Dr. Jennifer Vassel MD CCFP BScHon
@drvassel
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Mother, Wife, Artist and Physician
Langley, British Columbia
Joined January 2022
BC family doctors are urgently calling for change to the primary care system but it's falling on deaf ears with the @bcndp. This government needs to commit to an overhaul of the system instead of repeatedly bringing forward ineffective solutions. https://t.co/gfT7LAneIM
#bcpoli
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#OurStories: @drvassel on cherished moments with patients: "It is the connections we forge, the common experiences we share with our patients that weave together the trust & understanding we need to recognize when they truly need us." https://t.co/obwtm6QbUf
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Time to stop investing big dollars in UPCCs & episodic care. We need the fund family doctors who develop longitudinal relationships with their patients, who screen for diseases and caners, and who will improve the health for all British Columbians. @BCCancer @cancersociety
It is predicted there will be 21,247 excess cancer deaths over the next 10 yrs in Canada owing to #COVID19. Read more about the pandemic's impact on missed & delayed cancer diagnoses in @FamPhysCan Cancer Care MIG Co-chair Dr Anna Wilkinson's commentary: https://t.co/aEht4vqEnp
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More ferries cancelled today due to staff shortages; so BC media, govt assuring us that all's well b/c hosp beds aren't full: why all those cancell'ns? Biz closed? HCWs off sick? ERs jammed? Too-high no of elderly dead? Reality feels a lot different from the rosy claims #bcpoli
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How about the disastrous UPCC’s pivot on a dime to flourish as community governed, physician led community health centres? Now there’s a partial solution for the primary care crisis. @adriandix @jjhorgan @FDs4PCinBC @BCFamilyDoctors
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And, before you argue that #familyphysicians get paid more for the responsibility, remember that the average electrician makes the same, or higher, hourly wage as a family doc in this province.
Imagine a headline saying that all electricians in BC are responsible for responding to their customers’ urgent electrical matters, 24/7, on demand, with no compensation other than their hourly rate. Why do we think it is ok for our system to demand this of family physicians?
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We think of a family doctor’s job as poking&prodding, plus a quick chat before a prescription But we should think of them as the conductor of our healthcare orchestra — while being run off their feet This is an impt pc I shot/wrote/edited for @CTVVancouver
https://t.co/NkkMDczCh3
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It is quite brutal these days in health care. Honestly every week seems busier and worse than the previous. Can someone please turn the light back on at the end of the tunnel? It seems to be out.
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Horgan/Dix want family docs to do first aid and STOP 🛑 Treat patients? 🛑 Manage complex/chronic illness? 🛑 Multiple conditions? 🛑 Prevent illness? 🛑 Help people stay healthy? 🛑 Patients bounce between clinics. Stay sick. Overwhelm specialists/ER. 🤒🪦 Release the brakes!
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@DrDMPetersMD @DrJLush @fogducker1 @CMan_CCFP @TuraEmanuela @ReneeMerrifiel3 @Vanessa58386340 @shirleybond @SoniaFurstenau @MurrayRankinNDP @DoctorsOfBC @BCFamilyDoctors @BCCFP @adriandix @MitziDeanBC @BC_GP_Shortage This is a pivotal moment. Unless control of PC funding decisions are decentralized and downloaded to FPs, any pace of improvement will be eclipsed by the continued FP exodus. Top-down solutions can’t work fast enough. Bottom-up can, if imperfectly. The speed required is leverage.
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This is a beautiful Ode to Family Doctors, that so wonderfully illustrates our role, our struggle and our joy. Thank you Dr. Lush for capturing the art of what we do.
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@desertchase Ours is a medium to large division and budget of about 800k. Roughly 25% goes to FP’s for committee work etc. Another important question is what is our mandate? It used to be grassroots, health and wellness. Now? More like MoH driving it. @DoctorsOfBC
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Thank you @SoniaFurstenau for listening and understanding the issues. We family doctors love what we do and we want ALL British Columbians to have the high quality care they deserve! @FDs4PCinBC @jjhorgan @adriandix @KevinFalcon @Rob_Fleming @MurrayRankinNDP
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“I genuinely believe that what is decided in the next few weeks will affect primary care for a generation."
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@SoniaFurstenau @adriandix @shirleybond @jjhorgan @adampolsen, why do organizations representing family med fear speaking out?
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@shirleybond - our divisions and DOBC were not at the rally. Ask us why not. It’s not because they don’t care about the crisis.
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@CMan_CCFP @TuraEmanuela @ReneeMerrifiel3 @Vanessa58386340 @shirleybond @SoniaFurstenau Divisions can’t speak out against the ministry because that’s where the funding comes from. You can’t bite the hand that feeds you, and that muzzles divisions and PCNs from engaging in radical change.
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@adriandix this is our uphill battle. Take our feedback now. We can make our system attractive again with family physician-led solutions. Time to admit the status quo isn’t working!
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@DrBrianDay @TuraEmanuela Back in 2018 I stated “we don’t have an urgent care crisis, we have a primary care crisis.” So they spent millions on shiny, expensive and empty urgent care centres, instead of supporting our crumbling but foundational family doc clinics. Hmmm @adriandix
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When will BC NDP government accept responsibility for its disastrous management of our failing health system? Province in primary care calamity (Vancouver Sun), May 20, 2022 https://t.co/AZaMPW7kbg
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