Nursing / en Nursing PhD graduate creates toolkit to improve communication for ICU patients /news/nursing-phd-graduate-creates-toolkit-improve-communication-icu-patients <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Nursing PhD graduate creates toolkit to improve communication for ICU patients</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2023-06/L_Istanboulian_headshot-crop.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=vlH9E2kP 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2023-06/L_Istanboulian_headshot-crop.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=WUR7lS9E 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2023-06/L_Istanboulian_headshot-crop.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=wcz9rzu5 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2023-06/L_Istanboulian_headshot-crop.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=vlH9E2kP" alt="&quot;&quot;"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>Christopher.Sorensen</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2023-06-06T13:02:11-04:00" title="Tuesday, June 6, 2023 - 13:02" class="datetime">Tue, 06/06/2023 - 13:02</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item"><p><em>Laura Istanboulian, a new graduate of the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing, created a “communication bundle” to help solve a decades-old problem in hospital ICUs (supplied photo)</em></p> </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/rebecca-biason" hreflang="en">Rebecca Biason</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/our-community" hreflang="en">Our Community</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/taxonomy/term/6899" hreflang="en">Convocation 2023</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/graduate-students" hreflang="en">Graduate Students</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/lawrence-s-bloomberg-faculty-nursing" hreflang="en">Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/medical-research" hreflang="en">Medical Research</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nursing" hreflang="en">Nursing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/phd" hreflang="en">PhD</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/research-innovation" hreflang="en">Research &amp; Innovation</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">Nurse practitioner Laura Istanboulian worked with patients, families and health-care professionals to co-design new tools that can better support patients</div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Already juggling a career as a nurse practitioner, marriage, two kids and aging parents, <strong>Laura Istanboulian</strong> wondered if she was too old&nbsp;– or if it was too late&nbsp;– to pursue her doctorate in nursing science.</p> <p>Yet it had been her dream to complete her PhD – and as a nurse, she was motivated to situate her research around her patients. She was specifically interested in addressing a decades-old problem in hospital intensive care units (ICUs) that makes it difficult for&nbsp;individuals who require a ventilator to communicate with their health-care providers.</p> <p>Istanboulian decided to pursue her doctorate, making it her objective to&nbsp;reframe communication as something essential to a quality patient experience.</p> <p>While in the program, she co-designed and implemented a bundled communication toolkit for ICU patients as part of her PhD at the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing.</p> <p>The bundle is a portable, multi-modal set of tools that Istanboulian co-designed with nurses, patients and their families.&nbsp;Each item in the bundle is evidence-based in supporting the communication needs of patients&nbsp;– including alphabet boards, blank boards for writing on, writing tools like markers and pencils, a pain scale, a basic needs scale and some pre-translated boards in multiple languages.</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-left"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/2023-06/L_I_copestudy-demo-2-crop.jpg" width="300" height="394" alt="&quot;&quot;"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>Istanboulian </em><em>using tools from the bundle to communicate with a patient in the ICU (supplied photo)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>The bundle also contains six short education modules for staff to gain a better understanding of how to use each tool option to best support a patient.</p> <p>“I was not trying to invent something brand-new&nbsp;– these tools existed already, but it became necessary to have them contained in one convenient and accessible location, and to also make providers aware of the need to make an effort to communicate with ventilated patients,” Istanboulian explains.</p> <p>When a patient is on a ventilator, no air can pass over their vocal cords – meaning that they cannot speak. They might make efforts to communicate&nbsp;– but that requires both interpretation and time from the health-care provider, which is not always available, Istanboulian says.</p> <p>Some patients may also have cognitive impairments or brain dysfunction from their illness or medical condition, making communication that much harder&nbsp;– and their fear from not knowing what is going on even more palpable.</p> <p>Istanboulian notes that limited communication with a patient can also affect care providers.</p> <p>“It can be intimidating caring for someone when you cannot explain what it is happening to them or understand what they are trying to say,” she says.</p> <p>Istanboulian recounts a moment when she used the new communication tools to try to understand one of her clients, who could not speak or hear.</p> <p>“On the blank board, he wrote, ‘Thank you so much for taking the time.’ I took a photo of that and it hangs by my desk, because it is a reminder that this effort to communicate really mattered to this person&nbsp;– and it also tells me that this doesn’t happen as a rule,” she says.</p> <p>“As nurses and physicians, we might be doing the best for them medically, but if patients don’t understand what is happening to them, they can feel very unsafe and alone.”</p> <p>Developing the communication bundle was not without its challenges, especially as Istanboulian began her PhD just as the COVID-19 pandemic began to unfold.</p> <figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-media align-right"> <div> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/2023-06/L_I_cope-study-demo-5-crop.jpg" width="300" height="400" alt="&quot;&quot;"> </div> </div> <figcaption><em>The bundled toolkit in a central location on a hospital unit (supplied photo)</em></figcaption> </figure> <p>“Laura overcame significant obstacles posed by the global pandemic to complete her doctoral research,” says Istanboulian’s supervisor <a href="https://bloomberg.nursing.utoronto.ca/faculty/craig-dale/"><strong>Craig Dale</strong></a>, an associate professor in the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing.</p> <p>“She designed, implemented and evaluated this communication-support intervention for mechanically ventilated adult patients in the ICU and the outcome of her research has the potential to be implemented in ICUs worldwide&nbsp;– a positive impact that extends well beyond the pandemic.”</p> <p>Despite the constantly shifting policies around visitors and isolation requirements for the ICU, Istanboulian found most families, patients and nurses were more than willing to help her design the new tools.</p> <p>“They really wanted to engage in this process&nbsp;– which was so profound to me, because it showed how much everyone wanted to see this issue of communication addressed,” Istanboulian says.</p> <p>Families and caregivers offered helpful tips for nurses on providing phone updates on loved ones, and nurses were able to speak to what they would find most helpful in using the bundle, including how to easily share some of the online tools using the internal hospital intranet.</p> <p>Following the initial success of the tools, Istanboulian is keen to scale up the bundle so that it is accessible to larger units in the hospital – and eventually available across multiple hospital sites within the health-care system.</p> <p>Istanboulian says one of the key lessons she learned from the project was that the toolkit does require tailoring to local environments in order to meet the needs of the end users. She is currently working with an international group of researchers who are developing core outcomes for communications research in critical care and recommendations that will assist in scaling up the bundle.