The Sylvia Higgins Memorial Fund

The Sylvia Higgins Memorial Fund was created to finance the annual Sylvia Higgins Memorial Essay Awards. The Memorial Fund is maintained by the Lupus Erythematosus Society of Saskatchewan, Inc., a non-profit charity devoted to education about Lupus Erythematosus and support of Lupus patients.

There are two awards of $500.00. The first category (Medical) is available to all students enrolled in a Saskatchewan medical program at the University of Saskatchewan or SIAST. Participants are required to write a medical essay on an aspect of lupus from their particular medical profession (i.e. registered nurse, doctor, dentist, certified nursing assistant, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, etc.).

The second category (General) is open to Saskatchewan residents. Entrants are required to write an essay on an aspect of Lupus Erythematosus of general interest to the public.

Focused topics rather than general overview essays are encouraged. LESS members, the main audience of the essays, have access to a variety of informative articles that provide us with basics of lupus. We would be interested in reading papers that give us new information or unique perspective. We would like to learn the details of current, reputable research or ways to cope with and understand specific lupus problems.

The essays will be judged on both content and style. The winning essays will be published in The Saskatchewan Lupine and may be posted on the LESS website. Other submissions may also be published.

These awards honor the memory of Sylvia Higgins, one of the founding members of LESS. Sylvia had lupus, but she believed in making each day count, living as normal of a life as possible as a wife, mother, nurse and a caring member of the community.

Send your submissions or requests for further information to:

Chair
Sylvia Higgins Essay Awards
Box 88 - Royal University Hospital
103 Hospital Drive
Saskatoon, SK.
S7N 0W8

Rules For Entry

1. Entrants must be Saskatchewan residents as of December 31, in the year preceding the entry. Entrants in the Medical category must submit proof of student registration in a medical professional program.
2. Deadline for submissions is June 30, annually. Winners will be announced at the Annual General Meeting, and the winners' names will be published in the next issue of The Saskatchewan Lupine following the announcement. The essays will be published in The Saskatchewan Lupine.
3. Entries must be original, unpublished essays, not entered simultaneously in any other competition and a minimum of 1200 words; a maximum of 2000.
4. Only one entry is allowed (either Medical or General).
5. The writer's name, address, phone number, category, and title of their essay is to be submitted on a separate sheet of paper. The writer's name must not appear on any page of a submitted manuscript.
6. Essays must be in English, typed double-spaced on 8 1/2 x 11 paper, with pages numbered. Carbon copies will not be accepted, but good quality photocopies will.
7. Judges may decide not to award a prize if they believe no submission merits it.
8. Manuscripts will not be returned.
9. No member of the L.E.S.S. Board of Directors, provincial or chapter, is eligible to win an award during their term of office.
10. The copyright remains with the author after publication in The Saskatchewan Lupine.

Winning Essays

• Isobelle McFadyen - The Middle Way
• Richard Schlichemeyer - The Role of the Community Pharmacist on the Lupus Health Care Team
• Ben Gibb - Lupus Erythematosus: An Essay On Drug-Induced Lupus
• Sarah Liskowich - Using Antisense Oligonucleotides in the Treatment of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
• Janet Farney - Lupus and Hormones: Cause or Cure?
• Martha Sander - The "L" Disease That We Can Live With
• Lynne Brochu - A Glance at Lupus: Helping Clients to Help Themselves
• Susan Grant - Tour of the Center of Activation of Lupus