Tag: medicine

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Legault Government to invest $1 billion incentive into the nursing industry

In an attempt to attract more nurses to stay in Quebec, new incentives are being created by the provincial government.

On Sept. 23, Premier François Legault promised a $1 billion investment into Quebec’s nursing system, as part of a plan to make up for the province’s nurse shortage.

Quebec is currently in dire need of medical staff, facing a shortage of over 4000 nurses. As part of the incentives promised by the Legault administration, nurses would receive bonuses of up to $18,000.

Despite these promises, the The Fédération Interprofessionnelle de la santé du Québec (FIQ), which represents 76,000 nurses, disagreed with the plan because it failed to improve on the mandatory overtime laws currently in place for Quebec nurses.

The law requires nurses to stay longer than their mandated shifts if deemed necessary. However, the long hours have proven to be difficult for many amid the fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has seen over 600 daily cases throughout most of September.

The plan comes not only as an attempt to prevent current nursing staff from leaving the public health sector, but also to secure the interest of new graduates in joining the field.

In the Sept. 18 press conference introducing the bill, Health Minister Christian Dubé said his mission was to make workers in the medical sector proud of Quebec’s health network, and to help them “want to stay in it, or come back to it.”

That same week, both Legault and Dubé were intentional about highlighting the benefits of the new plan for  both retired nurses returning to the field, as well as nurses choosing to work in the private, rather than the public, sector for economic reasons.

According to Statistics Canada, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the labour force are still evident in many of Quebec’s industries. The health care and social assistance industry reported 119,500 more jobs than it did compared to August 2020, showing a clear demand for more workers in the healthcare system.

Despite this slight increase, many students considering joining the medical field are still hesitant about establishing a future in Quebec.

Temkhuleko Mthethwa, an international student from Eswatini, is completing her major in biology. Although she hopes to pursue further studies in medicine she does not see a future in Quebec.

Mthethwa believes that language, not finances, is the biggest obstacle for international students looking to join the healthcare workforce in Quebec.

“It’s just so much easier to connect with your patients when you can understand and communicate with them,” said Mathethwa.

“It’s not like I know French — the language barrier is about more than just the finances, it’s about feeling like you belong.”

Canadian students coming to Quebec from other provinces seem to have a similar perspective; 22-year-old Université de Montréal student Braxton Phillips has been completing his masters in neuroscience. He believes the incentives from the government won’t really have a deep impact on who chooses to stay in the province.

“I think the people who would want to stay here in Quebec to pursue medicine would have done so with or without the incentives,” he said.

Phillips thinks that the Legault government would have better results through the creation of more bilingual laws for Quebec’s healthcare system.

 

Graphics courtesy of Madeline Schmidt

A brief history of medical racism in Canada

How the healthcare sector has repeatedly failed Indigenous people

Content warning: This story contains some elements of racism and abuse, which some readers may find disturbing

Though the topic of anti-Indigenous racism in Canada has regained some public attention since the beginning of the Black Lives Matter protests this summer, nothing has served as a more vivid reminder of this reality than the recent death of Joyce Echaquan and Georges-Hervé Awashish.

Hospitalized for stomach pains, Echaquan, an Atikamekw woman livestreamed the abuse she experienced by the medical staff whose care she was under, as she screamed for help and pleaded that she was being given too much morphine. She passed later that evening, after spending two days in the hospital, leaving her husband with the care of their seven children. Awashish, an Atikamekw man from Obedjiwan, did not receive the same spotlight from the public, but his treatment was just as poor. The circumstances of his passing are still being investigated.

As protesters decried the deeply entrenched problem of racism in the medical industry, specifically when it comes to the care of First Nations peoples, Premier François Legault’s reaction and apology sparked controversy when he didn’t directly address the systemic nature of racism in our province, with many recalling his denial of it over the summer.

We know this is false. And the fact that Legault used to be our province’s Minister of Health makes this belief all the more alarming.

Articles revealing the absurd statistics about racial bias in our medical system are not scarce. A 2017 report confirmed a five-to-seven year gap between the life expectancies of Indigenous and non-Indigenous people, as well as an infant mortality rate 1.5 times higher for Indigenous populations. These numbers barely touch the surface of the issue; among these communities, studies have recorded higher rates of HIV/AIDS, diabetes, tuberculosis, depression and anxiety, substance abuse, and deaths from accidental or preventable conditions.