</p> <p>Her work with researcher <a href="https://ihpme.utoronto.ca/faculty-profile/smith-kelly/"><strong>Dr. Kelly Smith</strong></a> – a specialist in health-care quality and patient safety who is an associate professor and co-lead for outcomes and evaluation at U of T's <a href="https://ihpme.utoronto.ca/">Institute of&nbsp;Health Policy, Management &amp; Evaluation</a>&nbsp;– will also help to determine how patients and family members interpret communication as a safety issue and help reframe communication as something that many see as simply "nice to have," Istaboulian says, to something essential to a patient's experience.</p> <p>As Istanboulian embarks on life after her PhD, which includes ongoing research and a new position as an assistant professor at Toronto Metropolitan University, she's grateful for the many people that helped her on her path to graduating with her doctorate.</p> <p>“My wife was my No. 1 – she was always making space for me to be able to write or research. My supervisor and clinical supervisor were so supportive of me not only conducting the research, but maintaining my clinical practice; and my parents were so proud of me,” Istanboulian says.</p> <p>“I’m not sure everyone is as fortunate to have that level of support&nbsp;– and I think that was really the recipe for this dream becoming a reality.”</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Tue, 06 Jun 2023 17:02:11 +0000 Christopher.Sorensen 301889 at Nursing Week: Women's health advocate Sheila Tlou on breaking barriers in the fight for global health equity /news/nursing-week-women-s-health-advocate-sheila-tlou-breaking-barriers-fight-global-health-equity <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Nursing Week: Women's health advocate Sheila Tlou on breaking barriers in the fight for global health equity</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2023-05/e07fb8e1-00-sheila-tlou-a-giant-in-africas-aids-response-crop.jpeg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=3RHD3E12 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2023-05/e07fb8e1-00-sheila-tlou-a-giant-in-africas-aids-response-crop.jpeg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=ncmn0za6 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2023-05/e07fb8e1-00-sheila-tlou-a-giant-in-africas-aids-response-crop.jpeg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=A2V4fJfj 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2023-05/e07fb8e1-00-sheila-tlou-a-giant-in-africas-aids-response-crop.jpeg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=3RHD3E12" alt="Sheila Tlou"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>siddiq22</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2023-05-08T10:15:02-04:00" title="Monday, May 8, 2023 - 10:15" class="datetime">Mon, 05/08/2023 - 10:15</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item"><p>Sheila Tlou, Botswana's former minister of health, will give a keynote address on May 9 as part of National Nursing Week at the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing (supplied image)</p> </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/rebecca-biason" hreflang="en">Rebecca Biason</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/global-lens" hreflang="en">Global Lens</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/africa" hreflang="en">Africa</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/aids" hreflang="en">AIDS</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/lawrence-s-bloomberg-faculty-nursing" hreflang="en">Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nursing" hreflang="en">Nursing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/united-nations" hreflang="en">United Nations</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/women-s-health" hreflang="en">Women's Health</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/world-health-organization" hreflang="en">World Health Organization</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>The Ƶ's <a href="https://bloomberg.nursing.utoronto.ca/">Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing</a> will mark <a href="https://www.cna-aiic.ca/en/news-events/national-nursing-week">National Nursing Week</a> with a keynote address&nbsp;by Sheila Tlou, Botswana's former minister of health.</p> <p>Over the past few decades, Tlou&nbsp;–&nbsp;a professor, nurse, HIV prevention advocate and artist&nbsp;–&nbsp;has merged her talents as a leader in health policy and community theatre to bring about lasting change in health outcomes in eastern and southern Africa.</p> <p>“Nurses are a formidable and passionate force, and I say to all the young nurses out there, 'We can make an impact anywhere and everywhere we go,'” Tlou says.</p> <p>Tlou will speak <a href="https://bloomberg.nursing.utoronto.ca/event/bloomberg-nursing-week-2023-keynote-lecture/">on May 9 at Innis College</a>, sharing stories of her own experience as a changemaker in global health&nbsp;through her work with the World Health Organization (WHO), UNAIDS&nbsp;and the International Council of Nurses (ICN), where she has tackled issues around HIV transmission and prevention&nbsp;– particularly&nbsp;in women and children.</p> <p>Of her many accomplishments, which have included being a member of parliament for the Republic of Botswana&nbsp;and director of a WHO nursing and midwifery initiative for anglophone Africa, Tlou says that she is most proud of her work saving the lives of children and their mothers by significantly lowering rates of HIV transmission in communities in Botswana.</p> <p>When Tlou first became Botwana's&nbsp;minister of health in 2004, the rate of mother-to-child HIV transmission was very high. To address this urgent issue, Tlou created a comprehensive HIV/AIDS&nbsp;prevention strategy that included engaging with community members and leaders prior to&nbsp;rolling out an education and awareness campaign focused on HIV testing for pregnant women, as well as treatment with antiretrovirals.</p> <p>By speaking with women and those supporting them in child-rearing – including partners and mothers-in-law&nbsp;– Tlou and her team of nurses, nurse practitioners&nbsp;and midwives were able to change the stigma around HIV and encourage early testing, shifting the community’s perspective and focus onto efforts that helped women birth healthy babies.</p> <p>This community-engaged approach successfully reduced the rate of mother-to-child transmission of the disease from 30 per cent in 2003 to 8 per cent in 2008.</p> <p>“This success was really saying to the world, 'Look at what can be achieved in a resource-limited area through the intervention of nurses,'” Tlou says. “Now the rate of transmission is less than 1 per cent, and the stigma is so low that many women continue to get tested.&nbsp;However the rates of infection of HIV among women remain very high, and that is still something that needs to be addressed.”</p> <p>Tlou's advocacy has always been centered around issues of gender and empowering women to improve their health through education. Before she became a nurse, Tlou was passionate about theatre, originally planning to become an actor or interpreter for the United Nations because of her love of languages.</p> <p>However, with only health sciences scholarships available to her as a young university student, Tlou entered the nursing program at Dillard University&nbsp;in New Orleans, opting to take public health and theatre as electives to foster her knack&nbsp;for engaging with people.</p> <p>After completing her master’s degree in nursing education and instruction from Columbia University in New York City, Tlou returned to Botswana to teach community-health nursing and also&nbsp;co-directed a travelling theatre group that performed plays&nbsp;– some which imparted&nbsp;health-focused messages about family planning and spacing out pregnancies.</p> <p>“Being able to take this practical public-health message out into the communities and villages was uplifting for the nursing students involved, because they could see the impact of community engagement from a nursing perspective,” Tlou says.</p> <p>Though now retired, Tlou&nbsp;– who taught at the University of Botswana for decades&nbsp;– continues to work as a consultant&nbsp;on&nbsp;health promotion strategy&nbsp;for organizations such as the African Union, the United Nations and the WHO on efforts to reduce&nbsp;deaths from malaria, in addition to her work on HIV/AIDS.