Ministerial Council on HIV/AIDS

The Ministerial Council on HIV/AIDS was created to advise the Minister of Health on aspects of HIV/AIDS that have a national scope. The Council's membership reflects a broad range of experience and knowledge, and includes several Canadians living with HIV/AIDS. The main focus of its work is on evaluating and monitoring the Federal Initiative, championing current and emerging issues, and offering a vision for the long-term.

• Committees and Working Groups of the Ministerial Council on HIV/AIDS

Canadians are facing a complex and changing epidemic. Increasingly, HIV is infecting the more vulnerable segments of our population, especially those who are marginalized by socio-economic factors, those who use intravenous drugs, women living in poverty, many Aboriginal communities, prison inmates and young gay men. Because the epidemic is shifting, the Canadian Strategy on HIV/AIDS must be flexible and adaptable. One of the strongest recommendations arising from the 1997 consultation process was the creation of an independent body to advise the Minister of Health on the changing face of the epidemic and to advise on the implementation of the Strategy. The Ministerial Council on HIV/AIDS was established in the spring of 1998.

Role and Membership

The Ministerial Council on HIV/AIDS supports the effective and efficient implementation of the Strategy by providing advice to the Minister on all pan-Canadian aspects of HIV/AIDS. More specifically, the Council promotes alliances and joint efforts; assists in the development of long-term plans for future action on HIV/AIDS; recommends actions to reach communities at risk; and works to keep the Canadian Strategy on HIV/AIDS flexible and responsive to the changing nature of the epidemic.

To fulfill this challenging mandate, Council members have been chosen for their experience and collective expertise which spans scientific research knowledge to front-line experience with emerging at-risk groups. Because the Council must be the voice of those infected and affected by HIV/AIDS, five of the fifteen Council members are people living with HIV/AIDS.

To encourage collaborative efforts and strong linkages with the provinces and territories, the provincial Co-Chair of the Federal/Provincial/Territorial Advisory Committee on AIDS holds an ex-officio position on the Ministerial Council.
The Minister of Health meets with the Council at least once a year to receive its advice and recommendations and reports annually to Canadians on the progress of the Federal Initiative to Address AIDS in Canada.

For more information:

HIV/AIDS Policy, Coordination and Programs Division
Centre for Infectious Disease Prevention and Control
Public Health Agency of Canada
Tel: (613) 957-7350

Ministerial Council publications

Ministerial Council Meeting

• Public Record of Meeting - February 23 - 24, 2006 - Ottawa
• Public Record of Meeting - December 9 - 11, 2005 - Ottawa
• Public Record of Meeting - October 20 - 21, 2005 - Ottawa
• Public Record of Meeting - May 6 - 7, 2005 - Toronto
• Public Record of Meeting - January 21 - 22, 2005 - Toronto
• Public Record of Meeting - November 17 - 18, 2002 - Ottawa
• Public Record of Meeting - June 9-10, 2002- Ottawa
• Public Record of Meeting - March 8-9, 2002 - Montreal
• Public Record of Meeting - November 25, 26, 2001 - Toronto
• Public Record of Meeting - September 8-10, 2001 - Ottawa
• Public Record of Meeting - June 17-18, 2001 - Montreal
• Public Record of Meeting - April 1-2 , 2001, Toronto
• Public Record of Meeting - December 10-11, 2000, Ottawa
• Public Record of Meeting - September 23-24, 2000, Montréal
• Public Record of Meeting - June 25-26, 2000, Montréal
• Public Record of Meeting - March 19-20, 2000, Montréal
• Public Record of Meeting - November 28 -29, 1999 Ottawa
• Public Record of Meeting - September 12-13, 1999, Toronto
• Year End Review - August 30, 1999

Members of the Ministerial Council on HIV/AIDS

Louise Binder

Ms. Binder, a retired lawyer, is Chair of the Canadian Treatment Action Council, Chair of Voices of Positive Women and a members of the Board of Directors of the Wellesley Central Health Corporation. She is a member of the University of Toronto's HIV/AIDS Ethics Review Committee, the Canadian Trials Network Community Advisory Committee and the Ontario HIV Treatment Network Treatment Committee and a former board member of the HIV/AIDS Legal Clinic Ontario. She was the recipient of the YWCA of Metropolitan Toronto's 1999 Women of Distinction award for social action and in 2002 received the Queen's Jubilee Award for Volunteerism. Ms. Binder received an honorary Doctorate of Laws from Queens University in October 2001.

Lindy Samson

Dr. Samson is a pediatric infectious disease specialist and HIV physician at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) and Assistant Professor at the University of Ottawa. She is also Director of the CHEO HIV clinic and a strong advocate for both mother and child dealing with HIV infection. Dr. Samson has participated in studies and programs that led to the early recognition of HIV in pregnancy and the peripartum management of HIV to prevent infection of children. She is the Chair of the Canadian Pediatric AIDS Research Group.

