Nurse Practitioners (NPs) play a pivotal role as health-care providers to improve timely access to care in the short term and on an ongoing basis. They see people at their most vulnerable and provide continuous care, support, and compassion no matter how hard it may get, often working tirelessly for long hours to help those in need.  Let’s meet some of the incredible NPs who are providing patient-focused, compassionate care that improves the health and well-being of patients in the communities they serve.

The Interior Health (IH) Legal Substances Team and the YOUTHWISE Advisory Group are excited to launch IH’s annual youth poster contest, Beyond the Buzz: Youth Voices on Tobacco, Cannabis, Vaping & Alcohol.  Formerly known as the Take a Breath: Teen Voices on Tobacco, Vaping and Cannabis, this year the contest includes an opportunity for youth to express their views on alcohol use. The contest has also been expanded to include youth in grades 6 and 7 as well as grades 8 to 12. The poster contest aims to capture youths’ views on how tobacco, vaping, cannabis and alcohol affect them and their friends, family, schools and communities. It’s also a great avenue for supportive adults to engage youth in meaningful conversations around substance use.

A new nurse’s journey can be filled with challenges. But with the right support, it can be an incredibly rewarding adventure. New to Nursing, a podcast produced by the New Graduate Nurse Transition Program, offers engaging content for new nurses seeking quick, resourceful and supportive information. You can stream the podcast on Apple and Spotify.  Whether you’re on your morning commute, taking a coffee break, or winding down after a long shift, the New to Nursing podcast is the perfect companion. So grab your headphones, subscribe and get ready to dive into a new way of learning!

Name: Casey Rae Donaldson (she/her/hers)Job Title: Administrative Assistant, RIH Clinical Operations Years of Service: 2Worksite: Royal Inland Hospital (RIH)Community: KamloopsAncestral Territory: Secwépemc NationFavourite Quote / Advice to live by: “You can’t go wrong by doing the right thing.” – Paul T. Clark Loyal, loving, and passionate, it’s no surprise that Casey loves getting to work and interacting with others in the health-care system to make a difference in the community. Speaking highly of the passion she witnesses from Interior Health (IH) employees around her, Casey feels fortunate to be on the Royal Inland Hospital (RIH) Engagement Committee, where she plans fun events for staff.   “I am very grateful to be in a position that allows me to interact with all departments as RIH,” she says. “I love planning fun events for staff and interacting with them during fundraisers— selling $2 bags of popcorn and hearing the positive comments and laughter. It’s nice that something as simple as a bag of popcorn can turn someone’s day around or give them a reason to smile!”  

A new Canadian study shows that radon exposure is on the rise. The study, led by Dr. Aaron Goodarzi, a professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of Calgary’s Cumming School of Medicine, found that almost one in five homes in Canada has radon levels above the Canadian radon guideline of 200 Becquerels per cubic metre (Bq/m³). In the Interior of B.C., it’s one in three.

*Trigger warning: This story deals with suicide and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Orion remembers everything about the day the tsunami struck Thailand on December 26, 2004. He remembers what he was wearing, what he ate at every meal, and every person he interacted with. “I saw a lot of people die,” Orion recalls. “And on that day, I saw devils and angels. But sadly, it was mostly devils. Some people were kind and positive. But I’d say most – and by most, I mean the tourists – behaved poorly and selfishly. People were scared. People were raw.” Orion returned home to Calgary, awash with survivor’s guilt. For two months, friends and family members called or visited. “It was emotionally overpowering.  Everyone wanted to tell me something they always meant to say to me. It was like hearing your own eulogy every day,” shares Orion. Long before, he had learned to suppress his emotions, and soon stopped talking about his experiences. “I was always known as the calm one in my family,” he says. “I never freaked out. I never got angry.” He developed a severe sleeping disorder and couldn’t get more than four to five hours of sleep a night. Two years later, in 2006, he started to contemplate suicide. “Counselling back then was almost non-existent. I was a successful businessman and thought I could power through,” he shares. “I don’t recall being depressed or anxious. But I was just so exhausted and couldn’t figure a way out.”

From herbs that "cure" Alzheimer’s, to ”cancer causing” sunscreens, to microchips in vaccines, health information can range from the absurd to the downright dangerous. Whether you call it pseudoscience, junk science or just bad fact checking, health misinformation abounds. Most is designed to either make you click a headline, or part you with your money. We sat down with Rebecca Johns, a librarian with Interior Health Library Services,* who teaches how to understand, spot and address health misinformation.

Foundations in the Interior region raise funds that support medical equipment, care needs, and innovative local initiatives in their communities. Each organization includes respected community leaders, volunteers and staff who are passionate about meeting the needs of patients and families in Interior Health. Thanks to the generosity of their supporters, we all have a stronger health system.  In this next story of our series on the incredible health-care and hospital foundations throughout our region, we interviewed Ian Lindsay, chief executive officer of the South Okanagan Similkameen (SOS) Medical Foundation.

Name: Emma Klassen (she/her/hers)Job Title: Recreation Activity WorkerYears of service: 1Worksite: Apple Valley & Hawthorn Park Adult Day ServicesCommunity: KelownaAncestral territory: syilx NationFavourite Quote /Advice to Live By: “Do better, be better.” Emma is a daughter, sister, auntie, social worker, counsellor and recreational therapist, and a mother to five children. Before joining Interior Health (IH), Emma worked as a counsellor for children and youth for six years with the Westbank First Nation. She loved her counselling career, and helped people and families with addiction, suicide and their day-to-day struggles. She also served as a bail supervisor for young offenders for several years. When she was a counsellor, she and her team created a memorandum of understanding in partnership with the Ministry of Children and Family Development to create transparency in youth care.