</p> <p>During Nursing Week and beyond, Tlou wants nurses around the world to remember the importance not just of bedside care, but of community impact&nbsp;– and the ability of nurses to break down barriers that&nbsp;contribute to inequity in health care.</p> <p>“My advice to current and future nurses is to look at the UN Sustainable Development Goals in your region, meet with nursing associations and&nbsp;find your niche,” Tlou says.</p> <p>“As nurses, we need to make ourselves visible&nbsp;–&nbsp;and that includes in how we mentor the next generation."</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-add-new-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Add new story tags</div> <div class="field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/national-nursing-week" hreflang="en">National Nursing Week</a></div> </div> </div> Mon, 08 May 2023 14:15:02 +0000 siddiq22 301490 at 'I'm ready to get started': Two incoming students share why they decided to pursue careers in nursing /news/i-m-ready-get-started-two-incoming-students-share-why-they-decided-pursue-careers-nursing <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">'I'm ready to get started': Two incoming students share why they decided to pursue careers in nursing</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/patel-chiasson.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=em6uvACL 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/patel-chiasson.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=JspmOdhp 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/patel-chiasson.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=mUUqF4gQ 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/patel-chiasson.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=em6uvACL" alt="&quot;&quot;"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>Christopher.Sorensen</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2022-09-15T17:06:02-04:00" title="Thursday, September 15, 2022 - 17:06" class="datetime">Thu, 09/15/2022 - 17:06</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">Jinal Patel, left, and Conor Chiasson, right,&nbsp;are beginning an accelerated two-year bachelor of science in nursing program at U of T this fall (supplied images)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/rebecca-biason" hreflang="en">Rebecca Biason</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/our-community" hreflang="en">Our Community</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/lawrence-s-bloomberg-faculty-nursing" hreflang="en">Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nursing" hreflang="en">Nursing</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><strong>Jinal Patel</strong>&nbsp;never imagined she would become a nurse.</p> <p>While she knew she wanted a career in the health sciences after studying biomedical science&nbsp;at Toronto Metropolitan University, Patel says&nbsp;she was unsure of what that might entail – that is, until she volunteered at the Hospital for Sick Children.</p> <p>There, Patel says her interactions with patients and nurses soon set her on a path&nbsp;that led her to the Ƶ’s Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing.</p> <p>“That environment in the hospital and seeing how the nurses worked caring for their young patients made me want to apply to the nursing program at U of T right away,” she says.&nbsp;“So many of those nurses are graduates of this program&nbsp;– and I felt it was absolutely the right choice for me.</p> <p>“I want to be a nurse. I’m ready to get started.”</p> <p>Patel is one of several first-year U of T nursing students who&nbsp;are beginning their accelerated two-year bachelor of science in nursing (BScN) program this fall&nbsp;– a time when the nursing workforce is facing considerable challenges ranging from staff shortages to the pressures of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.</p> <p>In Patel’s case, she says her decision to pursue nursing also stemmed from another part of her life: a keen interest in serving others, inspired by her role model His Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj, the fifth spiritual successor and guru of the BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha.</p> <p>“Growing up my parents wanted me to experience my religion and culture, and when I went to the BAPS Swaminarayan Mandir in Toronto, I grew inspired by the relief work that H.H. Pramukh Swami Maharaj had done and his selflessness and humility in those acts of service,” says Patel. “That is something I want to bring to the forefront of my work as a nurse.”</p> <p>The BScN program at Bloomberg Nursing stood out to Patel for many reasons, including the varied types of learning opportunities offered within the program – from working closely with top-tier research faculty to taking part in hands-on learning in the simulation lab&nbsp;and highly sought-after clinical placements.</p> <p>While she says she is most excited about working with pediatric patients in acute care settings, Patel is open to the many possibilities available&nbsp;through the program and its placement partners. She is most looking forward to pursuing her studies amid the diversity of downtown Toronto and working, as well as networking, with people from all backgrounds.</p> <p>Incoming nursing student&nbsp;<strong>Conor Chiasson</strong>&nbsp;is similarly eager to make a difference in in the lives of patients – particularly people who are HIV-positive, unhoused&nbsp;or who identify as queer or racialized&nbsp; youth.</p> <p>He says his&nbsp;decision to pursue nursing stems from a series of life experiences, including&nbsp;studying in U of T’s bioethics program. That’s where&nbsp;he met his mentor Professor <strong>Elizabeth Peter</strong>, an ethicist and scholar at the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing.</p> <p>“Professor Peter really encouraged me to bridge my interest in ethics and women and gender studies with nursing and community care,” says Chiasson. “I thought that as a humanities student, nursing was not for me&nbsp;– but she saw my initiative and work ethic, and said, ‘I think you would be a great nurse.’”</p> <p>Chiasson’s interest in ethics complements his desire to make an impact and to be a leader in community health. He says he has witnessed first-hand the impact of the opioid crisis in Toronto and in rural Ontario. He adds that harm reduction has long been an interest,&nbsp;and that he hopes to continue to provide harm reduction care throughout his career as a community health nurse.</p> <p>“I want to ensure that any patient I give care to has informed consent, which is of particular importance in harm reduction,” says Chiasson. “I want them to understand what the treatment is, where it is going&nbsp;and how it will affect their life goals.</p> <p>“It is really about encouraging autonomy for these patients in addition to providing care.”</p> <p>Looking forward to his community health placement,&nbsp;Chiasson says he wants to help provide both face-to-face healing and upstream health-care solutions, including in the realm of&nbsp;policy. Upon graduation, he says&nbsp;he plans to work at a safe injection site or community health outpatient clinic, and is also considering travel to Nunavut and the Northwest Territories to learn how he can support care in these communities.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Thu, 15 Sep 2022 21:06:02 +0000 Christopher.Sorensen 176601 at U of T nursing prof draws on video games to design learning simulations /news/u-t-nursing-prof-draws-video-games-design-learning-simulations <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">U of T nursing prof draws on video games to design learning simulations</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/nurse1-%28002%29-crop.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=vedkfQz9 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/nurse1-%28002%29-crop.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=_31BeqA3 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/nurse1-%28002%29-crop.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=Q1JvTd_F 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/nurse1-%28002%29-crop.