Douglas College launches Canada’s first Bachelor of Science in Health Information Management
Professionals in health information management (HIM) form the unseen spine of Canadian medicine and health care. Despite their necessity, there just aren’t enough trained HIM experts to fulfil the demands of our strained health care system. And while information managers in the field currently bring valuable skills to the table, many of them only hold one part of the puzzle. There’s been no one place in Canada to learn the complete mix of knowledge and skills and ground it in the health industry.
That’s why Douglas College is leading on filling the gap with the new Bachelor of Science in Health Information Management (BSc-HIM). This program provides the practical skills and experience needed to step up to the plate – whether you’ve already got experience in the sector or your passion for HIM is newfound.
“Introduce me to HIM”
Health information management is a line of work that focuses on gathering, analyzing, securing and sharing health-related data. To accomplish this, HIM professionals leverage a unique cocktail of skills – data analysis, project management, IT know-how and much more. The information they collect and analyze helps guide critical health care decisions made across the industry. This includes everything from nurses triaging in the ER to health authority leaders signing off on the latest best practices.
If you work in health information management, you’re part of a process that influences health care at every level. You’re showing leaders in government and health the facts that decide our hospitals’ policies and where we allocate tax dollars. You’re informing evolving best practices across hospitals while streamlining the flow of information needed by primary care teams. Most importantly, you’re helping patients get the fastest, most comprehensive care possible.
According to Dr. Patricia Visosky, coordinator for the Health Information Management department at Douglas and Vice-Chair of the Canadian Health Information Management Association, there’s not one decision about health care in Canada that gets made without insights provided by the HIM industry. Those insights blossom from the individual level upward, patient by patient.
“To build that essential body of information, there are things we need to know about every person seeking care. Their experience in treatment matters,” Dr. Visosky says. “But we miss chances to do better whenever we can’t capture that data or use it effectively.”
Right now, we don’t have enough trained HIM experts in Canada to meet the demands of the modern healthcare system. That exacerbates many if not all of the hot-button issues in health right now. Think about unacceptable wait times, a lack of nurses and doctors, hamstrung communication between care providers and more. But more health information managers means more capacity to investigate the best ways to support our frontline health care workers.
More than that, HIM professionals drive the innovations that lead to a simpler, less barrier-fraught experience for future patients. One major example is the way institutions transfer patient information, orders for medical tests, and more. There are historic cases where messages and requests have been missed, contributing to a real cost in human life. A famous Canadian example is the Greg Price case of 2012. A man lost his life to testicular cancer, partially because faxed referral documents and other information went missing in transit, delaying his diagnosis.
Dr. Visosky says the technology already exists to ensure up-to-date e-health records are readily available to everyone who needs them, including the primary care team, pharmacists, mental health professionals and the patient themselves. However, a bigger population of HIM professionals are necessary to build these systems and implement them across Canada.
“As soon as we hit ‘enter’ and a patient’s record is saved,” Dr. Visosky says, “whoever else needs it should be able to access it.”
The Douglas difference
The BSc–HIM at Douglas College is the first post-secondary program in Canada to train HIM professionals with the depth of a dedicated bachelor’s while also allowing for specializations through multiple pathways. You can choose to concentrate on information intelligence, operations management or the general stream.
Uniquely, this program offers the chance to do two internships at regional health organizations. There’s also an 180-hour supervised practicum in the health, government or private sector. With this applied learning, you get the hands-on training and mentorship opportunities you need to graduate ready to work.
With the demand for HIM-trained workers steadily rising, you’ll graduate on track to gain financial stability and further your career. That’s true whether you already work in health information management or are just starting out. The degree prepares you to start a well-paid job right after you graduate, in hospitals, government, health authorities, or even research and academia. The median salary for B.C. health care managers, for example, is more than $95,000. And over 19,300 jobs in HIM, database analysis, health care management and/or health policy research are projected for B.C. alone in the next 10 years.
Working in health information management empowers you to get patients in your communities and across the country closer to an ideal standard of care – one dataset at a time.
Want to explore your options with the Bachelor of Science in Health Information Management? The first intake is September 2023. Interested applicants looking to complete pre-requisites for the degree can enrol in our newly launched Academic Foundations certificate program. Read more.
