A small sample of VMDAS and VPSA members responded to our recent survey regarding our Checkup e-newsletter. We thank those members who offered their feedback and we are now taking actions to address your suggestions. We were pleased to learn that 53 per cent of respondents read their Checkups every week, with a further 19 per cent reporting that they read them most weeks. Overall, 54 per cent were satisfied … Read More
Access digital short stories and bolster your resilience
Once upon a time (recently, actually), VPSA’s Community Building & Wellness (CB&W) Task Group approved funding for Short Story Disc, a digital service from which VMDAS members can download unlimited content for free on their smartphone and take story reading to a whole new level. The service offers bites of literature in one-, three- or five-minute reading times. There’s access to thousands of fiction and creative non-fiction works written by … Read More
Visual cognitive aids now accompany VGH emergency tracheostomy packs thanks to VPSA-funded project
Before joining the Anesthesiology Department at VGH, Dr. Shamir Karmali worked in the UK as a critical physician and anesthesiologist. It was standard practice there for visual cognitive aids to accompany the emergency tracheostomy pack of all patients who had a tracheostomy or laryngectomy. Dr. Karmali believed adopting such a practice here would enhance patient safety. To achieve this goal, he applied for and received funding from VPSA’s Small Steps, … Read More
VA Provider Digital Health Committee July meeting summary
The VA Provider Digital Health (DHC) Committee meets monthly; members work to identify digital changes that would be most helpful to providers. VPSA provides sessional funding to the nine physician representatives on the committee for time spent in meetings and doing other committee work. The following is a summary of the committee’s July 9th meeting. Telephone and verbal orders Members of the Nursing Professional Practice team gave an update on … Read More
Mentorship program encourages leadership diversity
Diversity at leadership levels makes for stronger organizations. To ensure our health-care system is better able to address the challenges it is facing, we need voices with different ideas and approaches. Seven VPSA members participated in the third annual VCH EDI Physician Leadership Mentorship Program, an initiative of the VCH EDI Medical Staff Committee, as both mentors and mentees. Their experiences show that our health authority supports new and emerging … Read More