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In today’s message you will find:

• DRMB Golf Tournament Info — Join us for the 2023 Doctors Manitoba Getting Healthy Golf Tournament on September 5 at Southwood Golf and Country Club.
• Top 40 Under 40 Deadline Approaching — Nominate a deserving physician, resident or student under the age of 40!
• Physician(s) of the Week — Meet this week’s Physician of the Week, Dr. Yasser Elsayed and learn about last week’s Physician of the week, Dr. Richard Morrow.
• Fantastic Physicians — Congrats to Dr. Brandy Wicklow and Dr. Yasser Elsayed for receiving Pediatric Charis of Canada awards. 
• Health System Updates — West Nile detected in MB, Insulin Pump prescribing update, support for IMGs, Shared Health Critical Incident Report, Premiers to meet in MB next week to discuss increased federal funding for health care, and Manitoba Heart Failure Survey 2023. 
• ICYMI
• Events

Join us at our Golf Tournament!

Join us for our Doctors Manitoba Getting Health Golf Tournament, presented by MD Financial and Scotiabank with support from Bokhaut CPA!

This member golf tournament is an idea that came to us from members looking for more opportunities to connect with colleagues outside of work. 

Don’t wait to register, as space is limited. If you’re putting together a foursome but don’t have all four names yet, you can buy the tickets now and add names and details later. 

Key Details:

• When: Tuesday September 5
• Where: Southwood Golf and Country Club in St. Norbert.
• Cost: $190 each, includes a full 18 holes, power cart, lunch and dinner, and more
• Register now!
  

New to golf? You’re not alone and you’re welcome! The tournament format is friendly for less experienced golf players, with a shotgun start and a best-ball scramble format. 

Proceeds from the golf tournament will support the Doctors Manitoba public awareness campaigns and resources about healthy living and disease prevention, a physician-led initiative. 

Experienced golfer? You’ll fit in. Southwood is a premier championship course with challenging holes. 

Register now!

Top 40 Under 40 Deadline Approaching

Nominations for our Top 40 under 40 awards are due July 13!

Be sure to get your nomination for an up-and-coming student, resident, or early career physician for our Top 40 Under 40 award!This award is not just about achievements and excellence in medicine, it’s also about the potential and dedication young physicians and learners demonstrate. And, it’s a special award for this year only.

Check out the inclusive eligibility and simple nomination form for the Doctors Manitoba Top 40 Under 40! Nominations are due by July 13.

This fall we will host an event to celebrate the Top 40 Under 40 physicians and medical learners in our province. Do you know an incredible physician or medical learner under the age of 40 who is making waves? We want to hear about them. Nominate them today.

Physician of the Week

This week’s Physician of the Week, Dr. Yasser Elsayed is a dedicated, innovative, award-winning neonatologist who has put Manitoba on the map for his internationally renowned fellowship program and his creation of a ground-breaking program that integrate clinical and hemodynamic assessment with near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) of the newborn brain and kidney: the first approach of its kind in the world. Dr. Elsayed chose to practice medicine because ​“health is the most valuable thing in our life.” He feels rewarded in helping the ​“tiniest patients who cannot express their source of pain and suffering” and celebrates alongside their families when sick patients recover and return home safe and able to continue normal life. 

Last week’s Physician of the Week was Dr. Richard Morrow, a family physician who specilizes in addictions. Dr. Morrow thrives on supporting patients and says​“there are few professions like Medicine that incorporate the physical, mental, spiritual, and emotional aspects of the human experience, and I think that profound impact is really something I’ve always wanted to be a part of.” He feels energized and inspired when helping patients navigate addictions and says he is privileged to walk alongside them and celebrate their progress. Through creating an online networking group for new-to-Manitoba Residents, and the creation of a resource website for health care in Northern Manitoba, Dr. Morrow is proud to have built strong access points, resources, and informatics to save residents, providers, and the public time and energy. 

> Read more about Dr. Elsayed, Dr. Morrow and other Physician of the Week recipients here.

> Suggest a colleague for this unique recognition here.

Fantastic Physicians

Congratulations to Dr. Brandy Wicklow who is the recipient of the Pediatric Chairs of Canada’s 2023 Leadership Clinician Practitioner Award. Dr. Wicklow’s research is focused on the determinants of type 2 diabetes in children with a particular interest in the Indigenous population of Northern Manitoba.

