News Archive

Dr. Todd Raine, an EP at St Paul’s Hospital has been recognized publicly for his ground-breaking EM search engine work in Academic Life in Emergency Medicine. ALiEM defines itself as “your digital connection to the cooperative world of EM. We strive to reshape medical education and academia in their evolution beyond the traditional classroom”. Here is what they said: “he is famous in the social media world for his innovative creation of a Google-based EM search engine GoogleFOAM.com, which many of us use to perform social media site searches online in the field of EM. His search engine is a “unified search of all FOAM sources on the Web.”

Have a look at the full article and the reference to his other  search engine WIKEMERG.CA

http://academiclifeinem.com/hero-spotlight-dr-todd-raine/

Congratulations Todd!!!

Please see the very positive News Release from Fraser Health Authority celebrating the two new residency positions. The Minister of Health, the Dean of Medicine and Anne Clarke, Program Medical Director Emergency, Fraser Health all offered very positive quotes.

http://news.ubc.ca/2013/08/20/new-paths-to-community-care/

CAEP 2013 (June 1-5) was a resounding success thanks to so many talented and committed people. Even the weather cooperated to show our out-of-town visitors what a beautiful part of Canada we live in.

A few highlights…

• 864 registrants – the most ever
• 250 speakers
• 250 abstracts presented in 4 formats – standard oral, lightening oral, moderated hard-copy, moderated electronic versions and standard posters
• the BC Mobile Medical Unit on site to provide a real-life environment for the Simulation Olympian Competition
• 3 preconference roadshows
• a preconference consensus conference on Emergency Medicine Educational Scholarship
• ratification of academic emergency medicine as a formal Section in CAEP with board representation

Substantial BC contributions…

• Ka Wai Cheung won the best young investigator prize
• Peter Zed (affiliate faculty) won the best pediatric research prize
• UBC had 32 abstracts as first author, more than any other university
• The CFPC(EM) resident team won the preliminary round in the Simulation Olympiad, but were eliminated in the semifinals
• Jim Goulding and Christine Hall were judges in the Simulations Olympiad

Thanks to UBC First Authors abstract presenters

It was a pleasure to help plan this great event and we hope you were able to enjoy the conference.

If you want more details about the conference you can go to the CAEP 2013 website

Sincerely,

Jim Christenson, CAEP 2013 Conference Chair
Andrew MacPherson, CAEP 2013 Scientific Chair

Thank you to all who took part in the Department of Emergency Medicine Strategic Planning Retreat. The main focus was about strategies to better fulfill our vision to improve patient care across the province. Invited faculty from across the province attended and supported a plan to integrate clinical care with teaching and research across the province. We will be developing a more detailed strategy and business plan over the next few months.

The LUCAS 2mechanical CPR device arrived in Takla Landing (a remote nursing station in North Central BC) to aid with resuscitation efforts. The Health Center is manned by either one or two nurses with remote certified practice skills. Due to the lack of experienced hands to aid the nurses  and the extreme remoteness of the community, it was felt the LUCAS could really assist in these intensely stressful situations. To further compliment resuscitation efforts, Takla Landing uses a state-of-the-art videoconferencing system from CISCO. This mobile, Wi-Fi enabled unit has 3 different cameras to allow a physician to closely collaborate at the bedside  – virtually.  Dr. John Pawlovich the Rural Education Action Plan Program Coordinator was instrumental in setting up the telehealth support. The system is an excellent example of how technology can improve care in remote settings. The early feedback from nurses has been overwhelmingly positive!

The DEM would like to congratulate Dr. Janice Wong, Dr. Meg Brison and Dr. Doug Brown on their success in passing their Royal College certification exam.

We wish them well in their new positions as staff Emergency Physicians: Dr. Wong and Dr. Brown at Royal Columbian Hospital, and Dr. Brison at Credit Valley Hospital in Mississauga, Ontario.

Congratulations on a job well done!

The Emergency and Health Services Commission (EHSC) is now officially a division of the Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA). The Emergency and Health Services Amendment Act, 2013 completed its final reading in the legislature.

This means that the newly named British Columbia Emergency Health Services (BCEHS), formerly EHSC, will have an even closer alignment to the health sector and PHSA’s role as a specialized, provincial healthcare service provider. BCEHS is currently responsible for three operating entities. BC Ambulance Service provides emergency health services and ambulance services throughout the province of British Columbia. The BC Patient Transfer Network is responsible for planning and coordination of all inter-facility patient transfers. Trauma Services B.C. (TSBC) is dedicated to ensuring all British Columbians have access to a high performing, comprehensive, integrated and inclusive provincial trauma system.

For questions or comments please contact Dr. John Tallon @ john.tallon@gov.bc.ca.