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=vedkfQz9" alt="&quot;&quot;"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>geoff.vendeville</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2022-01-28T12:38:15-05:00" title="Friday, January 28, 2022 - 12:38" class="datetime">Fri, 01/28/2022 - 12:38</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">(Illustration by Han-Han Li)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/rebecca-biason" hreflang="en">Rebecca Biason</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/our-community" hreflang="en">Our Community</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/academics" hreflang="en">Academics</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/lawrence-s-bloomberg-faculty-nursing" hreflang="en">Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nursing" hreflang="en">Nursing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/teaching" hreflang="en">Teaching</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Simulation learning can be like a choose-your-own-adventure story: there are multiple decision points for a student to consider when they are in the simulation learning environment. This allows them to make clinical decisions while learning, providing them opportunities to see the outcomes of their actions, without fear of harming a real&nbsp;patient.</p> <div class="image-with-caption left"> <div><img class="migrated-asset" src="/sites/default/files/Cambly_Erica-reduced-crop.jpg" alt><em><span style="font-size:12px;">Erica Cambly</span></em></div> </div> <p>“Simulation allows students to make mistakes and get messy, try things as they learn, and make big decisions,” says <strong>Erica Cambly</strong>, an associate professor, teaching stream, at the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing. “Many of my students will comment on how much better prepared they were for a situation in clinical practice because they had already been exposed to something similar in a simulation and received feedback.”</p> <p>Cambly, who is also the lead of the simulation team in the bachelor of science in nursing program, has received a grant from the Colleges and Institutes of Canada (CICan) <a href="https://www.collegesinstitutes.ca/what-we-do/canadian-partnerships/virtu-wil/">Virtu-WIL program</a> funded by the Government of Canada, to create enhanced games for simulation learning for health sciences students, including nurses.</p> <p>Virtual simulation,&nbsp;much like video games,&nbsp;requires users to be involved in optimal decision-making within a strategic setting.&nbsp;Cambly is using game theory in her development of three new “games” or virtual scenarios, as part of a Canada-wide simulation project involving a partnership between Simulation Canada and CICan.</p> <p>She and her colleagues have developed their simulation games using best practices in pedagogy and simulation and have been proactive in ensuring these scenarios include marginalized populations, such as LGBTQ2S and racialized patients.&nbsp;</p> <p>Designing the scenarios to be inclusive and diverse&nbsp;is a huge part of the project, Cambly says, as nurse educators have historically found it challenging to find resources that are representative of all people.</p> <p>“We need to make sure we are providing students with the right tools to care for all patients,” Cambly says. “Simulation learning, whether it happens in-person in a lab or remotely, is an integral piece of nursing education. It gives students the opportunity to think critically and learn from the decisions they make. And it gives them an opportunity to practice or experience clinical situations that we cannot guarantee they will be exposed to while in their placements.”</p> <p>One of the simulation scenarios that Cambly and colleagues are currently developing involves the care of a non-binary patient, who speaks a language other than English. The patient is dying, with their condition deteriorating over the course of a shift in hospice. Students work through the simulated scenario making a series of decisions about this patient’s care along the way.</p> <p>“For the learner, this type of scenario involves making decisions around how to communicate with the patient, types of pain medications they will be providing&nbsp;and other nursing interventions like how and when to touch the patient to promote comfort,” Cambly says.</p> <p>To develop just one scenario like this for simulation&nbsp;involves an array of components, starting with the development of learning outcomes. The work requires creating a storyline, writing questions and dialogue, designing decision points and working with artists to develop graphics.</p> <p>“With these types of scenarios, our goal is to capture the learner’s interest so that they want to learn more and engage with the decision points,” Cambly says. “That is where the game theory, or narrative arc, becomes important in our development. We also need to embed a rationale behind each decision point so that the learner understands why something is happening to their patient based on their decision and the simulation path they chose to follow.”</p> <p>In addition to providing complex patient scenarios for learners to practice their skills, Cambly’s work with CICan will aim to provide learning access to students across Canada, including those in remote communities. Each of the scenarios is designed to be used on a computer, tablet&nbsp;or phone, and doesn’t necessarily require an in-person lab component. The design allows students to go back and try again if they want to get better at dealing with a specific scenario, or if they needed to make better decisions for the patient.</p> <p>This hands-on approach is one of the key reason’s Cambly became a simulation instructor, and it is one of the core principles of her teaching practice in nursing.</p> <p>Next steps for Cambly and her team will be to see these simulation scenarios piloted to over 6,000 students in multiple health disciplines across Canada.</p> <p>“Simulation learning is gaining popularity, and while it doesn’t replace in-person, on-the-job learning,” says Cambly, “it is a unique opportunity for health science students to build their confidence and learn to provide the best care for patients in need.”</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Fri, 28 Jan 2022 17:38:15 +0000 geoff.vendeville 172374 at Sinai Health, U of T's Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing collaborate on Centre for Nursing Excellence /news/sinai-health-u-t-s-lawrence-s-bloomberg-faculty-nursing-collaborate-centre-nursing-excellence <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Sinai Health, U of T's Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing collaborate on Centre for Nursing Excellence</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2023-04/09820_MSHNurses_20210209-380-crop.jpeg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=umYchtGz 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2023-04/09820_MSHNurses_20210209-380-crop.jpeg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=OGlwE3s5 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2023-04/09820_MSHNurses_20210209-380-crop.jpeg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=PXFwHASm 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2023-04/09820_MSHNurses_20210209-380-crop.jpeg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=umYchtGz" alt="MSH Nurses"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>Christopher.Sorensen</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2022-01-10T11:35:01-05:00" title="Monday, January 10, 2022 - 11:35" class="datetime">Mon, 01/10/2022 - 11:35</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item"><p>Nurses at Mount Sinai Health (Photo courtesy of Colin Dewar/Sinai Health staff)</p> </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/rebecca-biason-and-sinai-health-staff" hreflang="en">Rebecca Biason and Sinai Health Staff</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/our-community" hreflang="en">Our Community</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/covid-19" hreflang="en">COVID-19</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/sinai-health" hreflang="en">Sinai Health</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/lawrence-s-bloomberg-faculty-nursing" hreflang="en">Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nursing" hreflang="en">Nursing</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>The Ƶ’s&nbsp;Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing is working&nbsp;with <a href="https://www.sinaihealth.ca/">the hospital system, Sinai Health</a>, on the design of a new, hospital-based Centre for Nursing Excellence that will empower nurses to lead in research initiatives that advance the science of care, and improve patient experiences and outcomes.