Studies about the disenfranchisement of Indigenous people in the medical industry point to disproportionately inaccessible and underfunded services, deficient education and data collection systems, and failure to consider cultural barriers as the main culprits.

But the government isn’t the only authoritative body to have failed Indigenous people; so have medical practitioners themselves. Other than the victims of doctors and nurses’ individual discrimination, who have turned into statistics and archived stories in the public’s eyes, genetics-based medical research has also often proven to uphold or be rooted in racial biases.

In 1962, geneticist James V. Neel formulated what he called the “thrifty gene hypothesis” — a supposed genetic explanation for Indigenous people’s higher tendency to be affected by diabetes and obesity.

In 2020, this hypothesis still has yet to be confirmed, and many experts have flagged it as a lazy excuse to shrug off responsibility for the type II diabetes epidemic currently plaguing First Nations communities.

The emphasis on genetics has repeatedly served this purpose. During the H1N1 pandemic, researchers were quick to suspect a correlation between the exponential rates at which the virus spread in Indigenous communities as a genetic predisposition. This meant relieving some of society’s accountability for the long-standing socio-economic circumstances that have led to higher chances of transmission and greater risk for medical complications — circumstances which have re-emerged in the age of COVID-19.

And let’s not forget the healthcare workers who took the practice of eugenics into their own hands for decades and performed forced, irreversible sterilization procedures on over a thousand Indigenous women. Shielded from legal repercussions by proclaiming these women were “mentally defective,” overly promiscuous, or alcoholics, practitioners were allowed to continue these operations until 2018, as far as we know.

The indictments of these practices as a form of genocide can hardly be called controversial. And those who choose to fool themselves into thinking that we aren’t a racist province are those who will continue to vote for a leadership whose agenda purposely excludes Indigenous rights and issues. I wonder how Premier Legault has managed to convince himself that these blatant acts of racism aren’t systemic. Crying ignorance to these issues is unacceptable; in 2020, it’s become irresponsible not to know.

 

Feature graphic by @the.beta.lab

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News

Canadian university students petition for online classes amidst COVID-19 concerns

On March 10, students from various Canadian universities launched online petitions urging their administrations to consider suspending all in-person classes.

These petitions have since gathered thousands of signatures.

After seeing the University of Washington’s success with its petition, McGill University’s Ready McGill, a student-run emergency preparedness initiative, initiated the movement in Canada with an online petition on Change.org to suspend all in-person instruction and shift to online lectures. The petition is now closed and reached nearly 9,000 signatures.

Ready McGill said they were disappointed by McGill’s “wait-and-see approach.”

“[McGill University administrators] want us to get sick first before they would consider cancelling school, which might be politically convenient for the administrators, but really disastrous for us the students and faculty,” Ready McGill wrote in a statement to The Concordian.

Comments are flooding the online petitions, some criticizing the universities’ business-as-usual attitude despite the high possibility of a widespread outbreak on campus.

Concordia University and the University of Toronto followed suit and launched their own petitions after seeing the traction McGill’s was getting, garnering 11,000 and just under 19,000 signatures, respectively.

“I am a student concerned for not only my health but the health of those around me,” wrote Concordia journalism and political science student Caitlin Yardley in the comment section of the petition. “I live in a building with predominantly elderly people and although I would likely recover from contracting the virus, my neighbours might not. For the health of the community, please suspend classes.”

“A lot of students are quite concerned about the situation. And of course, everyone wants to protect their own health and safety first,” said the president of the Students’ Society of McGill University, Bryan Buraga, in an interview with The Concordian.

“The level of extent to which they believe that the university should close varies,” Buraga added. But he feels that there is a “prevailing sense” from the students that the university should cancel in-person classes.

Concordia philosophy student David Becker created Concordia’s version of the petition in hopes that the support and signatures it received would pressure the university’s administration to act.

“I think it is important that this becomes a story because most schools in North America are trying to find a solution to keep their students safe and Concordia doesn’t seem to be doing anything,” said Becker.

Over 200 U.S. universities including Harvard University, Columbia, MIT and UC Berkeley temporarily closed to prevent the possibility of transmission among their students.

Concordia spokesperson Vannina Maestracci released a statement about the university’s current course of action. The plan was to initially convert only six classes with over 250 students enrolled to online.