Mary Armstrong

Mary Armstrong has been a counsellor at Nine Circles Community Health Centre (formerly Village Clinic) in Winnipeg since 1997. She works directly with infected and affected people as they deal with the emotional and mental health issues connected to living with HIV/AIDS. Mary is a clinical member of the Manitoba Branch of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, and has a Master's degree in Marriage and Family Therapy.

Richard Elliott

Mr. Elliott, a lawyer formerly in private practice, is the Director, Legal Research & Policy of the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network. The Legal Network is a national, non-governmental organization undertaking research, education and advocacy on HIV/AIDS and human rights issues, within Canada and internationally. The Legal Network is an NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations. Mr. Elliott has written numerous reports, papers and articles on legal and human rights issues relating to HIV/AIDS and delivered numerous presentations to community groups and national and international conferences. He has been active with a variety of community organizations addressing HIV and human rights more generally, and helped found the Global Treatment Access Group, a working group of Canadian civil society organizations engaged in collaborative advocacy to realize the human right to health. He served as rapporteur for the Third International Consultation on HIV/AIDS and Human Rights that revised the International Guidelines on HIV/AIDS and Human Rights in relation to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support.

Dionne A. Falconer

Ms. Falconer has extensive knowledge of HIV/AIDS issues, as she has been involved with community-based AIDS service organizations since the late 1980s. She is the Managing Director of her own consulting firm in Toronto, DA Falconer & Associates, and she works nationally and internationally on HIV/AIDS, health and social issues. Her previous staff positions include Clinical Director of Lawrence Heights Community Health Centre, Interim Executive Director of Access Alliance Multicultural Community Health Centre and Executive Director of the Black Coalition for AIDS Prevention (Black CAP). Ms. Falconer also has many years of active community service, including a past President of the Board of Directors of the Interagency Coalition on AIDS and Development (ICAD) and a past Board member of the Ontario AIDS Network and the Canadian AIDS Society. She holds a Master of Health Science in Health Administration.

Deborah Foster

Deborah Foster is a Registered Social Worker and a Doctoral Student in the Department of Human Ecology at the University of Alberta. Deborah began working and volunteering in the field of HIV/AIDS in 1986, while living in Guelph and Toronto. She currently resides in Edmonton, AB. Since 1986, she has held a variety of positions related to HIV/AIDS in both the non-profit sector and government. She is currently a member of an Advisory Committee for a HIV/AIDS Stigma Research Project. Deborah has spoken at numerous conferences across Canada on HIV/AIDS issues and been a guest lecturer in University and College classes on the topic. Deborah currently splits her time between teaching and research activities at University of Alberta and Athabasca University.

Jacqueline C. Gahagan

Jacqueline C. Gahagan, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the School of Health and Human Performance at Dalhousie University. She also holds cross appointments in Community Health and Epidemiology, Women's Studies, and Nursing at Dalhousie University. Jacqueline is a Research Associate with the Atlantic Centre of Excellence for Women's Health where she heads up the development of the research arm of the proposed International Institute on Gender- Main streaming and HIV/AIDS. Jacqueline currently serves as a Commissioner on the Nova Scotia Advisory Commission on HIV/AIDS and was a member of the National Reference Group on Women and HIV/AIDS. Jacqueline has extensive research experience in HIV and gender research and teaches both graduate and undergraduate level courses in program planning, measurement and evaluation, and community health promotion strategies. Current research studies include the HIV & Hep C prevention, care, treatment and support needs of women in federal prisons, the HIV prevention education needs of young heterosexual males, and the impact of unpaid care giving on women's health.

Michael Grant

Dr. Grant has been involved in the basic science of HIV/AIDS research since 1987. He trained in Vancouver and Hamilton and is now Associate Professor of Immunology at Memorial University of Newfoundland's Faculty of Medicine. He has been a member of the Canadian Association of HIV Research (CAHR) since its inception and was a National Health AIDS Scholar from 1996-2002. He holds grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research for HIV and HCV research and is a Canada Foundation for Innovation Researcher.

Marie Anésie Harérimana

Ms. Harérimana is Executive Director of the Centre de ressources et d'interventions en santé et sexualité (CRISS), a Montreal community agency whose prime mission is to provide support to women living with HIV and their loved ones. She is considered an important spokesperson on the problems of countries where HIV is endemic, and especially the problems of African communities and women in Quebec. She also coordinates the publication by CRISS of the Quebec newsletter De Tête et de Coeur. In 2002, her contributions were recognized by her peers when she received a Fahra Foundation "hero" award, which is presented to individuals for their outstanding service in the fight against AIDS in Quebec.

Brian Huskins

Brian Huskins has extensive knowledge across the spectrum of HIV/AIDS issues
based in 14 years of community HIV/AIDS work. As Chair of the Board of Directors of the Canadian AIDS Society in the mid-1990s, Brian was instrumental in establishing the broad framework of the Canadian Strategy on HIV/AIDS with other national leaders. He has served as Chair of the Consumer Advisory Committee of the new Canadian Blood Services and has brought the consumer voice to many tables where countless different healthcare issues have been discussed. Brian has written extensively around HIV/AIDS and health issues for various publications and has two published works; "Sexual Identity: The Journey Begins" and "Breaking the Skin: Tattooing and Body Piercing - Know the Risks" which are tools used widely by HIV/AIDS prevention workers.

