Physician Assistants are “handmaids” to doctors. PAs were “created by physicians” who were frustrated that nurses no longer tolerate being ordered around by MDs. And that’s just a taste of the negative reaction from some nurses to a recent Healthy Debate article on integration of physician assistants in Canada. I found it disheartening, but not …
Months before my life was upended, a doctor friend tried to explain my forthcoming role in terms I’d understand. “Imagine being on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” he said. “You’re in charge of a single patient, but she is needy as hell.” Medical training prepared me for motherhood in some ways …
The doctor’s white lab coat has a long-standing tradition. Some medical schools have created the ‘white coat ceremony’ to welcome new students into the profession. I think it’s time we got rid of these coats. I used to wear one. When I started clinical work I was proud of mine because it made me feel …
After several decades working in the Canadian military, Physician Assistants (PAs) are being introduced into provincial health care systems. This year, Alberta launched a two-year demonstration project to integrate PAs into selected clinical practices. About a decade ago ago, PAs were introduced in Manitoba and Ontario. In Ontario, PAs were part of Ontario’s broader health human resources …
Although medical schools have been around since the 18th century in North America, the way that medical students are taught continues to evolve. Technology is a valuable resource for almost any discipline, and in medicine, it is a resource that has helped to both facilitate and enhance the learning experience. It is then no surprise …
A student recently started one of my patients on the oral contraceptive pill YAZ. When I asked why that particular birth control pill was chosen instead of all the alternatives, I was shocked by the response: “We have samples.” The student was referring to the medication samples that are delivered to clinics by representatives of …
This is the second of a two-part series on Alberta’s health care restructuring. This article examines the impact of constant change at the highest levels of administration on those who work within the health care system. Alberta Health Services (AHS) is the largest health care delivery organization in Canada. AHS provides health care to nearly …
Of all the pregnancy taboos I’ve heard in my 34 weeks of this surreal, at times ache-inducing, but ultimately incredible state, caffeine has caused me the greatest chagrin. Strangers in line at Coffee Central offered helpfully: “You’ll get decaf, of course.” My four-year-old nephew looked at a cup of tea in my hands, his brow …
News headlines from across Canada are periodically dominated by scandals and errors in diagnostic imaging. The list grows each year, with errors exposed from coast to coast. The narrative follows the same arc – an error is discovered in an area of diagnostic imaging. A radiologist – generally the physician involved in the interpretation of …
I have recently noticed a few websites offering an interesting combination of women’s health services, with traditional obstetrical and gynecological care alongside such services as esthetic or cosmetic procedures. As a woman, I must say I found these websites inviting. They project an image of sanctuary, where our physical AND psychological needs are attended to …
As part of the 2003 Health Accord, the Federal Government made major investments in interprofessional education. This included contributing $28 million dollars to build training centres across Canadian colleges and universities. Investing in interprofessional education was motivated by the belief that changing the way health care professionals work together would be a key part of …
In a surprising move, the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta has challenged financial barriers to medical imaging. While some believe that regulatory colleges should limit themselves to individual physician discipline, the Canadian public should support the growing willingness of Colleges to move beyond disciplinary issues to act as a voice for the public …
If you’re a medical intern (a new doctor in their first year of additional training after medical school), most of what you need to do your job can be pulled off a computer screen: Blood test results. Paged messages. Orders to start a medication. All but, of course, how sick a patient is. How he …
Our health care system faces a disturbing paradox. While seniors represent the fastest growing age group in Canada, the country faces a growing deficiency of specialist physicians with expertise in caring for the elderly. But with seniors accounting for nearly half of all the country’s hospitalizations and visiting their family physician twice as often as younger …
In the modern economy, many industries, such as aviation, retail and manufacturing, no longer slow down over weekends. Yet hospitals have mostly resisted this trend, even though demand for many forms of health care is no less on weekends than on weekdays. While most hospitals are open every day of the week, many operate with …
Last week, Lisa Rosenbaum wrote in a New Yorker blog entry about a topic dear to my heart: shared decision making (SDM). SDM refers to doctors empowering patients to make medical decisions based on their values and preferences when there is more than one reasonable path. Many researchers have found that shared decision making (with the help of …
Approximately 1 in 10 Canadians describe symptoms consistent with alcohol or illicit drug dependence. Yet, the undergraduate medical education system devotes a total of 12 hours of curricular time to addiction medicine, not a proportionate response to the severity of the problem. Addictions place a serious burden on the healthcare system, costing Canadians an estimated …
Progress has been made in measuring the quality of Canadian health care. Yet there are still large gaps in what is measured in our health care system, and much of what is measured is only useful to top-level system managers, not to the front-line clinicians whose day-to-day work is so important to the overall quality of the system. This leads experts to question whether measurement is being used effectively to improve the quality of Canadian health care.
Why do so many doctors still think they are invincible to the influence of the pharmaceutical industry? Attractive, well-dressed, charismatic drug reps with pearly smiles and shiny flow charts still wait in waiting rooms. Lectures and conferences still occur where lunch is paid for by the pharmaceutical industry. Research studies are still published where investigators receive grants …
In the wake of the recent agreement between the Government of Ontario and the Ontario Medical Association, it is time to reevaluate the appropriateness of the OMA as the bargaining agent for Ontario physicians. I will spend most of this opinion piece using ophthalmology as an example since that is the specialty that I practice. …