One of the Health Sciences Foundation’s favourite days of the year is coming up on December 3rd: Giving Tuesday!
Our goal this year is to raise $44,000 in 24 hours to fund vital equipment, including a ventilator and defibrillator, to complete a second Paediatric Transfer Deck for the Paediatric Emergency Transport Team.
“This critical piece of equipment is essential for safely transporting critically ill children, with tools like a ventilator and defibrillator.” says Michelle, RN, Paediatric Emergency Transport Team, Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre, “It enables our Team to respond quickly, particularly in remote and underserved areas where access to specialized care is limited. It means no child is left waiting in a moment of crisis.”
We have more exciting news: Our friends at the Sandra Schmirler Foundation have come on board to MATCH every donation to this equipment! That means for every $1 you donate on Giving Tuesday, they’ll double it.
Watch The Daily iNformed Newsletter on December 3rd for how you can donate, and provide emergency care when every second counts.
We understand that it can be challenging to find time during the day to step away from work. We are excited to invite you to an evening session titled “Repairing the Sacred Circle: An Indigenous Cultural Awareness and Education Primer.”
Join us for an insightful experience that fits your schedule! Plus, a complimentary and delicious dinner will be served.
Date: November 27, 2024 Time: 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Location: ICP Main
(All sessions will be featured in the link. To register for the evening sessions, please ensure that you select the November 27 session.)
This opportunity is available to all Hospital and Health Research Institute staff, professional staff, learners, volunteers, PFAs and students. This is a free training session, there is no cost to attend. The session is 3 hours long and takes place in-person.
The session will introduce participants to an enriching way of thinking about truth and reconciliation. This training allows for cross-cultural discussion and create awareness and inclusiveness within TBRHSC. Participants will learn how health inequities for Indigenous Peoples within the current heath care system are driven by: colonization, race and racism, stereotypes.
Please note that staff will not receive compensation for their attendance.
Women physicians are an integral part of the health care team at Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre (TBRHSC). Each month, we will highlight some of the exceptional women physicians and surgeons who provide clinical care, education and leadership within our Hospital and beyond. A special ‘thank you’ to all of the women physicians who agreed to be interviewed.
What is one thing that you love about practicing in Thunder Bay?
The lifestyle. We have busy work lives but being able to attend all of the kid’s activities is really important to me. In terms of work, because the region is hugely underserviced, you can make a bigger difference in research and clinically than you could in other places. We provide quality, evidenced based care that you can get in tertiary centres. I’m proud of the work we do here.
What does it mean to be a woman physician at TBRHSC?
Sometimes I forget that I’m a woman physician. I have experienced barriers, and there aren’t a lot of people like me who work here. But, I’ve never looked for people who are the same as me, rather I’ve found mentors and allies of all shapes and sizes in Thunder Bay.
What is your vision for psychiatry in Thunder Bay?
Psychiatry services are provided at two sites, TBRHSC and St. Joseph’s Care Group. I would love to see the two sites as equal and collegial partners with fewer silos and more integration with community partners. I’ve worked in community child and adolescent psychiatry for years and understand both community and hospital-based care. We need to shift the perception of TBRHSC as a place to house kids that can’t be managed in the community to a place where we provide acute inpatient care – the acuity is important. I would love to grow the next generation of psychiatrists to be comfortable with the high acuity we see in Thunder Bay by offering electives and placements to psychiatry residents from outside NOSM University.
If you had one superpower, what would it be?
I want everyone to see that there are other forms of leadership than named and titled positions.
How could TBRHSC better support women physicians?
Four things: 1. Have an on-site day care. 2. Stop having meetings at kid drop off times. 3. Provide support with administrative task because women bear the brunt of these responsibilities in addition to clinical work. 4. Know what you love to do in work and in life. Do those things and hire someone else to do the rest.
What does it mean to be a woman physician leader at TBRHSC?
There needs to be more of us. It is hard to rise to through the ranks of physician leaders when all prior chiefs of staff and heads of department have been men. We need diversity in leadership but we also need to be careful of tokenism.
We need to build a network of people within the hospital to mentor and support women physician leaders. External executive coaches would also support the development of women physician leaders. I attended a one-week women’s leadership retreat called “Momentum” – it was the best experience. Aspiring women physicians should have opportunities to attend similar leadership development events. The last thing is conflict resolution. We need to learn about conflict resolution without amygdala hijacking.
Is there anything else you’d like to share?
I’m grateful for opportunity to talk about the role of women physicians.
During Nurse Practitioner (NP) Week, we will be spotlighting NPs to highlight the important roles they play at Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre. Meet Rajesh Talpade, who works in the Internal Medicine Clinic.
Education /Training Masters of Nursing (NP stream)-distinction from Athabasca University, graduated in 2020.
Why did you decide to become a Nurse Practitioner (NP)?
Having been part of the ED family for over 10 + years, I wanted to continue providing better support to ED patients seen in my previous role as an RN. I have always been one to advance my practice on a regular basis, be it education, skill development, or in my role as an advanced practitioner. As an NP with the IMC, I have great autonomy, and am able to include a more holistic approach into my care.