</p> <p>A first in Canada, the creation of the centre – jointly housed at Mount Sinai and Hennick Bridgepoint hospitals – is possible&nbsp;thanks to a gift of more than $10 million from a group of female philanthropists led by Maxine Granovsky-Gluskin, co-chair of the board of directors&nbsp;at Sinai Health Foundation and president of Maxine Gran investments.</p> <p>“For our students and researchers, working collaboratively with our partners at Sinai Health will provide greater opportunities to be involved in shaping the health-care system through education, research and leadership,” says <strong>Linda Johnston</strong>, dean of the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing. “We are excited about this future partnership and its potential impact on patient care.”</p> <p><strong>Jane Merkley</strong>, executive vice-president, chief nurse executive and chief operating officer at Sinai Health as well as adjunct professor in U of T's Faculty of Nursing, says the centre has the potential to spur innovation in health care at a crucial time.&nbsp;</p> <p>“This gift serves as a powerful tribute to the nurses and all health disciplines who have been working tirelessly throughout the pandemic,” says Merkley. “With this centre, we are taking research to the places and spaces where care happens with patients and their care partners. Our nurses are advancing care to better meet fundamental health needs such as nutrition, sleep and comfort that are essential to improving health outcomes for all patients.”</p> <p>In addition to research opportunities, the centre&nbsp;will provide a launchpad for nurses to generate ideas and innovation by finding new ways of providing care.</p> <p>“Nurses are uniquely positioned to see where the health system falls short and they have ideas we desperately need to improve care,” says Granovsky-Gluskin. “This gift … will allow our nursing leaders to look towards the future and reach for new heights in patient care through research and innovation.”</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Mon, 10 Jan 2022 16:35:01 +0000 Christopher.Sorensen 301129 at U of T ranked top 10 internationally in six subjects: QS ranking /news/u-t-ranked-top-10-internationally-six-subjects-qs-ranking <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">U of T ranked top 10 internationally in six subjects: QS ranking</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-03-08-qs-subject.jpg?h=2fe880c3&amp;itok=lFszcZgF 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2017-03-08-qs-subject.jpg?h=2fe880c3&amp;itok=pMRhT0ap 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2017-03-08-qs-subject.jpg?h=2fe880c3&amp;itok=hZGPWq3H 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-03-08-qs-subject.jpg?h=2fe880c3&amp;itok=lFszcZgF" alt> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>ullahnor</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2017-03-08T16:03:13-05:00" title="Wednesday, March 8, 2017 - 16:03" class="datetime">Wed, 03/08/2017 - 16:03</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">U of T ranked in the top 10 globally in nursing, sports-related subjects, anatomy &amp; physiology, geography, computer science and education (photo by Ken Jones) </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/jennifer-robinson" hreflang="en">Jennifer Robinson</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Jennifer Robinson</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/global-lens" hreflang="en">Global Lens</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/qs" hreflang="en">QS</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/rankings" hreflang="en">Rankings</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/subject" hreflang="en">Subject</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/geography" hreflang="en">Geography</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/computer-science" hreflang="en">Computer Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nursing" hreflang="en">Nursing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/education" hreflang="en">Education</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>The Ƶ has top 10 international ranking in six subjects, says the independent <a href="http://www.topuniversities.com/">QS World University Rankings by Subject</a>.&nbsp;</p> <p>In the report released today, U of T ranked in the top 10 globally in nursing (6th), sports-related subjects (6th), anatomy &amp; physiology (8th), geography (9th), computer science (10th) and education (10th). Medicine, anthropology and religious studies just missed the top 10 list, landing in 11th place.</p> <p>Among Canadian universities, U of T was first in all five of the broad subject areas and first in 32 of the 43 subjects in which the university was ranked by Quacquarelli Symonds.</p> <p>Globally, the results place the Ƶ among the world’s elite institutions in all five subject areas and in 43 of the 46 subjects surveyed. The university scored even higher when public higher education institutions alone were counted in the subject areas ranked.</p> <p>The news comes one day after <a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/which-universities-could-challenge-higher-education-elite">Times Higher Education (THE)</a> placed U of T in a group of 53 institutions that “have the greatest chance of catching up with and surpassing the likes of Oxbridge and the Ivy League.” THE editors cited U of T’s clinical ranking as a primary reason for adding it to a list of “international powerhouse institutions.”</p> <p>“We’re pleased to see the breadth and depth of the research programs offered at the Ƶ once again globally recognized for their excellence across the board,” said<strong> Vivek Goel</strong>, U of T’s vice-president of research and innovation.</p> <p>To compile the rankings, QS evaluated 4,438 global universities, qualified 3,098 and ranked 1,117 institutions in total. More than 127 million citations attributions were analyzed and the company verified the provision of more than 18,900 programs.</p> <p>The QS subject ranking includes five broad subject areas and 46 narrow subject-level rankings in a hierarchical structure. This is a new format for 2017 and the inclusion of the broad subject areas is a replacement for the QS Faculty Area Rankings that haven’t been published since 2015.</p> <p>The QS subject ranking results are based on four measures: academic survey results, employer review survey results, citations per faculty and the H –Index, which attempts to measure both the productivity and impact of the published work of a scientist of scholar.</p> <h3><a href="/news/u-t-named-best-global-university-canada-21st-world-us-news-world-report">Read ranking results from U.S. News &amp; World Report</a></h3> <h3><a href="/news/u-t-nabs-4th-spot-2016-national-taiwan-university-ranking">Read U of T in fourth spot in 2016 National Taiwan University Ranking&nbsp;</a></h3> <h3><a href="/news/u-t-again-top-25-best-global-universities">Read U of T scored 22nd in THE's world university rankings</a></h3> <h3><a href="/news/sterling-reputation-propels-u-t-global-ranking">Read about the overall QS ranking</a></h3> <h3><a href="/news/u-t-has-one-world-s-best-graduate-employability-outcomes">Read about&nbsp;U of T having&nbsp;one of the world's best graduate employability outcomes</a></h3> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Wed, 08 Mar 2017 21:03:13 +0000 ullahnor 105516 at Why this U of T Varsity Blues flag is flying over a Florida high school /news/why-u-t-varsity-blues-flag-flying-over-florida-high-school <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Why this U of T Varsity Blues flag is flying over a Florida high school</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/Kelly%20and%20dad.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=21pvstlg 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/Kelly%20and%20dad.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=idvNhb_f 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/Kelly%20and%20dad.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=Kkss4yI5 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/Kelly%20and%20dad.