A guiding voice: Youth Justice grad helps secure the futures of teens at risk
By Zach Siddiqui, Marketing and Communications
Kayla Gambler wanted an education that would help her better support Indigenous youth facing the same challenges she once did – living away from her community, and dealing with grief, trauma and substance use. She discovered the two-year Diploma in Youth Justice and hasn’t looked back.
“I love learning how to help youth navigate the justice system,” Kayla says. “When you don’t understand the laws in place and you see how unfairly people are often treated, it can be overwhelming. I’m gaining the knowledge I need to, hopefully, change things for the youth I work with piece by piece.”
The winding road to justice
Before Kayla studied at Douglas, she was a support worker in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. Through a recovery program run by a women’s resource organization, she helped women reduce their substance use while providing them with food, one-on-one support and harm reduction supplies.
The work was fulfilling, but it was also psychologically challenging. After a while, Kayla felt she was no longer able to be the person this community needed.
“There’s a lot that comes with that job,” Kayla says. “You’re seeing a lot of mental health struggles, addictions, trauma. The work burned me out. I realized I couldn’t give 100 percent to the women that I was supporting, not anymore.”
Kayla took a step back, choosing to continue her relief work on a part-time basis, and refocus on her education. She hoped to both rejuvenate herself and to reorient her career trajectory to something new in the same field. Considering her options at Douglas led her to the Diploma in Youth Justice. It fit perfectly into what Kayla felt was her next calling: provide support to youth in need, especially Indigenous youth.
“I wanted to work with youth. I wanted to work with high-risk youth. And I wanted to learn so much more about the external and underlying factors out there that shape their lives.”
Making sure the kids are all right
Acclimating to the Youth Justice program took Kayla some time. In her previous job, she was part of an Indigenous-led team working mainly with Indigenous women, a community she already felt deeply connected to. Leaving that behind to restart her studies made her feel uprooted. But she enjoyed the coursework and her cohort, and soon hit her stride.
“For lots of people, going back to school means long lectures and huge class sizes,” Kayla says. “It’s hard to connect with people. But I felt lucky to have a very different experience with my Youth Justice cohort – all great people going through this program together in a tight-knit group. I couldn’t imagine starting my college career any other way.”
The two-year Youth Justice Diploma features courses in behavioural theory, public policy, skill development and more. One of the program’s biggest attractions is the hands-on learning it offers through two practicums.
In her first year, Kayla did a five-week placement with ACCESS Youth, a local youth outreach service doing work on the ground with high-risk youth throughout the Tri-Cities. Kayla’s team was regularly stationed in Coquitlam’s commercial district – a hotspot for local youth – sometimes working until as late as midnight.
“We were there to keep them safe,” Kayla says. “If they were drawn into conflicts, then we connected with them and made sure they were OK. We were mediators between them and local businesses and mall security. We gave them resources: snacks, contraception, harm reduction supplies.”
Kayla was hired at ACCESS full-time after her practicum. She became their first youth worker whose portfolio focused on Indigenous outreach.
Rerouting the roots
Kayla’s applied learning will serve her even further once she graduates this summer. Her diploma and work experience will open doors to careers working with children, youth and families in community support, crisis intervention, judicial administration and much more.
But Kayla wants to take that to the next level by completing a Bachelor of Social Work.
“When I started my diploma, I’d originally planned to graduate and focus on my career,” Kayla says. “That’s a great option to have. Personally, I found an interest in continuing my education to further build my skills, to have the opportunity to do even better for the youth I want to work with.”
Kayla says her two years in Youth Justice have been rich with opportunities. She has a film project coming out, though the details are still hush-hush. She’s travelling this semester through the Indigenous Global Learning Program to the University of Hawai’i, where she will connect with local Indigenous communities.
Right now, she’s waiting to hear back from the University of Victoria about her application to transfer into their social work program, a move that would mean huge changes.
“I’ll have to figure out where I can work, and live, and set my roots. I’ll have to re-establish my life. But I’m so excited to take my experiences at Douglas, and everything I’ve learned here, and use that toward all my future achievements.”