Congratulations to Dr. Yasser Elsayed, our Physician of the Week AND the recipient of the Pediatric Chairs of Canada’s 2023 Emerging Academic Leader award for his work in integrated hemodynamics and newborn health. He is currently studying the impact of oxygen therapy on brain autoregulation in preterm infants with hypoxemic respiratory failure.

Health System Updates

West Nile Detected

Manitoba Health reports that Culex tarsalis mosquitoes carrying the West Nile virus (WNV) were collected from the Rural Municipality of West St. Paul during the week of June 18 to 24. This is the first mosquito pool that has tested positive in Manitoba this season.

The first positive pool was detected earlier than normal this year, likely due to warmer temperatures in southern Manitoba this spring and summer. There have only been three other times in the last 20 years where a positive mosquito pool was detected during this week. 

While Manitobans are encouraged to enjoy outdoor activities, it is critical to reduce the risk of mosquito bites and potential exposure to WNV by:

• reducing the amount of time spent outdoors during peak mosquito hours between dusk and dawn;
• using an appropriate mosquito repellent;
• wearing light-coloured, loose-fitting clothing with long sleeves and pant legs;
• maintaining door and window screens; and
• cleaning and emptying yard items that collect water.

Read the full Public Health bulletin.

Insulin Pump Prescribing Update

Shared Health has revised its Standards for Continuous Subcutaneous Insulin Infusion (Insulin Pump) Therapy for Adult Patients with Type 1 Diabetes Provincial Clinical Standard. The revision is to section 2.1.4 and clarifies which providers are considered a ​“diabetes specialist” to implement an insulin pump with a patient. The new language defines a diabetes specialist as:

1. An Endocrinologist, or 
2. A medical practitioner (General Internist or Family Physician) who meets all three of the following: 

1. 1. Has a close working relationship with a diabetes educator/​diabetes education program with experience in Type 1 Diabetes management and insulin pump therapy
   2. Has received training in insulin pump management, and
   3. Is registered with an insulin pump program. 

Read the entire Shared Health bulletin.

New Supports for IMGs

The Manitoba government is launching the new Manitoba Careers for Internationally Educated Professionals Program to help reduce financial barriers associated with foreign qualification recognition.The program will provide eligible internationally educated professionals with up to $23,000 in financial assistance toward assessment and training costs associated with registering in one of Manitoba’s 28 non-nursing self-regulated professions.

To be eligible for the program, professionals must have already started the registration process and have an assessment decision letter from their profession’s regulatory body. The program will support professionals who are able to complete the registration process in a timely manner and intend to work in Manitoba after registration, noted the minister. The new Manitoba Careers for Internationally Educated Professionals Program is modelled on the successful Internationally Educated Nurses (IENs) in Manitoba Project, which launched in 2021 to support eligible IENs with financial assistance to pursue registration. To date, that initiative has provided support to over 250 IENs.

Doctors Manitoba welcomed the additional support. ​“The process to have foreign credentials recognized here in Manitoba has been far too complicated and lengthy for qualified international medical graduates,” explained our President, Dr. Michael Boroditsky. ​“Doctors Manitoba has advocated for this process to be streamlined, especially as Manitoba faces a record shortage of physicians. We are pleased to see the government taking steps today to support qualified internationally educated physicians have their foreign credentials recognized here so they can start caring for patients sooner. “

Read the full press release.

Meanwhile, the federal government announced a new fast track immigration option for health workers a few days ago, an initiative that will include foreign doctors, nurses, dentists, pharmacists and others to help address the shortage in health human resources. 

Doctors Manitoba has advocated for changes like this, including a recommendation in our Rural Health Summit last year. 

ER Critical Incident Report Released 

A critical incident review into the circumstances and contributing factors surrounding the death of a patient in HSC Winnipeg’s emergency department earlier this year has resulted in a number of recommendations and learnings presented to facility leadership.

The report made three recommendations. They are:

• Shared Health continue work to address patient flow challenges at HSC Winnipeg, working in partnership with health system service delivery organizations to improve patient flow across the health system and alleviate emergency department backlog;

• HSC Winnipeg review patient assessment practices as well as workflows for ordering of tests; and

• HSC Winnipeg update standard work processes for classifications of staff in the adult emergency department.

All recommendations have been accepted and work has begun on implementing the necessary changes, including the creation of over-capacity protocols that trigger the rapid movement of stable patients to non-traditional areas of patient care or to alternate locations during a significant surge in patient demand/​backlog.

Read the full report.