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=21pvstlg" alt="Kelly and her dad John Ruttle"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>Romi Levine</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2017-03-07T12:59:25-05:00" title="Tuesday, March 7, 2017 - 12:59" class="datetime">Tue, 03/07/2017 - 12:59</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">U of T alumna Kelly Johnson and her father, alumnus John Ruttle McLeod posing with a Varsity Blues flag (photo courtesy of Kelly Johnson)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/romi-levine" hreflang="en">Romi Levine</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Romi Levine</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/city-culture" hreflang="en">City &amp; Culture</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/alumni" hreflang="en">Alumni</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nursing" hreflang="en">Nursing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/lawrence-s-bloomberg-faculty-nursing" hreflang="en">Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Ƶ pride occasionally pops up in unusual places. That’s definitely the case for the U of T Varsity Blues flag flying proudly over Father Lopez Catholic High School in Daytona Beach, Florida.</p> <p>How did it get there? It took a third-generation U of T alumna, a cheque for&nbsp;$1,000 – and a spontaneous burst of inspiration.</p> <p><strong>Kelly Johnson</strong> graduated from U of T's Faculty of Nursing in 1989. Her grandfather,&nbsp;<strong>John George McLeod</strong>, and her father, <strong>John Ruttle McLeod</strong>, are also alumni.</p> <p>In the ‘90s, she married an American and moved to Florida. Then&nbsp;a&nbsp;few weeks ago,&nbsp;Johnson was attending a fundraising event for the high school that her daughter&nbsp;Kathleen&nbsp;and son&nbsp;Michael will be attending when an auction item caught her eye.</p> <p>Attendees could bid to have their alma mater’s flag hoisted onto the school’s flag pole.</p> <p>A fierce bidding war&nbsp;began. It was a group of alumni from Florida State versus a group from University of Florida, and the bids had reached $800.</p> <p>Egged on by her friend, Johnson decided to make her move.</p> <p>“I just stuck my hand up, and I said, ‘$1,000, Ƶ!’ And the room went quiet,” she says.</p> <p>Even the auctioneer was dumbstruck – forcing Johnson to repeat the name of the university multiple times.</p> <p>“Nobody bid against us after that,” says Johnson. “I'm super happy we won.”</p> <p>The only U of T flag Johnson actually owned was a tiny felt pennant. But with the help of some friendly staff at U of T, a Varsity Blues flag worthy of a flag pole was delivered in record time.</p> <p>“That’s one of the things that I love about Canada,” says Johnson. “Canadians get excited about stuff.”&nbsp;</p> <p>The flag was happily received by the high school, says Johnson.</p> <p>“A teacher said to me, ‘I'm just glad the kids are going to be exposed to this, to know that there are places other than within the U.S. to go to school,’” she says. &nbsp;</p> <p>At a time when the U.S. is incredibly divided, the flag is an opportunity to start a conversation, says Johnson.</p> <p>“I think things that open people's minds and bring people together can&nbsp;be helpful in establishing a dialogue, and bringing about positive changes and not building divisions between people,” she says.</p> <p>Johnson hopes when the time comes to apply, her children will consider going to a Canadian university so they can have the same memorable experience that she did.</p> <p>“I just loved walking between classes on that campus. I loved the environment, the location.&nbsp;I learned to scuba dive in the Hart House pool,” says Johnson. “I have such fond memories of the school.”&nbsp;</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Tue, 07 Mar 2017 17:59:25 +0000 Romi Levine 105470 at Out of the cold: homelessness, shelters and why people still die on the streets /news/out-cold-homelessness-shelters-and-why-people-still-die-streets <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Out of the cold: homelessness, shelters and why people still die on the streets</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>sgupta</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2015-01-13T06:08:20-05:00" title="Tuesday, January 13, 2015 - 06:08" class="datetime">Tue, 01/13/2015 - 06:08</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">(photo by Dave Ross)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/dave-ross" hreflang="en">Dave Ross</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Dave Ross</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/city-culture" hreflang="en">City &amp; Culture</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/features" hreflang="en">Features</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nursing" hreflang="en">Nursing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/cities" hreflang="en">Cities</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">Alumna Joyce Rankin on the problems with Toronto shelters</div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p> <em>After a balmy fall, winter arrived in Toronto last week with a vengeance. Temperatures registered as low as -30C with wind chill. The city hunkered down and pedestrians bundled up against the extreme cold. </em></p> <p> <em>But there was also tragedy – and, after the death of two homeless people without shelter, Mayor <strong>John Tory</strong> ordered the medical officer of health to declare an extreme cold alert, activating warming centres for one of Toronto’s most vulnerable populations.&nbsp;</em></p> <p> <em>“It’s a shame that in 2015, in a country as wealthy as ours, we have such serious issues with poverty and homelessness,” says alumna <strong>Joyce Rankin</strong>. Rankin, who holds both a master of nursing degree and an MBA from U of T, is clinical manager for Street Health in Toronto. (<a href="http://www.cbc.ca/metromorning/episodes/2015/01/06/its-shameful/">Listen to Rankin's powerful interview</a> with CBC Radio's Matt Galloway on Metro Morning.)</em></p> <p> <em>“It is even more astounding that the city refused to consider wind chill in their determinations of cold alerts. It may be -5C, but in reality it is -20C with the wind chill – yet no extreme cold alerts are issued.”</em></p> <p> <em>Street Health is a non-profit community based agency serving the health and well-being of homeless and under-housed people in downtown Toronto. Writer <strong>Dave Ross</strong> spoke with Rankin about the shelter situation, the extreme cold, and what changes could be made to the system.</em></p> <p> <strong>Why are homeless people dying on the street?</strong><br> The shelters are over-capacity, and any suggestion they aren’t is false. The idea that we are providing enough shelter is also wrong. If we have enough shelter space, why are people dying on the streets?&nbsp;</p> <p> Numerous non-profit and faith-based organizations operate Out of the Cold programs, which are well-attended across the city. If we have enough shelter space, why has the city relied on these organizations to provide services to this population for 28 years?&nbsp;</p> <p> <strong>Programs like Out of the Cold run on the backs of donors and volunteers such as yourself. Does this indicate a gap in shelter services?</strong><br> Absolutely. It’s ridiculous that the city relies on the presence of these volunteer-run spaces, and even more importantly highlights the need for safe and affordable housing for people, which doesn’t seem to be a priority for the city. Admittedly, there is no silver bullet solution, unfortunately.&nbsp;</p> <p> Everyone needs protection from the cold – if you’re cold, take shelter and warm up. People who are homeless or living in poverty can’t always do that – shopping malls close, coffee shops don’t want you stay for long periods, and many can’t afford $3 to ride the TTC all night – the list goes on. Homeless people also age fast due to trauma and stress, further jeopardizing their health and making them vulnerable to living in difficult conditions. This population is constantly fighting stigma as well. They are human beings that need support, not our judgments. Addiction happens in all walks of life.</p> <p> We have a responsibility to shelter people, and we ignore the social determinants of health at every turn. Shelters, supportive housing&nbsp;and Public Health need to get together, and have a communications plan.</p> <p> <strong>What about barriers to access? How does a person access a shelter?</strong><br> Accessing a shelter bed is not a straightforward process in Toronto. One thing the city has done well is implement a single point of access on Peter Street, which functions as a referral centre to shelter space. The concept is good, but it is fraught with barriers. When a person shows up and requests a shelter space, it can take hours to find one, and it is expected that the individual has a means of staying in touch with the referral centre. This is a population that doesn’t have mobile phones or fixed addresses, so the notion that they are “contactable” is flawed. And if that person is offered a bed that doesn’t fit their needs and declines it, they are simply turned away, and spend the night on the street. The system has no flexibility in any way.