“Space, not place”: A Geography Open Lab tech opens up about the human side to geography
As a lab technician in one of Douglas College’s Geography Open Labs, Sasha Djakovic takes on a unique teaching role in the Department of Geography and the Environment. Geography students use the Open Labs to explore everything from weather to topography to ecological damage. Sasha guides these students through using the lab’s tools, many of which he personally curates, for their assignments. Between this, cultivating a welcoming social space in the lab, aand much more, Sasha acts as an all-round source of support to the department’s faculty.
Since starting at Douglas, Sasha’s portfolio has branched off from the Open Lab – though his research feeds back into it. He guest lectures in and out of the Geography department about Indigenous land rights. Last summer, he travelled to the Lil’wat First Nation’s territory to help uncover all kinds of topological data, using the Lab’s resources to analyze it through the lens of traditional Lil’wat stories and knowledge.
What does it mean to be a lab technician at Douglas?
The job title is deceiving. My priority isn’t the lab, but the students using it. We have the equipment – computers, data, maps – they need to complete their lab assignments. On top of that, I’m there to assist. Generally, my job is to make sure everyone’s happy, the equipment’s working, and the space is safe and all-inclusive.
How does the Geography Open Lab support students?
Geography has many human aspects. So, I cultivate a lab culture where every student feels they can freely express their feelings about what they’re learning. Most likely, they’re not the only one in the room with thoughts. That leads us to having great conversations as a class. On top of that, it’s not just a place to work. I’ve made a lounge area here, so students have somewhere to chill and eat lunch if they want. “It’s a space, not a place” – we use that phrase a lot in geography.
How do your guest lectures engage with Indigeneity?
I’m a big advocate for Indigenous rights and title. I’ve been on the frontlines with activism, where I’ve learned a lot, and I have a background in mapping Indigenous territory. We live in a complex time and place here in B.C., on unceded territories. It makes for a lot of conflict and issues both inside and outside of First Nations. So, in my lectures, I like to showcase that and try to summarize who owns rights to what.
Tell us about your work with the Lil’wat First Nation.
In the summer, I travelled to the Lil’wat First Nation’s territory as part of an archaeological dig. Unbelievable things have emerged from that. For example, using the Geography department’s drone, I’ve acquired detailed imagery of the archaeological sites, like the depressions where pit houses and cache pits are. Of course, I’m sharing all the data with the Lil’wat First Nation. Anything I’m taking, including knowledge, from their territory is theirs.
How will you translate this data to Geography labs?
A related project I’ve been working on is a lab session that weaves traditional Indigenous ecological knowledge with Western-based science. I acquired a story from the Lil’wat First Nation, the Copper Canoe story once told by Charlie Mack, which describes how landscapes form and behave. In this story, there’s a mountain that crosses a river “at will,” at any time. Then the copper canoe sails through the river and tames it. After learning of it, I examined this mountain geographically, and it’s very prone to erosion. There are crazy avalanche tracks. And using the tech in the Open Lab, like our AR sandbox and Google Earth, you can put yourself in this valley, seeing how this mountain almost hangs over the river. You can prove that this mountain really can block the river at any time.
How are students responding to this type of learning?
It’s been great so far. The students are way ahead of their time, even ahead of us in the department, when it comes to Indigenous knowledge and understanding Indigenous rights and title. We had students directly involved in our work with the Lil’wat First Nation this summer, and then those who are working with this data in the Open Lab right now. Of course, doing this work in the classroom is delicate, because I don’t want to take or appropriate. I’m sure I’ve made mistakes – but that’s the process, as is doing the work to identify and fix them.
What comes next for the Geography Open Lab?
Geography is ever-flowing – I’m constantly coming up with new technology and labs to incorporate. Mainly, I want to continue strengthening our relationship with the Lil’wat First Nation. I want to keep collaboratively gathering this new data from their lands, and with their consent, bring more of this traditional ecological knowledge into our lab work.
What is your advice for students interested in studying geography at Douglas?
Geography is the science of everything. It finds a way to touch on every other subject. There’s a physical side, but people don’t realize there’s also that very different human side – though both involve a lot of crying. So you can go down a lot of different routes career-wise. I always suggest trying out two introductory geography courses, one more physically focused and one more humanities-based. That’ll tell you if it’s the right fit for you.
Want to learn more about the Associate Degree in Geography and the Environment? Learn more at the Douglas College website.