My role with the Internal Medicine Clinic (IMC)
Under the broader umbrella of the IMC, my role as the CHF/COPD NP patient navigator, is to assist patients with their chronic disease management, (CHF and COPD), better navigate the health care system. This is particularly true for patients who are leaving the hospital with a new diagnosis. Exacerbation of these conditions often result in frequent visits to the Emergency Department. Additionally, I support COPD and CHF patients throughout their hospital admission and at discharge. In collaboration with the patient and their MRP, I find ways to support admission avoidance and transitions planning by developing a post-discharge plan of care. Using an evidence based approach I work with the patient and their family to set goals, provide education and advocacy, and support the coordination of out-patient medical management and social supports.
What is the most challenging part of your profession?
I have come to appreciate how difficult it can be for patients seen by me, when they have no community family health care provider, and have only walk-in clinics to rely on. An extension of my role as NP navigator, is to hopefully connect patients with clinics accepting new patients in the community and following up with these patients a little more closely upon discharge.
What is the most rewarding aspect of your profession?
It is rewarding to see how well patients feel and progress with their chronic conditions after I have intervened in their care while in hospital. This is more a team effort, and I happy to be part of this dynamic team of professionals and allied health members. I’m very fortunate to work with a fantastic group of people, such as attending community physicians, hospitalist physician group,ED nursing staff/management, who are accepting of my role as a nurse practitioner, and consider me a valuable addition to the team.
During Nurse Practitioner (NP) Week, we will be spotlighting NPs to highlight the important roles they play at Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre. Today’s spotlight feature is Hsu-Yin Boo, who works in the Clinical Decision Unit.
Education/Training
I’m a new grad from the Masters of Public Health with Primary Health Care Nurse Practitioner program at Lakehead University. Previous to this, I worked in the ICU, PACU and in the community as a registered nurse.
Why did you decide to become a Nurse Practitioner?
I decided I wanted to become an NP because I love learning. I’m committed to contributing to increasing access to healthcare for people in Northwestern Ontario.
Tell us about your role in your program.
I am newly employed as the NP for the Clinical Decision Unit (CDU) Pilot program in the Emergency Department. The intended role of the CDU is to hold patients who would benefit from a longer ER stay and avoid hospital admissions. As this is a new NP role and I am a new NP, the learning curve has been quite steep! I’m excited to be part of this pilot and feeling hopeful about shaping the program. What is the most challenging part of your profession? As a new grad, I’m finding it challenging to shape this new role and navigate the existing systems that are in place. I’m looking forward to getting a little more comfortable — I know that I will with time!
What is the most rewarding aspect of your profession?
I love working with patients to create a plan of care that they feel good about. I’m also really enjoying all mynew colleagues in the Emergency Department.
Do you have any advice for those considering a career as a Nurse Practitioner?
So far, this career is very engaging. As NP roles become more established, there will be many interesting opportunities. I think it is an exciting time to be an NP.
During Nurse Practitioner (NP) Week, we will be spotlighting NPs to highlight the important roles they play at Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre. Meet Laura Hendren, an NP in the Cancer Centre.
Education/Training
Bachelor of Nursing Science from Queen’s University (2013). Masters of Nursing/Primary Health Care Nurse Practitioner from University of Toronto (2018).
Why did you become a Nurse Practitioner?
I enjoyed working as a nurse and appreciated the time it afforded me to spend with patients. I wanted to expand my skill set to better serve patients, while still practicing through a nursing lens.
What is your role within the Cancer Centre?
I primarily see patients on chemotherapy/immunotherapy to assess their fitness for treatment. The NP role allows me to write prescriptions for supportive medications, and order diagnostic imaging, as needed. A few mornings per week, I do bone marrow biopsies, often training medical students, residents, and NPs how to perform this procedure. I also run a smoking cessation clinic, and have recently expanded this role to help patients with vaping, and cannabis use, as well. Depending on my availability, I assist with admissions to the inpatient oncology unit, and do initial inpatient consults for the medical oncology team.
What is the most challenging part of your profession?
Patient care is becoming increasingly complex as individuals live longer with multiple chronic illnesses. This is especially true in cancer care; in certain circumstances, our patients live years even with advanced disease. In our current healthcare system, we are facing a lack of human resources to manage these medically complex cases. As Nurse Practitioners, we are often asked to fill gaps from both a nursing and medical perspective, which can lead to burnout.
What is the most rewarding part of your profession?
As a Nurse Practitioner, I am fortunate to have longer appointment times compared to my physician colleagues, which allows me to establish good rapport with our wonderful patients at the Cancer Centre. I find it very rewarding to support patients throughout their cancer journey.
Do you have any advice for those considering a career as a Nurse Practitioner?
Spend time working in your specialty of interest. It helps to understand the nursing perspective, and have familiarity with common patient presentations, prior to becoming an NP. I would also recommend a commitment to life-long learning, as advances in medicine are occurring every day. This is a very exciting time to consider becoming an NP.