&nbsp;Without flexibility there is absolutely no “wiggle room” which is the situation we are finding ourselves in now. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p> <strong>What could make a person refuse a shelter bed, especially during extreme weather?</strong><br> Shelters are spread out across the city. Imagine you’re on Peter Street, and have been referred to a shelter in North York. How are you going to get there? What if you’re referred to a shelter where you’ve been assaulted? Or become ill? Or where they won’t take your pet, your sole companion in this world? Unable to accommodate your family? Shelters, while warm, are not necessarily a safe environment. There is no flexibility in the system, and that's what leads to situations where homeless people feel they must stay on the street.</p> <p> <strong>If you could change things right now, in this current cold snap, what would you do?</strong><br> I would open the armouries and more warming centres, offer this population immediate and simple access to shelter. Long-term, I want to see the two 24-hour shelters the city has promised, more safe, affordable housing for people, and ultimately, to see the development of a national housing strategy.&nbsp;</p> <p> <strong>What drew you to nursing, and how did you find your way to Street Health?</strong><br> I have never wanted to be anything but a nurse. Even after 25 years, I look forward to my work every day. I am also fortunate to have had incredible mentors through all of my education. My obstetrics instructor in my college program, <strong>Nancy Barber</strong>, was so passionate about nursing, and <strong>Francine Wynn</strong> at Bloomberg Nursing was a leader who forced me to think about nursing in a whole new way, a skill I value today. <strong>Doug Hyatt</strong>, from the Rotman School of Management, was (and still is) one of the most inspiring professors I have met. Most importantly, my nursing friends continue to influence me. The friends I made during my first job at Mount&nbsp;Sinai in 1988 are still my closest friends. They worked hard to support me in nursing, but also in my transition to a new city and new career.</p> <p> I’ve volunteered with Street Health and organizations like it for many years. After establishing my career as a critical care nurse in hospital settings, I had the opportunity to volunteer with these organizations more, which has grown into a full-time job with Street Health. I love the fact that I can work intensely to support colleagues working with the very marginalized in our society, and work with them to advocate all levels of government to support people and help them get out of poverty. We are constantly challenged, but the work we do is rewarding, and most of all, important.</p> <p> <em>If you see someone in need during extreme weather, contact 311 or 911 immediately.</em></p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-picpath field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">picpath</div> <div class="field__item">sites/default/files/2015-01-13-rankin-homeless.jpg</div> </div> Tue, 13 Jan 2015 11:08:20 +0000 sgupta 6728 at IMAGINE health clinic: U of T students serve city's most marginalized citizens /news/imagine-health-clinic-u-t-students-serve-citys-most-marginalized-citizens <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">IMAGINE health clinic: U of T students serve city's most marginalized citizens</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>sgupta</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2014-12-02T03:27:42-05:00" title="Tuesday, December 2, 2014 - 03:27" class="datetime">Tue, 12/02/2014 - 03:27</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">A physiotherapy student helps Sandra* who suffers from back pain (photos by Jelena Damjanovic)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/jelena-damjanovic" hreflang="en">Jelena Damjanovic</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Jelena Damjanovic</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/city-culture" hreflang="en">City &amp; Culture</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/features" hreflang="en">Features</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/volunteering" hreflang="en">Volunteering</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/students" hreflang="en">Students</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/social-work" hreflang="en">Social Work</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/physiotherapy" hreflang="en">Physiotherapy</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/pharmacy" hreflang="en">Pharmacy</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nursing" hreflang="en">Nursing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/medicine" hreflang="en">Medicine</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/health" hreflang="en">Health</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/community" hreflang="en">Community</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/cities" hreflang="en">Cities</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">Providing integrated health care for free to people without insurance, ID or funds</div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p> Imagine a clinic providing free health care to Toronto’s most vulnerable residents: people with no fixed address, health insurance or ID. Too bold, utopian, or disruptive?&nbsp;</p> <p> Not for a group of Ƶ students.</p> <p> In 2007, U of T students from a variety of health profession programs came together to form the Interprofessional Medical and Allied Groups for Improving Neighbourhood Environment (IMAGINE). And by 2010, with support from faculty and community partners, &nbsp;the IMAGINE clinic was open and offering medical, nursing, pharmacy and social work services.</p> <p> In 2012, physiotherapy was integrated and the clinic became a recognized Centre for Interprofessional Education credit program.</p> <p> “It seemed like a really unique opportunity for a student to get involved both first line interacting with patients and interacting in a team with all the other professions that you might see in the real world,” says <strong>Claire Hooper</strong>, a third-year pharmacy student volunteering at IMAGINE.&nbsp;</p> <p> “It’s also a very unique, underserved patient population, so it’s a great opportunity to be able to help, especially as a student.”</p> <p> <img alt src="/sites/default/files/2014-12-02-imagine-clinic-building.jpg" style="width: 350px; height: 250px; margin: 10px; float: right;">Students volunteer at the clinic (pictured at right) for three consecutive Saturdays, followed by a reflection day. They work in teams of five students drawn from each health discipline, supervised by five preceptors – licensed healthcare practitioners, who are also volunteering at the clinic.&nbsp;</p> <p> Working in pairs, the students start the visit, take the patient’s history, perform a physical exam, interpret information and present the case to the rest of the team.&nbsp;</p> <p> <strong>Christopher Wang</strong>, now in his second year of medicine, likens the experience to doing a puzzle. &nbsp;“It’s hard to know what to expect when we walk through the door. We try to gather all the pieces and then we go back and debrief with the team and that’s where we start putting the puzzle together. With the expertise of everybody sitting around that table we try to figure out what this patient is here for and what we can do to help.”</p> <p> In the process, students also learn to write clinical notes, collaborate with other disciplines and develop a treatment plan. And they gain confidence along the way.</p> <p> “Because they are in pre-clinical years, most med students have not yet been told to “go get your patient and bring them into the room,” says <strong>Norma C. Carter</strong>, a family doctor/general practitioner, who has been volunteering at IMAGINE as a physician preceptor over the last three years. “By the third clinic, the same student is confidently giving polished, organized presentations and developing plans with their fellow students.”