This Child and Youth Care student overcame her shyness to help others succeed
By Elizabeth Douglas, Marketing and Communications
When Myat Noe Pwint started at Douglas, she had a hard time speaking in front of her classmates. But through her work as a Student Assistant for the Douglas College (DCI) Mentorship Program, the introverted Bachelor of Arts in Child and Youth Care student improved her leadership and public speaking skills.
“Every semester, we would gather for training sessions, and I would have to speak in front of 50 to 60 mentors,” she says. “At first it was nerve-wracking, but I slowly got used to it, and now it’s much easier for me to speak in front of others.”
As a Student Assistant, Myat uses her experience as an international student from Myanmar to guide new students through their first steps at Douglas.
“Most international students want to get engage with on-campus activities. Everything is new and exciting,” she says. “It’s nice to be able to help students, as well as run fun networking events for them.”
These are leadership skills Myat will bring to her career in Child and Youth Care. She explains that working with young adults, like her international student mentees, has furthered her practical experience in communicating with youth transitioning to adulthood.
Advocating on campus
Earlier this year, Myat also became the Women Students’ Representative for the Douglas Students’ Union (DSU). In this role, she organizes initiatives through the Women Students’ Collective and advocates for its members.
“I run monthly themed tea parties within the Women Students’ Collective to build a sense of community,” she says. “A recent theme was elimination of violence against women, where we made self-protection keychains and went through a self-defense workshop.”
Although her volunteer positions are quite different, Myat has found ways to bridge the gap between the two. She routinely shares information about the DSU with her international student mentees, and in turn, she uses her position with the DSU to reach out to new international students about resources and opportunities available to them.
“When I meet new international students, especially women of colour, they’re very willing to learn more about culture here in Canada while sharing and celebrating their own. I’m able to refer to the knowledge and resources I’ve gathered as a women’s representative and bring it back to these students.”
Looking to the future
After Myat graduates, she plans on becoming a child and youth worker and advocating for youth with immigrant backgrounds. She says she’s confident that the skills she has learned through her degree, as well as being a mentor and women’s representative, have provided her with the tools she needs to reach her career goals.
“When I apply for jobs, I can tell employers I have experience working with 10 international students each semester. That process of connection with students is very similar to connecting with youth in my field,” she says.
For Myat, involving herself in on-campus activities is more than just a volunteer experience, and it’s something she recommends to anyone at Douglas – especially her fellow international students.
“I would encourage anyone to volunteer. Get out there and be involved, because that’s what opens you up to different opportunities and interests that you might not otherwise discover.”
Grounded in growth: Jeff Ross coaches women’s volleyball with a focus on the players’ future
Meet Jeff Ross, head coach of the Douglas College Royals women’s volleyball program. As a guide and mentor for student athletes, he views his biggest role as giving his players a great experience full of opportunities for personal growth.
On Nov. 11, Jeff received the 2022 National Indigenous Coaching Award from the Coaching Association of Canada at the Petro-Canada Sport Leadership Awards Gala. Though Jeff considers himself an ambitious coach, he doesn’t do it for personal recognition. His top priority is always the athletes – and the young coaches he hopes to inspire to chase their dreams.
How did you start coaching the Royals?
In the summer of 2016, the Douglas position opened and I figured I would take the opportunity and apply. At that point in my coaching career, I had coached a lot with Thunder Volleyball Club and Team BC programming, and I was assisting with UBC Women’s Volleyball. So, I felt ready to take on a head coaching role. The attraction there, I think – for any coach who reaches that point in their career – is that chance to run your own program while seeking your personal growth as a coach.
How intensive is your coaching style?
I hold my athletes to a pretty high standard both on and off the court. I try to keep things relaxed and calm, but at the same time, they know my expectations. With that said, I cherish every day in the gym with the athletes – the practices, the match prep. It’s great to be able to create those relationships, help them as much as I possibly can and, hopefully, be a good role model.
Coaching is about more than just overseeing practices, of course. What else do you do to support your team and their growth?
In terms of the job tasks, there’s the long-term, behind-the-scenes pieces, like fundraising, organizing the tournaments or planning team trips. But while all these logistical pieces are important, our department thinks more about the bigger picture: How are we preparing these student athletes for life after our program? In everything we do, we work on equipping these young athletes with the tools to be successful long after they leave Douglas. That, to me, is the most important form of support we give.
