In late July of this year, the inquiry report in response to the Wettlaufer case was made public (Public Inquiry into the Safety and Security of Residents in the Long-Term Care Homes System). The recommendations contained within the report are intended to address the factors that contributed to this tragedy, and although its focus is […]
On the two year anniversary of the enacting of federal legislation on Medical Assistance in Dying (M.A.I.D), Health Canada published its third interim report(1). This report provides insight into how many medically-assisted deaths have taken place, the settings in which they occurred, the individual’s age and gender, as well as the most common underlying medical […]
Academic integrity – or lack thereof – appears to have become a very serious issue for colleges and universities throughout North America. In 2015, Dartmouth College (a private Ivy League in New Hampshire) suspended 64 students for cheating – in an ethics class!(1) (I have included a reference here for fear of being accused of […]
Elizabeth Wettlaufer, former registered nurse, is back in the news again this week with the opening of the Long-Term Care Homes Public Inquiry. Ms. Wettlaufer – in case you have forgotten – pled guilty to eight counts of 1st degree murder, four counts of attempted murder and two counts of aggravated assault back in June […]
A couple of weeks ago, I had the opportunity to listen to an excellent presentation given by Dr. Brian Hodges from the University Health Network. His talk provided a thought provoking exploration into the types of competencies health care practitioners will need in the not so distant future – and these competencies are quite different […]
Do you know what I think is most surprising about the recent Harvey Weinstein scandal? Absolutely nothing. Same story; different day. It was Bill Cosby and Bill O’Reilly last week and its Harvey Weinstein this week. Guaranteed it will be someone else next week. And these are just the men who are rich and powerful […]
Social media was abuzz last week over the Utah burn unit nurse who was arrested for protecting the rights of her patient. The story goes that a police officer (who apparently was a part-time paramedic) wanted to take a blood sample from an unconscious patient who was injured in a deadly collision involving another driver […]
It seems that facts are having a tough time of it lately. For the first time, we are hearing phrases like “fake news” and “alternative facts”. Lies repeated frequently enough (or loudly enough) are often taken to be the truth – especially if these fabrications come from celebrities (I mean, how else can Gwyneth Paltrow […]
At the most recent CSRT conference, I attended a talk by Brian Walsh (President of the American Association of Respiratory Care) entitled “The Professional Road Ahead”. The purpose of Brian’s presentation was to look at some of the ways that RTs have the potential to make a significant impact – not just in the lives […]
From time to time I hear from RRTs who have a variety of concerns about teaching student RTs. I think one of the reasons for this is that it is often a role that we have not taken on before. One day we are a squeaky clean new grad and before we know it, we […]
