Health Care
The State of Rural Canada
The State of Rural Canada report provides a comprehensive overview of the diverse challenges and opportunities facing rural, remote, and northern communities across the country. While each region has its unique context, several overarching themes emerge from this fifth version of the report that paint a picture of rural Canada as a complex mosaic of…
Read MoreVirtual Care on the Front Lines
How Real-Time Virtual Support is helping to save lives and transform healthcare for remote, rural and Indigenous communities across B.C. Dr. Dean Johnston was in his neurology clinic in downtown Vancouver when he received a worrying call from a colleague about a patient more than a thousand kilometres away in Fort Nelson, B.C. “There were…
Read MoreReal-Time Virtual Support
Relational Work Is the Work: Virtual Healthcare Transformation for Rural, Remote, and First Nations Communities in British Columbia The healthcare crisis across unceded First Nations territories in rural, remote, and Indigenous communities in British Columbia (BC) is marked by persistent barriers to accessing care and support close to home. This commentary describes an exceptional story…
Read MoreStrongerBC for everyone – Investing in Rural Communities
The B.C. government has released StrongerBC: Good Lives in Strong Communities, a new vision that outlines investments to help build a brighter future for rural communities and the people who call them home. “If you’re looking for people to help cut through the noise and get a job done, my bet will always be on…
Read MoreBC Doctor Develops National Guide for the Greening of Health Care
The healthcare sector is among the most polluting, contributing 5 per cent of Canada’s total greenhouse gas. A Kimberley-based physician, Dr. Ilona Hale, and a team of health care professionals have produced a new resource, specifically aimed at clinicians called ‘Planetary Health for Primary Care’. “It’s an online guide for healthcare providers meant to make…
Read MoreInnovative Approach to Medical Training
A visionary Canadian physician believes three new medical schools opening in Canada will flip the country’s medical training model on its head to focus more on family medicine. “It takes a community to raise a physician,” said Dr. Roger Strasser, interim dean of the new Simon Fraser University Medical School and founding dean of the Northern Ontario School of…
Read MoreKeeping It Rural 2023
June 1st and 2nd, 2023 in Kelowna, BC at the Hampton Inn We are planning to cover many of the challenges and opportunities facing rural BC right now. From mill closures, and mega-projects to innovation in agriculture and rural health updates. The tickets will go on sale in mid-March and due to limited seating we…
Read MoreDrug Use Study Conducted in qathet Region
A study of people who use drugs conducted in the qathet region found a variety of negative consequences, likening the situation for drug users to living in a goldfish bowl. Dr. Geoff Bardwell, the study’s lead, who is affiliated with BC Centre on Substance Use, and is also an assistant professor in the school of…
Read MoreRural Patients and Doctors Worry about Lengthy Wait Times and Level of Care as Workload Rises
Bob Storey is waiting to be put on a waiting list. Bob Storey grips his cane outside the community health centre in Fraser Lake, B.C. He’s waiting for a doctor’s appointment in January that will get him on a waiting list for a hip replacement. In the Northern Health authority where he lives, the average…
Read MoreBC Town Fighting to Recruit Family Doctors
Kootenay community of Creston has its own professional headhunter to find physicians Dr. Nerine Kleinhans came to Creston, B.C., from Saskatchewan. She says the town has had a successful recruiting push, but there are still too few family physicians to go around. (Dan Caverly/CBC News) Whoever said an apple a day keeps the doctor away…
Read More