Have you faced any big barriers in keeping the Royals competitive?
At the start of my career at Douglas, one big block was resources – specifically, the lack of them. U-Sport schools had access to a lot more resources than we did. But over the years, the athletic department has been tackling many of the challenges we’ve faced to create an experience that is on the same level as those top programs.
What other challenges have you faced in your position?
Speaking as an Indigenous coach, I see a lot of hurdles even today. It’s much tougher to get career opportunities or chances for professional development. That makes it hard for many Indigenous coaches to consider this a viable career. So on top of trying to be a role model to my players, I also try to be a good role model for young coaches, showing them that this is a realistic career path. I don’t want to call it “leading by example” – it’s more like we’re all putting in the work together, a joint effort to build something exceptional.
Something I really want to do myself eventually is start an Indigenous coaching program. It would get more coaches involved from many communities across Canada and give them that doorway into this type of career. And I don’t know how that looks, or how it would look, but it’s been on my mind for a few months now, if not years.
As a coach, how can you make a permanent difference for student athletes?
I would hope that when the athletes move on from Douglas and the Royals, they leave with the tools – work ethic, time management, communication skills – they require to be successful five, 10, even 20 years down the road. Honestly, I want them to have the chance to inspire young athletes to chase their own dreams.
What are the volleyball team’s current priorities?
Obviously, every year we’re chasing a national championship. We’re going after it every day, and we’ve been there three times in the last five years. We’ve lost in the national final twice, so the top priority is to get there again and give ourselves a chance to win on that scale. While we’re on that path, we’re still thinking about making the experience positive for our players, so that our journey as a team makes them better people, too.
From Kenya to Vancouver Island: Irene Jesso’s marathon journey to improve the lives of marginalized communities
By Brian Helberg, Communications Officer
The tiny island village of Alert Bay, B.C., is over 14,000 km from Kenya. But for Kenyan immigrant Irene Jesso, this remote community is now home.
Irene and her family moved to Vancouver Island after she graduated from Douglas College in 2020 with a Bachelor of Social Work to help struggling families in Alert Bay, working with K’wak’walat’si Child and Family Services.
“Children should always have access to food, shelter, education and medical attention. When I see that that’s not always the case in many communities, it breaks my heart,” says Irene. “Understanding the effect of power — and powerlessness — is key when working with marginalized communities. So is knowing you can amplify someone’s voice, and advocate for their rights and needs. That is what I am doing in Alert Bay.”
Irene is a registered social worker with the BC College of Social Workers and a qualified SAFE home study practitioner. Acquiring the skills necessary to deal with complex and sensitive situations has been a lifelong journey for Irene. She learned the initial lessons during her youth in Kenya.
Starting line
Born and raised on the opposite side of the world from British Columbia, Irene never imagined that one day she would be living in Canada and fulfilling her dream of becoming a social worker. While Irene herself grew up with the privilege of a healthy, happy home, she saw the suffering in her community. She has carried these memories with her throughout her life.
“Life in Kenya can be harsh for some children,” says Irene. “Child welfare is not as we know it here in Canada. I grew up seeing suffering, innocent young children suffering. There are children who are born in the streets, live in the streets, and grow up in the streets. They have children of their own in the streets and the cycle continues. Seeing that level of suffering was soul-crushing, and I wanted to do something about it.”
Irene was 19 years old when she began building an orphanage in Kenya. She not only helped physically construct the orphanage, but also assisted in raising the funds to build it.
“Social work has been a passion for me since I was a teenager,” says Irene. “Whether it was talking to people, counselling people, helping people or fundraising – I discovered while building the orphanage that I was doing what I love.”
This experience shaped her perspective as a person and further cemented her desire to work with underserved communities. On a daily basis, Irene uses empathy and generosity – two traits she learned to harness while creating change in her home country.
“I remember realizing during my childhood that if you are in a fortunate position in life and have the means, you should try to help less fortunate people,” says Irene. “My passion for using my knowledge and skills to improve the lives of marginalized people started during my youth. It has continued to grow throughout my life.”
