Outreach and Events
We provide a varied learning environment for individuals with an interest in health research across the lifespan. Whether you are an instructor looking for content in class or you missed a public lecture and want to watch the video, we will help you and provide the information you need.
To stay informed on our upcoming events, subscribe to our newsletter!
No Fixed Address: The White Cart Memorial
No Fixed Address: The White Cart Memorial
Film screening followed by a panel discussion on grief and homelessness.
Date: Thursday, February 19, 2026
Time: 1:00PM to 4:00PM
Doors open at 12:30PM
Cinecenta Theatre, in the Student Union Building at UVic.
Free & open to all; Registration required.
Watch the trailer here: https://vimeo.com/1115956034
About the event:
Join the UVic Institute on Aging & Lifelong Health, BC Centre for Palliative Care, Victoria Hospice, Island Health, and Kelowna Homelessness Research Centre for the first showing of the film in Victoria BC, followed by a panel discussion on grief and homelessness.
No Fixed Address: The White Cart Memorial is a powerful and intimate documentary that sheds light on a deeply overlooked aspect of the homelessness crisis: people's grief following the death of someone they care about. Through the voices and stories of individuals living with unstable housing in Kelowna, the film explores what it means to grieve without a house and how loss echoes through a community already struggling to survive.
Centered around the creation and meaning of the White Cart Memorial—a grassroots, mobile tribute to unhoused lives lost—the film weaves together research, personal lived experience testimonies, community organization reflections and future action plans for the city of Kelowna. This film captures the emotional and logistical challenges of grieving in public spaces.
Dedicated to the memories of all unhoused lives lost—and those who carry their grief forward—No Fixed Address: The White Cart Memorial urges us to rethink how we hold space for mourning in public, and how we can come together to build more compassionate, inclusive systems of care. Because only through community can we create safer places to grieve, to heal, and to remember.
Panel Discussion
The post-screening panel will include:
Carley McConnachie, PEERS, Outreach Worker;
Heidi Wigmore, Victoria Hospice, Grief Counsellor;
Joshua Black, co-producer and director of No Fixed Address;
Kim Toombs, AVI Health and Community Services, Senior Director;
Marion Selfrige, Cool Aid Community Health Centre, Research Manager; and
Stephanie Laing, co-producer and director of No Fixed Address.
From Hype to Hospital: AI in Healthcare
From Hype to Hospital: How AI Is Being Used in Healthcare and Research
Event recording now available: https://youtu.be/e4NboFYBy1E
This hybrid presentation on January 28, 2026 was co-hosted by the UVic Institute on Aging & Lifelong Health, and Island Health. Panelists from the University of Victoria and Island Health brought their expertise from research, clinical care, and health systems and went beyond buzzwords to explore how artificial intelligence (AI) can be used safely, ethically, and effectively in real-world healthcare.
The panel included Drs. Elizabeth Borycki and Andre Kushniruk (UVic), and Graham Payette and Christopher Picard (Island Health). Moderated by Dr. Jodie Gawryluk (UVic) and Cindy Trytten (Island Health).
Date: Wednesday, January 28, 2026
Time: 6:30PM to 8:00PM
Doors open at 6:00PM, with light refreshments provided.
In-person location: Harry Hickman Building (HHB) Lecture Theatre, Room 105, UVic campus
Hybrid: Via Zoom
Free and open to everyone, with required registration.
Panelists:
Elizabeth Borycki, PhD, University of Victoria
Health Informatics & Patient Safety
Dr. Elizabeth Borycki is a professor at the University of Victoria and an internationally recognized expert in health informatics and patient safety. Her work focuses on ensuring digital health tools and AI are designed and implemented safely in real healthcare settings.
Andre Kushniruk, PhD, University of Victoria
Human-Centred Digital Health & AI
Dr. Andre Kushniruk is a professor at the University of Victoria specializing in human-centred digital health and artificial intelligence. He studies how clinicians and patients interact with health technologies to improve usability, safety, and trust.
Graham Payette, Island Health
Clinical Innovation & Health System Implementation
Graham Payette is the Executive Director of Intelligent Automation and Artificial Intelligence at Island Health. With 25 years’ experience helping some of Canada's largest health delivery organizations realize and sustain value from digital innovation, his work is focused on the development and use of AI and digital automation solutions to increase value to the public from their investment in the health system.
Christopher Picard, Island Health
Applied AI and Digital Health in Care Settings
Christopher Picard works at Island Health as a Clinical Nurse Specialist in Trauma and Forensic Services. He’s currently the Editor-in-chief with the Canadian Journal of Emergency Nursing and Past President of the National Emergency Nurses Association. He focuses on translating emerging technologies into tools that support clinicians and improve patient care.
Hosted by the UVic Institute on Aging and Lifelong Health and Island Health
Open to the public (patients, families, caregivers, students, researchers, healthcare providers, and community members). No technical background required. The venue is wheelchair accessible. Paid parking is available in all General parking lots; parking details will be provided to registrants attending on-campus.
Email IALH@uvic.ca for questions or media inquiries.Better Choices, Better Health Online Workshops
The Better Choices, Better Health® Online Self-Management Program, is the online version of the internationally recognised Chronic Disease Self-Management Program, developed and tested at the Stanford University Patient Education Centre.
This is a free, six-session, asynchronous web-based program offered on a dedicated website that meets government privacy requirements. It is open to BC adults of all ages living with one or more ongoing health conditions. A computer and internet connection are required; no web-cams needed; and participants do not need to be online at the same time.
In this group (max. 25 participants), moderated by two trained peer facilitators, you will learn about:
- Techniques to deal with problems such as frustration, fatigue, pain and isolation
- Appropriate exercise for maintaining and improving strength, flexibility, and endurance
- Appropriate use of medications
- Communicating effectively with family, friends, and health professionals
- Healthy eating
- Making informed treatment decisions
- Disease-related problem solving
- Advanced directives
The Better Choices, Better Health Program enhances regular treatment and disease-specific education.
Sessions are highly participative through internal messaging and online discussion boards. Log in at your convenience for about 1.5 to 2 hours per week.
Weekly activities include:
- Reading
- Making and posting a weekly action plan
- Participating in problem-solving and guided exercises on bulletin boards
- Participating in self-tests and activities
To register, see https://www.selfmanagementbc.ca/betterchoices
For more information please visit www.selfmanagementbc.ca or call TOLL FREE: 1-866-902-3767