September always feels like a time for new beginnings and with the events we’ve lined up for the fall there are many opportunities for you to get involved with your medical staff association and meet your colleagues. This includes participating in VPSA at a decision-making level as part of our Engagement Working Group. The Engagement Working Group will be akin to the cabinet of the VPSA. We’re making some changes to the VPSA structure and would like to recruit more physicians to join us. The next EWG meeting is coming up October 17 starting at 5:30 pm; if you would like to join us, please drop a line to our initiative manager, Andrew Pinfold.
We have already held one Breakfast with Leaders event this past September 11 with Brittany Watson who is responsible for nursing practice. We learned about nursing achievements identifying issues with IV tubing and had a robust discussion about physician-nursing working together at VCH. It was great! Join us for our next Breakfast with Leaders on October 2 with Leslie Bonshor, VCH’s executive director of Aboriginal Health.
We are especially excited about the official opening of the new Physician Hub for Engagement and Wellness (or, as we like to call it, PHEW) taking place on Tuesday, September 17 from 5:30 to 7:30 pm. The PHEW has been a top priority for members; VPSA staff and committees have been working hard to make this a reality. Please join us for the opening celebration and, in the meantime, drop by any time. The PHEW is in the former Round Room next to the Sassafras Café, Jim Pattison Pavilion South, Level 2.
VMDAS in partnership with VPSA is supporting a family-friendly, rain-or-shine networking event on Sunday, September 22 at the Dunbar Lawn Bowling Club. We’re also bringing in the Tacofino food truck, which will provide dinner. Be there right at 3 pm as that’s when the club will be providing instructions for those of us who are new to lawn bowling and organizing us into teams. Space is limited so RSVP if you’d like to come.
The next VMDAS quarterly meeting is set for Monday, September 23 beginning at 5:15 pm (catered dinner is provided). The meeting will include a discussion with VCH President & CEO Mary Ackenhusen, Vice President of Vancouver-Richmond Acute Vivian Eliopoulos, and Associate Senior Medical Director Dr. Marcel Dvorak. Bring your questions and problem issues for discussion and resolution. This is your chance to get answers and bring about change. Please RSVP to Jennifer.Laxamana@vch.ca.
There are several other events in the works, including an eight-week mindfulness-based cognitive therapy program starting in October that is already accepting registrations.
Keep an eye on your inbox for further details about these and other events and I hope you will make the time to attend and connect, collaborate, and care.
As always, if you have an issue that we can help solve, let me or other members of the executive know. Express your opinions—they are kept confidential—and let us work with you to make VCH a terrific place to work.
Sincerely,
Dr. Simon W. Rabkin, President
VPSA/VMDAS
September 2019