Read more: “This Social Work alum wants her master’s degree to help her create systemic change”
Breaking through the wall
Irene touched down on Canadian soil for the first time in her 20s as part of an international mission program. She initially resided in Kelowna before finding her way to Vancouver. After researching local colleges and universities, Irene decided that Douglas College’s Social Work program was right for her.
“I know in my heart that my education at Douglas College was a gift,” says Irene. “We did case studies in class that prepared us for the real world by letting us work with real people in real situations. My instructors gave me the confidence that I could be a social worker and succeed in creating positive change.”
Like many of her classmates, Irene found her motivation to enrol at Douglas in the chance to engage in practical learning opportunities. She wanted to get training from professional social workers and get hands-on experience during her practicums.
Irene spent over 1,000 hours working at two practicums with Coast Mental Health. After graduating, Irene got her wish to become a social worker in a remote Canadian community after securing a position in Alert Bay.
Hitting her stride
Irene’s initial destination of choice was Nunavut, but Alert Bay proved to be perfect for her. Situated off the northern coast of Vancouver Island and home to fewer than 1,500 people, Alert Bay and its residents face major challenges. These include food shortages and a lack of affordable housing.
“The more I learned about marginalization, intergenerational trauma and the current effect of colonization in Canada, the more my desire to work in a remote community grew,” says Irene. “The population I work with in Alert Bay is over 90 percent Indigenous. I feel privileged to be able to work with this population because it’s an opportunity to honour their identity, their traditions and their backgrounds.”
With limited resources available to the residents of Alert Bay, Irene’s duties vary greatly depending on the day. The skills she acquired in her Douglas days have come in handy, as she deals with many challenging hurdles: environmental, geographic and – for the residents of Alert Bay – personal.
“I am often dealing with home study assessments for caregivers and foster parents. The goal is to ensure child safety when a youth is placed in a home, which involves interviewing families and assessing situations,” says Irene. “We also do a lot of preventative work, particularly related to food shortages and inflation issues. Both problems have hit Alert Bay hard. So, we try to help those who have been affected.”
Living in Alert Bay has been an incredibly rewarding experience for Irene and her family. Though she has had to deal with challenges associated with uprooting her family and moving to a small island, her desire to help marginalized people in underserved communities made joining K’wak’walat’si Child and Family Services the perfect choice for her.
“I would encourage more social workers and other professionals to dedicate a few years after their graduation to work in remote communities,” says Irene. “You learn so much, and it challenges your skills. That’s how you grow. You become part of a greater community and work closely with other professionals. It’s incredibly rewarding to feel you are making a positive impact in people’s lives.”
Podium finish
Irene’s journey from Kenya to Douglas College to Alert Bay has been more of a marathon than a sprint. But her positive attitude and determination have allowed her to achieve her lifelong dream of bettering the lives of people living in a remote community.
“It hasn’t been easy, but I believe in living the talk – having the strength to take on challenges but always making sure you are standing by the values you profess,” says Irene. “I have always been motivated to accomplish my goals, both personally and professionally.
“I know one day I will go back home to Kenya and give back to the community, but I love my life in Alert Bay right now. I’m living my dream as a social worker.”
Visit the Douglas College website to learn more about the Social Work program and how to apply.
This Veterinary Technology grad is fighting plastic pollution in her industry
By Elizabeth Douglas, Marketing and Communications
Jocelyn Marsh connects veterinary medicine with ocean stewardship in an effort to save nearly 2.7 million plastic needles and syringes per year from entering the landfill and our waterways.
Jocelyn Marsh is making waves in environmental activism through her passion for ocean stewardship and small animal medicine. Working part-time as a Veterinary Technology Lab Facilitator at Douglas and as a Registered Veterinary Technician (RVT) showed her how extreme plastic pollution has become in the industry.
Enter the Love Our Oceans Project (LOOP). Plastic waste and particles can easily end up in our waterways, posing great risk to marine wildlife and surrounding ecosystems. LOOP addresses this by focusing on the impact of the industry’s plastic waste issue, while creating alternative practices to combat pollution.
LOOP was born from Jocelyn’s participation in the Ocean Bridge Ambassador Program through Ocean Wise, a global environmental charity that started in Vancouver. In 2021, she started this program that connects young adults with ocean conservation efforts. As a part of the program, Jocelyn needed to develop a conservation project to implement in her local community.