In 2000, Brian was one of 25 Calgarians chosen to participate in the inaugural course of Leadership Calgary, a unique action study and community focused program designed to identify and motivate aspiring leaders in Calgary. Mr. Huskins is also notable as the first openly HIV-positive candidate to run for public office in Canada when he ran as a political candidate for the Liberal Party in the 2001 Alberta provincial elections. Currently Brian is the Outreach and Partnership Coordinator at the Canadian AIDS Treatment Information Exchange (CATIE) which is based in Toronto. CATIE is a national, non-profit organization committed to improving the health and quality of life of all Canadians living with HIV/AIDS.

Enrico Mandarino

Mr. Mandarino has been working and volunteering in all areas of HIV/AIDS for over 15 years. With a background in research microbiology he has a strong scientific knowledge of HIV/AIDS including infection, therapies and research. Mr. Mandarino also has extensive front-line experience working with people living with HIV/AIDS and volunteers with many community-based, provincial and national AIDS service organizations. Enrico currently serves as Secretary of the board of directors of the Canadian AIDS Society (CAS), as a board member of the Canadian Treatment Action Council (CTAC), and as an apprentice on the Community Advisory Committee of the Canadian HIV Clinical Trials Network (CTN). In 2005, Enrico was appointed to the Ontario's Advisory Committee on HIV/AIDS (OACHA) where he continues to be a strong advocate around emerging issues related to HIV /AIDS.

Ken Monteith

Mr. Monteith is the Executive Director of AIDS Community Care Montréal / Sida bénévoles Montréal (ACCM). Trained as a lawyer, he worked in the community youth sector as Legal Coordinator and Executive Director of Head & Hands / À deux mains for nine years before joining ACCM in 1999. Mr. Monteith is a member of the Board of Directors of the Coalition des organismes communautaires québécois de lutte contre le sida (COCQ-Sida) and is the Coalition's representative to the Canadian Treatment Action Council (CTAC). He holds degrees in Industrial Relations, Common and Civil Law from McGill University and was a member of the Québec Bar from 1991 to 2001, when he resigned to devote himself more fully to his community work on HIV/AIDS.

David M. Nelson

David Mervyn Nelson is a Cree/Icelandic man from Alberta. He has been involved in HIV/AIDS since the early 1980's and Graduated from Grant MacEwan Community College with a Social Worker Diploma in 1990. He has been providing professional and volunteered services to those who live with HIV/AIDS since then. During his career he has had the opportunity to travel across North America working mainly with First Nations/Aboriginal Communities to develop and deliver HIV prevention programs and support services to those living with HIV/AIDS.

He has been a member of a number of decision making bodies including the New Mexico Community Planning Group (CPG) for Regions 5 and 7; The Governors AIDS Task Force; Nation advisory on GLBT Committee; and the National Rural HIV Advisory Committee; Advisory Board Member to the Office of Minority Health Resource Center; and now in Canada with the Ministerial Council on HIV/AIDS.

Currently, he is working with the AIDS Calgary Awareness Association in Calgary, Alberta. He continues to travel to First Nations Communities and programs across the country providing education and consulting services for HIV/AIDS issues.

In 1996 he was infected with HIV and have since developed an even greater understanding of the issues which surround this disease. He continues to be an advocate and he has experienced first hand the consequences of the many factors which influence well-being for people living with HIV.

Anita Rachlis

Dr. Rachlis is Professor, Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Disease, University of Toronto. She has worked in HIV/AIDS care since 1983 at Sunnybrook and Women's College Health Sciences Centre and has been involved in clinical research in the treatment of opportunistic infections and antiretroviral therapy. She received a Council Award in February 2002 from the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario for her work in the care and treatment of HIV patients. She facilitated the development of the Canadian HIV Primary Care Mentorship Program and the Ontario HIV Observational Database (HOOD). Dr. Rachlis is a member of the Board of Directors for the Ontario HIV Treatment Network, Associate Director, Ontario Region of the Canadian HIV Trials Network and serves as a scientific reviewer for granting agencies. She is a member of the Ontario Advisory Committee on HIV/AIDS. She is also Clerkship Director, Undergraduate Medical Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto.

Sheena Sargeant

Ms. Sargeant is the Executive Director of YouthCO AIDS Society in Vancouver. She holds an extensive background in community-based HIV/AIDS work in the areas of both women and youth. In addition to her previous work as Communications Coordinator at Positive Women's Network, she spent over four years at YouthCO AIDS Society working directly with youth to develop HIV/AIDS prevention education programming at various local, regional and international levels. Ms. Sargeant also served consecutive appointments as member and Co-Chair of the BC Ministry of Health Planning's HIV/AIDS Advisory Committee in 2000-2001.