But after Legault announced Friday the shutdown of all Quebec daycares, elementary schools, high schools and universities until March 27, a statement was sent to all Concordia students that classes are to be cancelled until Monday, March 30 by the university’s president and vice-chancellor Graham Carr.

While the school is shutdown, Concordia professors will convert all in-class lectures to an online format by March 23, while the university prepares a plan for what comes after March 30 with the instructions from the ministries of education and public health. There are currently no updates regarding all exam schedules and the delivery of upcoming finals, but Concordia is working on a plan for students to complete the winter semester.

“We are finalizing a plan to allow us to deliver instruction online through a variety of technologies such as Zoom, that we have in place,” Maestracci said. Zoom is a video conferencing software on which university professors can hold their lectures and meetings with students online. New York University and University of Washington converted some of the classes to online instruction using Zoom.

Both campuses at Sir George Williams and Loyola are closed to all students as of Friday, March 13. Concordia employees began working remotely on necessary university operations during the shutdown.

While school is cancelled, it is recommended to frequently wash your hands with soap, avoid sharing utensils and other personal items, and keep a social distance from others for the next upcoming weeks according to the Gouvernement du Quebec.

 

Graphic by @sundaeghost

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Student Life

Crystals and gemstones: Healing mind, body and soul

To ward off negative energy, use or keep black tourmaline on you. To aid with and amplify optimism, use a citrine crystal. For love, self-love and peace, get a rose quartz stone. Crystal healing is a branch of alternative medicine in which crystals and gemstones are used to cure and protect against illnesses. 

According to an article on Live Science magazine, crystal healers in practice believe that crystals act as conduits for healing through positive energy and the extraction of negative energy. Although crystals have been used for centuries for the belief that they hold special healing and restorative energy powers, there has been increased popularity over the past decade. This surge has promoted the crystals’ effectiveness through many facets of natural and homeopathic medicine.

In an article on energymuse.com, crystal expert Heather Askinosie wrote that crystals and gemstones “harness the life-giving elements of the Earth and the universe. Harnessing the energy of the Sun, the Moon, and the oceans, semi-precious stones connect us to Earth as soon as we come into contact with them.”

There is no scientific research that has been able to determine the effectiveness of crystals. Most medical practitioners believe this to be pseudoscience, which is a set of beliefs and practices said to be scientific but are incompatible with scientific methods. According to Live Science, “the philosophy of modern crystal healing is based on traditional concepts borrowed from Asian cultures, most notably the Chinese concept of life-energy (chi or qi).” This can also be found in the Hindu or Buddhist concept of chakras, “which are vortices of this life-energy, said to connect the physical and supernatural elements of the body.”

Crystals and gemstones are assigned different healing properties. The most popular stone is Amethyst, which is believed to relieve stress and awaken spiritual awareness. Clear quartz is another popular crystal that is an important piece in any collection; it’s used to clear the mind and counteract negative energy blockages.

Gemstones are also used in the Chinese tradition of feng shui, with the most popular stone being jade, which is used for good fortune, harmony, balance and protection. According to an article on The Spruce, “feng means “wind” and shui means “water.” In Chinese culture, wind and water are associated with good health, thus good feng shui came to mean good fortune.” The basics of feng shui involves harmonizing the self and the environment through energy.

The ancient Indian practice of Ayurveda also uses crystals and gemstones to align chakras and balance doshas, the three energies that define a person’s makeup, according to Ayurvedic practice. In his book Ayurveda: The Science of Self-Healing, medical practitioner and professor of Ayurvedic Medicine Dr. Vasant Lad writes that the energy vibrations of these stones harness healing properties. Healing can be done by choosing the right crystal or stone and activating it by wearing them on your person and placing them in water overnight to drink it the following day. Crystals and gemstones can be ‘purified’ by soaking them in saltwater for a few days.

According to the same Live Science article, in a session, a crystal healer will place the appropriate stones on parts of the body that need healing. The stones are used physically and spiritually to help heal both the mind and spirit.

Despite consulting and practicing this ancient medicine, most modern crystal-healers still recommend always seeing a family doctor and not replacing modern medicine with stones. The stones are recommended mostly for spiritual reasons.

