Author: UBC Abbotsford-Mission Family Practice Residency Program

“The problem with race medicine extends far beyond misdiagnosing patients. Its focus on innate racial differences in disease diverts attention and resources from the social determinants that cause appalling racial gaps in health: lack of access to high-quality medical care; food deserts in poor neighborhoods; exposure to environmental toxins; high rates of incarceration; and experiencing the stress of racial discrimination.

You see, race is not a biological category that naturally produces these health disparities because of genetic difference. Race is a social category that has staggering biological consequences, but because of the impact of social inequality on people’s health. Yet race medicine pretends the answer to these gaps in health can be found in a race-specific pill. It’s much easier and more lucrative to market a technological fix for these gaps in health than to deal with the structural inequities that produce them.”

More on Dr. Dorothy Roberts TEDTalk on “The Problem with Race-Based Medicine” here.

“’Long-term care facilities are home to some of society’s most vulnerable—often frail seniors with pre-existing health conditions, including dementia and Alzheimer’s. These seniors depend on their loved ones for social companionship, and right now those usual ways of connection are gone,’ says UBC’s Dr. Roger Wong, clinical professor of geriatric medicine in the faculty of medicine, who is helping lead the new initiative.
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Over the coming months, the Connecting with Compassion team will deliver new iPads to long-term care homes across the province in hopes of facilitating virtual visits and connections among family and friends. The iPads will arrive pre-loaded with videoconferencing programs, like FaceTime, Zoom and Skype, as well as a host of other apps designed to keep seniors engaged. The iPads will also come complete with recorded performances by students from UBC’s School of Music—including harpist Hayley Farenholtz.
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As part of the initiative, UBC medical students based in communities across the province will be playing an active role, volunteering their time to virtually visit and connect with residents in long-term care homes every week.”

Learn more here on “Helping seniors in long-term care combat social isolation during COVID-19” via UBC News.

For more information, please visit here.

Starts today! “The COVID-19 crisis has created an unprecedented need for contact tracing across the country, requiring thousands of people to learn key skills quickly. The job qualifications for contact tracing positions differ throughout the country and the world, with some new positions open to individuals with a high school diploma or equivalent.”

Learn more and enroll here.

The Practice Survival Skills Conference is put on by the UBC Continuing Professional Development (CPD) unit and covers a broad range of topics essential to starting your medical practice.
Date:  June 27, 2020
Time:  12:00 – 4:00 PM
Location:  VIRTUAL
Course content
Register here.
Topics covered:
o What Family Physicians and Specialists Need to Know About the RACE Line
o Practice Pitfalls: Privacy and Electronic Communication with Patients
o Dollars and Sense: Preparing for an MSP Audit
o Specialist Billing
o Rural Locums – How They Work and Why You Need to Do One
o Licensing, Billing, and Credentialing in BC – Essentials for Residents

Please note that the “Give Resources” above pertain to the GTA. For BC Women’s Hospital + Health Centre Violence Against Women resources, please visit here.

Those of you who were unable to attend Dr. Krystine Sambor’s Faculty Development Webinar on “The Virtual Resident: Tips and tricks for teaching in a virtual care environment” can access the video and the “Preparing for a Virtual Resident Checklist” here.