Monday December 11: an Evening With Dr. Joel Lexchin

Thank you to Dr Lexchin for an informative evening sharing highlights from his book:
Doctors in Denial: Why Big Pharma and the Canadian Medical Profession Are Too Close For Comfort.

Monday November 13: An Evening With Dr. Frank Sommers

War is mankind's most tragic and stupid folly; to seek or advise its deliberate provocation is a black crime against all men. Dwight D. Eisenhower

Thank you to Dr. Frank Sommers for sharing his insights into the madness of war from both a personal and professional perspective.
Dr Sommers was involved in creating the foundations of the Nobel Peace Prize winning International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War. See about their work here: http://www.ippnw.org/ .

Tuesday September 26: ♪ Ah, Look At All the Lonely People♪: An Evening with Dr. Ami Rokach

Thank you to Dr. Ami Rokach (http://www3.sympatico.ca/arokach/ ) for sharing 30 years of experience on a trending topic. See:

 http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/loneliness-public-health-psychologist-1.4249637

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/08/170805165319.htm

A "School of Life" take on the subject: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtCR6P5rsXU

Interesting idea:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=pregnenolone+loneliness 

Monday June 12 : An Evening with Dr. Kieran Murphy

Thank you to Dr. Murphy for a thought provoking evening on innovation.
IF YOU ARE A MEDICAL INNOVATOR AND ARE INSPIRED TO PRESENT TO YOUR COLLEAGUES IN FUTURE DOCTORS’ LOUNGE EVENTS, WHETHER YOU WOULD LIKE TO PRESENT FOR 12  OR 120 MINUTES, AND YOU BELIEVE THAT YOU FULFILL THE MANDATE OF OUR VISION STATEMENT (SEE: http://medicalimagineering.blogspot.ca/2011/10/under-construction.html )  , PLEASE CONTACT drhappi@aol.com FOR FURTHER DETAILS

May 24: An Evening with Derek Strachan

“In purity and holiness I will guard my life and my art.” –Hippocratic Oath

Spirituality is difficult to define, yet easy to appreciate.

You might be able to appreciate it somewhere in the memories of the idealism that you may have had in your first year of medical school.

Along the way, your “soul,” that place where you carry your values, ideals, and the reserves of your inner strength, has been battered by the realities of dealing with death, disease and disability on a regular basis. The restrictiveness of bureaucracy, paperwork and doubt may have added to that toll.

Without care and maintenance of your soul, you are vulnerable to the epidemic of burnout sweeping our profession.

Hippocrates relied on turning to Apollo, Asclepius, Hygieia , Panaceia, among others, to bear witness to his commitment to his professional path.

There are those among us who turn to God for the strength to perform our art.

Others rely on a faith in the inherent dignity of each and every patient to guide their way.

What can you do to care for your soul?

Are concepts such as purity and holiness as outdated as the original Hippocratic Oath itself?

You and a guest are invited to examine the spiritual dimension of medicine with a professional colleague who deals with this issue on a daily basis.

Derek Strachan is a Spiritual Care Practitioner at University Health Network working in the Toronto General Hospital Medical Surgical ICU.  He is also a Registered Psychotherapist with the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario.  Derek will explore the changing role of spiritual care in healthcare and its relevance today.

March 29: An Evening With Dr. Rex Kay and Friends

 

Thank you once again to Dr. Rex Kay for leading in our annual medical storytelling night for the 9th consecutive time. Thank you to Dr. Eloise Ballou for illuminating us on the cliché that every face tells a story www.onfaces.org/ .
Check out Ars Medica: A Journal of Medicine, The Arts and Humanities (www.ars-medica.ca ) where Dr. Kay is an editor.

 

NEW LOCAL MEDICAL STORYTELLING INITIATIVE: check out a blog recently started by some of your District 11 colleagues https://healthcareandhumanity.wordpress.com/  .
 

Monday February 27: An Evening With Dr. Peter Pisters

Thank you to Dr. Pisters for a demonstration on how effective leadership can save lives.
Medical “error” ranks up there with cancer and heart disease as one of the leading causes of death in Western society(see http://www.bmj.com/content/353/bmj.i2139 ).
It is time that we, as a profession, face this unpleasant reality. (see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emouSWPr5xA ).
Kudos to pioneers such as Dr. Pisters.