According to herbalism student Tamara Montenegro, crystals changed her life. She sees a crystal therapist when she feels unbalanced physically and emotionally. Montenegro claims the gems have helped with her anxiety, insomnia, and even heartbreak.

“It helps me to ground myself,” she said. “I truly believe they are a great healing tool — they can help you manifest things into your life.”

 

Photos by Laurence B.D., graphics by @sundaeghost

Categories
Student Life

Oxytocin can help make the best of a bad situation

Oxytocin, sometimes called “the cuddle hormone,” promotes trust in romantic relationships, and is known to be partially responsible for bonding between mother and child through breast feeding. However, Concordia University researchers Mark Ellenbogen and Christopher Cardoso have taken a different approach with the hormone and conducted a study that tested the effects of oxytocin on a person’s mood, during an episode of social rejection.

The study simulated  and studied negative social interactions by having participants interrupt, disagree with, and ignore one another. Afterwards, it was found that the subjects who were given oxytocin in the form of a nasal spray, instead of a placebo, were more likely to have trust in people despite the social rejection experienced. These individuals responded more positively to questions such as “I believe that most people are basically well-intentioned”, “I tend to assume the best about people”, and “I have a good deal of faith in the human nature.”

Though the effects of oxytocin remain a topic of debate, Cardoso believes that, “oxytocin probably works on limbic brain areas responsible for motivation and the regulation of stress. Whether it affects these brain areas directly or indirectly once it is administered is still an open question in human research.”

Ellenbogen and Cardoso’s results add to the ongoing debate about how oxytocin functions, but they believe this particular finding will aid people with mood disorders.  According to their results, oxytocin could play an important role in promoting social bonding after negative social experiences. Rather than hiding from social interactions, oxytocin may encourage individuals to look for help and build trust with others.

“Our culture is quite individualistic, and people lose sight of how much we are biologically wired to rely on each other for support,” said Cardoso. Researchers will no doubt use studies such as this one to help better understand human emotions and relationships in the future, but results so far show that when stressed out the answer might be as easy as venting to a friend or as simple as asking a loved one for a hug.

 

http://www.internet.uqam.ca/web/t1716/oxytocine.pdf  (breastfeeding and oyxtocin)

 

http://www.concordia.ca/news/releases/2013/06/25/feeling-stressed.html

 

Categories
Opinions

Addiction 101

According to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, 1 out of 10 Canadians over the age of 15 will experience a dependence to either drugs or alcohol. Though there are numerous support groups out there to help deal with this disease, the rate will likely only increase unless steps are taken to help doctors learn how to help their patients.

The health care system in this country is not fully equipped to deal with the ever-growing problem of addiction. There are barely any training programs for doctors, nurses, and specialists when it comes to dealing with addiction in its many forms. This desperately needs to change, for it is disheartening to live in a society where people can’t get sufficient treatment for such a common and difficult disease.

Dr. Evan Wood is a Vancouver medical doctor focusing on inner-city medicine. This lack of training for doctors, said Wood, extends beyond the shortcomings of British Columbia’s system.

“The problem is typical of all Canadian provinces,” he said. “Dedicated and caring as they usually are, most Canadian physicians who consider themselves addiction medicine specialists assembled their knowledge about addiction treatment after completing their medical training.”

What Canada really needs are doctors and specialists who know exactly how to approach addiction and have formal training, as well as experience in the field. We need to teach physicians how to help people who are struggling with such deeply personal and psychological issues, using the latest scientific and therapeutic advances.

Wood has familiarized himself with many addiction centres in and around the country and believes that having a trained doctor when it comes to dealing with addiction can make all the difference.

“What was really eye-opening from my visit to [the Boston Medical Center’s Clinical Addiction Research and Education Unit] was the impact that a skilled addiction medicine workforce can have in turning patients’ lives around,” he said.

Canada needs to invest more time and money in the creation of programs where such skills and techniques can be taught and developed. Hope is not lost though, said Wood, referring to a new initiative which could prove game-changing in the fight to improve addiction treatment.

“A potentially ground-shifting opportunity has emerged with the recent establishment of the American Board of Addiction Medicine,” he said. “The board has created guidelines for the development of addiction medicine fellowship programs enabling Canadian medical schools to create programs that are eligible for full accreditation.”

Now it’s Canada’s turn to invest more money and time, in order to create effective addiction training programs, and stop ignoring the larger problem at work.

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