Premiers Meet Next Week

Canada’s Premiers will meet next week in Winnipeg for the annual Council of the Federation meeting. Premiers were instrumental in advocating for increased federal funding for health care last year, a cause Doctors Manitoba joined along with many other organizations. Yesterday, the CMA the released a series of ambitious targets that governments can use to drive health system improvements. These targets build on the conditions included in the federal, provincial and territorial bilateral agreements on health. They are key to turning our health care systems around, and they build on solutions the CMA has long been advocating for such as pan-Canadian health workforce planning, scaling up team-based primary care, expanding the mobility of health professionals and virtual care, advancing reconciliation in the health system and increasing accountability and responsibility throughout the health system. The CMA is also calling on governments to engage Canadians in their respective health care systems, keeping them informed about progress made and improving accountability across the health system.

You can read the full news release here and find the full report here.

Manitoba Heart Failure Survey 2023 

The Heart Failure Action Plan for Canada (HFAPC) is a collaborative movement to drive increased integration and coordination of heart failure systems of care in Canada. The HFAPC aims to achieve equitable and timely access to all levels of heart failure care and optimal support and outcomes for people living with heart failure, their families, and caregivers. The HFACP considers the organization and delivery of healthcare at multiple levels, and national momentum will be leveraged to develop and advance provincial and regional heart failure systems of care. 

As part of the aligned provincial work, we invite family physicians and others connected to heart failure care in Manitoba to participate in this brief survey to help inform the priorities and next steps for Manitoba’s Heart Failure Action Plan. Please complete the survey by Friday, July 28, 2023 and please reach out to Christine Houde at christine.​houde@​heartandstroke.​ca or (204) 924‑4168 with any questions. 

ICYMI

• Virtual visit changes have been postponed until July 31, including changes that would clarify the use of comprehensive virtual assessments. 
• See our update last week about how negotiations for the next Master Agreement are intensifying.
• New colon cancer screening test and requisition form has been rolled out. See the details here.
• Join the Physicians for the Environment!
• Funds Available for Rural Practice Training — The Society of Rural Physicians of Canada has received funding to reimburse rural physicians, including specialists, who are interested in advanced skills training.
• COVID & Flu Vaccine Updates — There’s a new ordering process beginning this fall, Bivalent is now recommended for primary series, and the Janssen vaccine has been discontinued.
• Physicians for the Environment — The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) is inviting colleagues to join the Manitoba chapter.
• CPSM Fee Rebate applications are open. Learn more.

Upcoming Events

Events can always be found on our website in the events calendar. If you have an event you’d like to share with members and have included in our calendar, forward all the information to general@​doctorsmanitoba.​ca.

Events of Note

Bug Day — Mark your calendars for 2023 27^th Annual Bug Day! — October 17 7:55am-4pm — Held Virtually.

Interested in the prevention and control of communicable diseases, and health issues in the community or healthcare setting? Bug Day is for you! Nationally and internationally recognized experts will present timely topics in infectious diseases and public health at Manitoba’s largest healthcare education event. Held every year during National Infection Prevention & Control Week, Bug Day is streamed online – it’s FREE, accredited, and you’re invited!

The programme is accredited for physicians and can be used for continuing education purposes by other health care workers. There is no charge, but you must register to attend the live sessions. You can make a donation directly to the HSC Foundation Bug Day fund. Click here to visit the donation page. This donation page will automatically generate a confirmation email and a tax receipt. Register here.

Doctors Manitoba Golf Tournament — September 5, 2023

Join us and connect with colleagues at our 2023 Getting Healthy Gold tournament at one of Manitoba’s premier championship courses, offering a fun non-competitive event open to all skill levels. This exciting event is an opportunity to connect with your colleagues. Facilities open at 11am | Lunch service between 11:15am – 12:45pm | Shotgun Start at 1PM | Dinner served following play Register now!

Other Events

• Black Physicians of Canada Conference — October 12 – 15 — Toronto
• National Pancreas Conference — November 18 & 19 — In-Person (MTL) and virtual
• The Difference Between Moral Injury & PTSD — July 13 from 11am-12pm

Canadians are living longer. How does that impact my retirement savings?

Sponsored Content — MD Financial

Retirees want to know how much they need to save to live a comfortable lifestyle, and whether their savings are enough to last a lifetime. A good retirement plan aims to find a balance between the two. Here are six considerations that can help improve the odds you won’t outlive your savings.