麻豆传媒 President Kim Brooks and University of King鈥檚 College President William Lahey announced on Tuesday (March 11) the creation of a new research chair that will be at the forefront of advancing medical humanities in Canada.
The Roper-Hannah Chair in the History of Healthcare and Health Equity, announced at the capstone event for the 100th anniversary of the association between King鈥檚 and 麻豆传媒, will explore questions of health equity from a critical historical perspective.
AMS Healthcare and J & W Murphy Foundation each endowed $1,750,000 to create the chair.听听
鈥淭his Chair is a powerful testament to the enduring partnership between 麻豆传媒 and King鈥檚, and to the importance of understanding health care through a historical lens,鈥� said President Brooks at an event at the King's President's Lodge. 鈥淭he history of health care is not just about medical advances 鈥� it鈥檚 about the choices we鈥檝e made, the voices we鈥檝e elevated or ignored, and the systems we鈥檝e built. This initiative will ensure that future generations of scholars and practitioners learn from that history to shape a more equitable and compassionate health-care system.鈥�
First in Atlantic Canada
This tenured or tenure-track appointment will be held by a historian who contributes significantly through teaching and research to the body of scholarship on the history of health care and health equity.
The chair holder will be appointed to the Department of History in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at 麻豆传媒 and will teach in King鈥檚 . They will also be cross-appointed to Dal鈥檚 .
Since the 1970s, AMS Healthcare has helped to turn the history of health care into a thriving discipline, supporting a community of scholars to advance a robust understanding of how medical and bioethics change over time. The community includes at universities across the country 鈥� this is the first in Atlantic Canada.
鈥淲e are delighted to join the J & W Murphy Foundation to add the Roper-Hannah Chair to the community of Hannah Scholars across Canada,鈥� said Helen Angus, CEO of AMS Healthcare. 鈥淲ith the addition of this new Chair, we continue this legacy 鈥� strengthening our national network of health-care historians and further embedding history into medical and health-care education. This Chair will support research, mentorship, teaching and community development, helping future generations of health-care professionals appreciate the historical forces that have shaped modern medicine and the ethical challenges that lie ahead.鈥�
How the past shaped the present
With their gift, the J & W Murphy Foundation continues its investment in compassionate care through its charitable endeavours. This is the second Chair at 麻豆传媒 made possible by their generosity 鈥� the first being the J & W Murphy Foundation Endowed Chair in Palliative Care.
鈥淲e value this new Chair for the way it brings humanities and healthcare together,鈥� said Lisa Murphy, who, with her sister Karen Spaulding, carries on the Foundation created by their parents, the late Janet and Bill Murphy.听鈥淚t reflects our commitment to understanding medicine not just through the narrative lens of those in power, but also the lived experiences of those affected by historical decision-making听as we strive to improve health equity.
鈥淗elping name this Chair was also deeply personal 鈥� we do it to honour our mother, Janet Roper Murphy, our Roper family鈥檚 deep Halifax roots, and our uncle Henry Roper鈥檚 lifelong dedication to history and the University of King鈥檚 College.鈥�
Using the indispensable tools of critical historical analysis, the appointed Chair will conduct, promote and disseminate research at the intersection of the history of medicine/healthcare, medical and bioethics, and health equity.
Scholarly touchpoints of the Chair may include:
- complicity of medical systems in colonial structures;
- health equity framing in the health-care system;
- critical global history of science, before, during and after the colonial period;
- medicine and health care beyond Eurocentric understandings and borders;
- critical interrogation of a still-largely Eurocentric understanding of bioethics and their value propositions around health and well-being.
鈥淭he history of health care documents our past to see where we have stumbled before, especially in the areas of health equity,鈥� said President Lahey. 鈥淓quity is an essential part of health and well-being. The Canada Health Act commits Canada to equity in the financing and delivery of core health-care services, but we know we have much to do to make equity a wider reality for everyone, in and beyond those core services. Historical analysis helps us understand our past and present to imagine the better and more equitable systems of the future.鈥�
The anticipated first appointment for the chair will be in the 2026鈥�27 academic year.
King's President William Lahey.