You are only seeing posts authors requested be public.
Register and Login to participate in discussions with colleagues.
News Showcase
Have you ever felt overwhelmed by the growing list of names for different generations; boomers, gen-X, millenials, zoomers and what follows? Here are a couple of links that may help.
Does the BC NDP's new legislation: Bill 36 - Health Professions and Occupations Act, introduced on October 19, 2022, set the stage for political interference in the licensing of physicians and other health professionals? Under sections 519 to 532 of the proposed Act, the Cabinet can make changes to the regulations including disciplinary measures, the composition of discipline panels and the oversight of complaints. In BC, will politics trump science when it comes to health professionals?
Dr Z. Essak, MD - Vancouver, BC - May 20, 2022
As it hurtles ever faster at us will Artificial Intelligence merge with human genetics or will it be artificial stupidity? See the episode "The Machine That Feels" on CBC The Nature of Things. How AI has been applied to complete Beethoven's Tenth Symphony and how the future might combine genetic material with AI leading to new hybrid life forms. Is it no longer a question of if but when will this happen? Are we going to become these new beings? Do we need to remember who and what we are now, because it will soon be gone?
When it comes to the privacy of personal health information everyone in British Columbia needs to know how FIPPA (also known as FOIPPA) is different from PIPA, and the same may apply in other jurisdictions across Canada and elsewhere.
You hate those ads and pesky messages from Google, but you’ve become increasingly dependent on their services, right? Cloud storage, Gmail, Google Calendar and so on have just become so necessary that you feel you have to put up with the intrusions on your privacy and constant marketing of 'stuf', and being stalked by trackers everywhere you go? Well, there are alternatives, but one is growing rapidly and can do everything you want and need without those downsides: the eFoundation (Android) operating system.
There is a sleeping sickness throughout our land. It has found its way into health care and affected all the doctors. It is not some esoteric thing happening in some small political arena or lawyers club. This impacts all of BC and all of us: the ability of doctors to practice medicine the way they were taught and trained, according to their conscience and oath for the benefit of patients.News Items
Telehealth, what does it mean?
Public
With tongue in cheek some might say it was about time we made more use of the tech we've got and now here we are all using telehealth. What does it mean? What does it look like? How does it work?
Society-changing infections - parallels to the polio epidemic of 1927
Public
Poliomyelitis – a.k.a. “The Crippler” or “infantile paralysis” - is a viral disease that primarily, and quite harmlessly, infects the gastrointestinal system. But if the poliovirus survives and is able to enter the bloodstream and nervous system it can cause damage to motor neurons in the spinal cord that connect the brain to muscles. Such damage interferes with muscle control, causing weakness or paralysis.
- Richard Merchant's blog
- Login or register to post comments
The Future of Psychiatry?
Public
Dr. Chris Sedergreen.
A highly respected psychiatrist has recently sent a letter to her patients announcing her decision not to return to clinical practice. I've known her professionally for over 15 years and can attest that her departure will leave a gap in her patient's lives that will be almost impossible to fill.
Will we see changes to copyright laws in Canada?
Public
2019-06-21 Vancouver, BC
Canadian copyright laws were updated in 2012. Now, in 2019, two Canadian Parliamentary Standing Committees delivered reports with recommendations on changes to copyright laws in Canada.
Will we see any changes to the copyright laws in the near future?
What are ethics and why are they important?
Public
2019-03-12 Dr Z.Essak, MD - Vancouver, BC
Ethics are a big part of our lives as principles that govern our actions. Doctors take an oath to serve the patient's interest and not their own or that of others.
It doesn't just apply to doctors. We expect ethics in people involved with our daily lives: teachers, accountants, professionals, merchants and others. It is the basis of the trust we have in them. We depend on them as people with privilege and power over ourselves, children and others.
We also expect ethics in politics, in technology, in corporations and the list goes on. People are growing more concerned about the decline of ethical leadership in politics and also business tech giants like Facebook, Google and others.
What happens when an individual's actions run contrary to ethical principles?
Media depiction of Flu shot technique
Public
David Naismith (retired physician), Vernon BC, January 15, 2019.
On January 11th I was so disturbed by the portrayal of health professionals on TV, both in adverts and on the National, that I fired off an email to some colleagues. As usual, I learnt something as the thread progressed, so here is a distillate of that exchange.
"Cracked Science" light-hearted in-depth science for everyone
Public
The youtube channel "Cracked Science" with Jonathan Jerry provides some good humour and scientific knowledge in ten minute episodes to bring you up to speed and get you thinking.
Take a look at CRISPR is a Puppy and learn how gene therapy may be applied to human diseases.
Another episode helps to debunk the media hype on the discovery of a new human organ - "the Interstitium, the largest organ we never knew we had", Does a New Organ Explain Acupuncture? While some of this is opinionated to the reporter's own views on acupuncture, the evidence of the Interstitium is a good reminder of what we already know.
Are medical errors the third leading cause of death or disability and what can we do to protect ourselves?
Public
Dr Z. Essak, MD - Vancouver BC - March 4, 2018
The TEDx Stanley Park event at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Vancouver on Saturday March 3, 2018 was incredible with 13 (a bakers dozen) memorable and inspiring speakers and 4 brief, fun energerizer programs to keep the audience engaged. Two of the presentations addressed medical errors.
With cancer as the leading cause of death and heart disease as the second leading cause, medical errors are referred to by some as the third leading cause of death and disability.
Whether errors are third or not, it makes sense that anything that helps to reduce or prevent medical errors is worth pursuing. Every error that can be prevented has direct benefit to individuals and their families.
Celebrating and helping caregivers
Public
Dr Z. Essak, MD - Vancouver BC - February 16, 2018
According to Statistics Canada there are eight million caregivers in Canada. Most are unpaid, regular people who are taking care of aging and ailing parents, children with disabilities, and friends who need them. Caregivers get little or no attention, despite their massive numbers.
Some caregivers find inspiration and friendship from those they care for and some find themselves with personal challenges through caring for others. Healthcare providers may experience the same themselves and see this in those they serve.
Sharing caregivers' stories may help others find inspiration or recognize the impact on themselves and what they might be able to do.