Streams of Action
LOOP approaches sustainability through two streams of action: the pill vial recycling program and a “weight-based audit.”
“We’re constantly dispensing pill vials for prescriptions,” she explains. “They were a big issue, because we dispense the medication, then just throw the vials in the recycling.”
Jocelyn notes that reusing existing materials cuts down on more pollution than recycling. She encourages her clients to bring back their pill vials to be reused for their pet’s future prescriptions. “I take it from them, properly disinfect it, and then I use that for future medications. So, we’re ultimately lowering the output of vials.”
She says that if more veterinary hospitals took on the pill vial recycling program, we could save up to 340,000 vials per year across Canada.
The weight-based audit addresses the issue of plastic syringe and needle waste.
Medication audits ensure the appropriate handling, storage and prescription of medicine. By tracking the dosage, veterinarians and doctors can guarantee accurate dosages for their patients.
However, traditional veterinary medication audits involve drawing up an entire container of liquid medicine into a syringe, measuring the volume and comparing it to the previously recorded volume. Not only is this process time consuming, but it notably increases the number of syringes used.
In human medicine, a weight-based methodology is used. Instead of using a syringe to measure the volume of a medication, this technique monitors the weight of the product and compares it to the previously recorded weight.
Jocelyn says moving to a weight-based audit would remove the need to use syringes and thus, cutting down on plastic consumption.
“There are about 3,500 registered veterinary hospitals across Canada,” she explains. “In a year’s time, if all those hospitals were to switch to the weight-based methodology, we could save about 2.7 million plastic needles and syringes per year.”
Going Global
Beyond the local community, LOOP’s initiatives have reached a wider audience across Canada and internationally.
“There was one lady from a small town in Kentucky who emailed me and said that her town didn’t have any recycling,” Jocelyn says. “Even outside of the veterinary hospital, they had no access to recycling. She thought these practices would be great to bring into her community.”
This year, the Love Our Oceans Project won second place in the Ocean Wise Innovator lab. This is a global competition through Ocean Wise where three winners are chosen for the most innovative projects. This global contest provides funding to ocean conservation and marine innovation projects.
Through the funding she receives from this program, Jocelyn plans to expand the pill vial recycling program into human pharmacies.
“It’s really exciting to see how you can grow your ideas and move into other industries.”
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Want to learn more about the Diploma in Veterinary Technology? Check out our VTEC page on the Douglas College website.
Find out more about the Love Our Oceans Project and how you can contribute to ocean conservation efforts on Jocelyn’s website.
Please judge this book by its cover: Michelle Sound and her blossoming art career
Becoming a professional artist was always the dream but never the plan for Michelle Sound. However, Michelle has found the best of both worlds at Douglas College. She splits her time between working as the Indigenous Advisor for the Certificate in Academic Foundations – Indigenous Studies (CAF) program and working as a professional artist, creating everything from murals to photographic art in her studio.
“I think I have always wanted to be an artist, but I never really thought of art as a full-time career,” said Michelle. “Even when I was a kid, I remember thinking that I would not be able to pay my rent solely from art and needed a more stable job.
“Art was always something I loved but imagined I would do in my spare time, so I am proud to now have two careers in academics and art.”
Most recently, Michelle’s work caught the eye of local Indigenous poet and author Billy-Ray Belcourt. The poet’s debut novel, A Minor Chorus, features one of Michelle’s pieces on the cover, Kinuso. The piece takes its name from Michelle’s family’s ancestral home in northern Alberta.
Breaking barriers and forging a path for the next generation
Despite her recent rise to notoriety, Michelle’s road to becoming a professional artist has not always been smooth. Michelle is a single parent and has had to make choices associated with that to ensure stability for her family.
“Finding the time and energy to work on art was quite difficult when my son was young,” explained Michelle. “I needed to maintain a full-time job to make sure he and I had benefits and security.
“Now he’s in high school, so I have been able to really focus on my art in the past two years. It’s allowed me to create a full body of work now as opposed to just a few pieces here and there like I did previously. [Creating a full body of work] has led to me finding more success in the art community.”
