
Charles Goldsmith, 778.782.9060; charles_goldsmith@sfu.ca
Carol Thorbes, PAMR, 778.782.3035; cthorbes@sfu.ca
Charles Goldsmith, a clinical epidemiologist and biostatistician who is passionate about helping people with musculoskeletal diseases such as arthritis, is the first appointment to a new arthritis chair at Simon Fraser University.
The SFU Faculty of Health Sciences (FHS) professor and professor emeritus of biostatistics at McMaster University has published more than 270 papers in the field of clinical epidemiology. Goldsmith is internationally recognized for leading the development of evidence-based decision-making in medical practice.
Goldsmith will share his vision of what he plans to accomplish as the inaugural five-year appointee to the Maureen and Milan Ilich/Merck Chair in Statistics for Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Diseases, at a welcoming reception. The FHS and the Arthritis Research Centre (ARC) of Canada will host the reception, open to invited guests and media, on Monday, Oct. 18 at the SFU Diamond Alumni Centre at the Burnaby campus. The reception begins at 5 p.m.
“Researchers need to use statistics more effectively to make the science behind what causes arthritis and other musculoskeletal diseases more credible and understandable to clinical practitioners,” says Goldsmith. “This will help front line clinicians translate research into therapies and medicine that can help mitigate the $16 billion annual cost of Canada’s second most costly group of diseases.”
The latest available statistics (2000) indicate arthritis and other musculoskeletal diseases debilitate nearly four million Canadians over age 15—approximately one in six people. By 2026, Health Canada estimates that more than six million Canadians will have arthritis.
FHS and the Arthritis Research Centre (ARC) of Canada are the reception to introduce Goldsmith to SFU and outside communities at 5 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 18 at SFU’s Diamond Alumni Centre. The centre is at the Burnaby campus.
The Milan and Maureen Ilich Foundation, Merk-Frosst Canada Ltd., ARC and FHS raised the $4 million needed to fund the endowed chair to which Goldsmith is the first appointee. The chair serves as the foundation for the world’s only interdisciplinary research partnership devoted to arthritis and musculoskeletal diseases.
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Backgrounder: Arthritis chair’s first appointee shares vision
Charles Goldsmith received his BSc and MSc degrees in statistics from the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg. After teaching at Carleton University in Ottawa for two years, he received his PhD in experimental design with a minor in mathematical statistics at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Goldsmith, now a Vancouver resident, returned to Canada when McMaster started its medical school and remained there until his recent appointment at SFU. Until August 31, 2010, he was an emeritus professor of biostatistics in the Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics at McMaster University.
As of September 1, 2010, Goldsmith became the Milan and Maureen Ilich/Merck Frosst Chair in Statistics and Information Sciences for Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Diseases. The SFU Faculty of Health Sciences professor has been involved in a variety of studies related to musculoskeletal and surgical conditions, most recently concerning neck pain.
Goldsmith sits on several editorial boards of health-related journals and is interested in quality improvement, experimental design, study design and analysis. He has a keen interest in mentoring newer faculty members in their careers.
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