</p> <p> More than 200 clients are assessed and treated at IMAGINE every year. Many patients come in for physiotherapy, because it’s generally not covered by health plans, but students also see people suffering from common ailments to infections to mental health issues and they treat them all.&nbsp;</p> <p> Wang’s fondest memory is of a patient who came in with an infected thumb. After examining it and debriefing with the team, the preceptor came in and together they had a good chat with the patient, who turned out to be an IV drug user trying hard to overcome his addiction.</p> <p> “After explaining to the patient that the thumb is related to his drug use he seemed to have more of an incentive to keep on working on that aspect of his life,” says Wang. “That was very memorable because people will often question how much we can do in a one-hour session like this, and I think there’s actually a lot we can do in terms of getting people back on the right track even.”&nbsp;</p> <p> Such encounters teach students that patients from marginalized populations have the same health issues as other patients but with additional challenges that make management much more complex at times, says Carter. &nbsp;“They’re getting intensive exposure to the social determinants of health, while also learning not to be afraid of a challenging population.”&nbsp;</p> <p> Wang agrees. “As training medical students it’s very easy to be only shown the best cases, high blood pressure, etc. But that’s not at all what the health scene of the city is like. I think it’s important for students to see that.”</p> <p> Hooper concurs: “It makes you a better health practitioner.”&nbsp;</p> <p> <img alt src="/sites/default/files/2014-12-02-imagine-clinic3.jpg" style="width: 625px; height: 350px; margin: 10px;"></p> <p> (<em>Above: team members discuss case with preceptors</em>.)</p> <p> The benefits from IMAGINE’S open, enthusiastic and collaborative care extend beyond the students and the city population they treat, organizers say. Preceptors say they – along with the patients they see in their regular practice outside IMAGINE – also benefit from the inter-professional learning opportunities IMAGINE provides.&nbsp;</p> <p> Like Carter, <strong>Vivian Law</strong> is among the 100 preceptors from medicine, nursing, pharmacy, physiotherapy, and social work volunteering at the clinic this year. She started volunteering at IMAGINE as a pharmacy student and has been volunteering as a pharmacy preceptor for the last three years.&nbsp;</p> <p> Working alongside preceptors and students from other professions, you learn together, Law says.&nbsp;And when students go out to do practice, they’ll be better equipped to interact with other healthcare professionals, she says, and they’ll know what information and support they can get for the patient.</p> <p> “That’s important because the underprivileged come in with multiple common diseases and issues, so it’s good that the students get to look at the patient in a more holistic view.”</p> <p> Sandra*, returning to the clinic for a follow-up visit about her back pain, is happy with the service she is getting.&nbsp;</p> <p> “I like when they show me some exercises or give me a handout so I can practice at home,” she says. “They really want to keep me on track.”</p> <p> The clinic is open every Saturday except on&nbsp;long weekends and holidays from 10am to 2pm. (<a href="http://imagine.uoftmeds.com/contact">Learn more about volunteering, supporting&nbsp;or accessing the clinic</a>.)</p> <p> *Name changed for privacy reasons.</p> <p> <em>Jelena Damjanovic writes about communities and urban outreach for U of T News.</em></p> <p> &nbsp;</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-picpath field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">picpath</div> <div class="field__item">sites/default/files/2014-12-02-IMAGINE-clinic.jpg</div> </div> Tue, 02 Dec 2014 08:27:42 +0000 sgupta 6674 at Convocation 2014: Meet Bloomberg Nursing's Deidre Bainbridge /news/convocation-2014-meet-bloomberg-nursings-deidre-bainbridge <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Convocation 2014: Meet Bloomberg Nursing's Deidre Bainbridge</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>sgupta</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2014-06-20T08:05:10-04:00" title="Friday, June 20, 2014 - 08:05" class="datetime">Fri, 06/20/2014 - 08:05</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item"> Assistant Professor Margaret Blastorah with Deidre Bainbridge (photo by Dave Ross)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/dave-ross" hreflang="en">Dave Ross</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Dave Ross</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/features" hreflang="en">Features</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/students" hreflang="en">Students</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nursing" hreflang="en">Nursing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/convocation" hreflang="en">Convocation</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/alumni" hreflang="en">Alumni</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>For the Ƶ’s <strong>Deidre Bainbridge</strong>, it was a long, winding − but ultimately rewarding − road to her Master of Nursing degree.</p> <p>“I didn’t actually choose nursing as a career until I had been a nurse for 10 years,” Bainbridge says.&nbsp;</p> <p>Despite her early interest in forensic medicine, the abundant employment opportunities for RNs led Bainbridge to a two-year diploma in nursing. She put those skills and knowledge to work as a forensic nurse at the Sexual Assault &amp; Domestic Violence Care Centre at Women’s College Hospital. But she didn’t stop there.</p> <p>A volunteer at the Toronto Rape Crisis Centre’s 24-hour hotline, Bainbridge also took on a part-time role at the Bay Centre for Birth Control.&nbsp;</p> <p>With her professional life focused in the increasingly important and sensitive field of female reproductive health, Bainbridge then began working toward her BScN. And, in 2001, she completed the Primary Health Care Nurse Practitioner Program post-degree certificate.&nbsp;</p> <p>After becoming a nurse practitioner, Bainbridge finally “chose” nursing as her career.&nbsp; She quickly discovered she was in a unique position to examine, diagnose and treat patients.&nbsp;</p> <p>More important, Bainbridge says, she had the chance to make an impact in forensic nursing at Women’s College Hospital − where she’s now spent more than two decades providing care and counsel to vulnerable women.</p> <p>Forensic nursing is a specialty that involves the provision of care to victims of crime, including sexual and other assaults. It may also involve working with perpetrators of crime deemed not criminally responsible for their actions. Forensic nurses collect and preserve physical evidence, document and photograph injuries and provide witness testimony when needed.</p> <p>“As a nurse practitioner, I have educated more than 1000 nurses across Ontario on how to examine, test and treat victims/patients of sexual assault” says Bainbridge.</p> <p>She also provides follow-up care to victims/patients in the six months following the assault – testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections, support and education, and help managing sleep disturbance and depression as a result of assault.</p> <p>“We really address the bio-psycho-social needs of the patient/victim,” she says.</p> <p>It’s challenging and important work. But it isn’t for everyone.</p> <p>“Bearing witness to the capacity we as human beings have to be violent and cause pain and devastation to others can be profoundly upsetting,” Bainbridge says. “There are only a handful of forensic nursing experts in Canada, in part due to being a relatively small area of specialty, and in part due to the nature of work – this work is emotionally difficult, leading to compassion fatigue and burnout.”</p> <p>Bainbridge intends to keep working to advance the field in which Bloomberg Nursing has helped her become a leader, by leading clinical research and writing articles for publication, among other initiatives.</p> <p>“The Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing at U of T has a solid reputation internationally largely because of the leadership and research scholarship generated by the faculty in women’s health, particularly women’s mental health.”</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-picpath field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">picpath</div> <div class="field__item">sites/default/files/2014-06-20-convocation-bainbridge2.jpg</div> </div> Fri, 20 Jun 2014 12:05:10 +0000 sgupta 6295 at