Another challenge for Michelle has been the biases of the art community. Canada’s art industry has always been known for being unwelcoming to Indigenous artists, and Indigenous women in particular.
“I have been working steadily for the last decade or so since getting my master’s degree, but it was hard at first,” said Michelle. “Traditionally, as Indigenous women, we do not get as many opportunities to share our work. When I was completing my Master’s of Fine Arts from Emily Carr University, it was rare for Indigenous women to get solo exhibitions.”
But in the past five years, according to Michelle, there has been a conscious shift towards repairing that relationship. Curators and institutions are becoming more aware of their biases and the history of discrimination with Indigenous women artists.
“The bad history remains, but there is hope among artists that things are improving,” she said.
“It feels like now is the moment I am realizing that I have an art career”
After years of hard work, this past year has been a whirlwind for Michelle. Her remarkable Auntie Drum Series elevated her to the national level and she became a finalist for the prestigious Salt Spring National Art Prize in 2021. The same series has featured in multiple solo exhibitions at galleries across Canada, such as Gallery 101 in Ottawa and the Daphne Art Centre in Montreal.
“It’s been an amazing year for me,” said Michelle. “Before last year, I’d only had my work featured in local group exhibitions. The response to my Auntie Drum Series was incredible. I had never had a solo exhibition, and then I had five in the last year.”
Holding it together
Kinuso is one of several photographic art and text pieces from Michelle’s most recent art series Holding it Together. The series navigates the hardships of Indigenous Peoples through the landscapes and languages of their traditional territories.
“It’s very exciting that Billy-Ray chose Kinuso for the cover of A Minor Chorus,” said Michelle. “Typically, book covers are designed specifically for the book, so I was surprised and honoured that they were interested in using an existing piece of mine. It is interesting for me to have something I have created go out into the world in this way.”
The cover of A Minor Chorus features many unique design elements, like beading, caribou tufting, rips and still photography. The photo is of the reserve in Kinuso, Alberta – the town Michelle’s family has traditionally called home. Adding textured features is a calling card of Michelle’s work. Many of her other pieces incorporate traditional Indigenous materials or dyed rabbit fur.
“For me, I rip out pieces to show the losses that have happened because of colonization: the loss of territory, loss of language and loss of people and family,” explained Michelle. “We as Indigenous people must live with the effects of those losses. Stories and art are ways we can process our feelings related to those traumas. So, sewing back up those rips or beading them back up is a way of filling in those holes and healing.”
Shared history leads to a shared future
Working with Billy-Ray on A Minor Chorus was a full circle moment. Michelle grew up in Vancouver, but her family’s roots are in Nothern Alberta. Billy-Ray and Michelle are both Cree, and the piece Billy-Ray chose for the cover has special meaning to both artist and author.
“That photo was taken on my reserve in Kinuso,” Michelle explains. “I am from Swan River First Nation, about three hours north of Edmonton near Slave Lake in Alberta. The reserve Billy-Ray is from is about a 20-minute drive from mine. So it was special for me to get to work with someone with a shared history.”
Michelle is content right now having dual careers as the CAF Advisor at Douglas and working as an artist. She loves supporting Indigenous students as they embark on their post-secondary education. She has found great balance in her life working at the College while fulfilling her dream of becoming a professional artist.
“I am incredibly fortunate to have two careers I love,” said Michelle. “Watching students find their footing at Douglas and then seeing them forge successful careers has been really rewarding for me. It has been a life-changing few years for me professionally with my success as an artist and I am excited for what the future holds, both with my artwork and at Douglas.”
Be sure to support Michelle’s work! Pick up a copy of A Minor Chorus when it hits shelves on September 13, and attend her art exhibitions in the future.
This Student Ambassador helped people find their place at Douglas – and so could you!
If you’re a student at Douglas College, there’s a good chance a Student Ambassador encouraged you to enrol here. It might not have been face-to-face, but Student Ambassadors support the Future Students’ Office (FSO) in running recruitment events, sharing what it’s like to attend Douglas and highlighting the doors it opens. And right now, you have the chance to join the next crop of student leaders.
Patrick Sheepwash became an Ambassador halfway through his first year, and his experience as a guide to prospective students made his own college years unforgettable. Read our Q&A with Patrick for an insider’s account of life as a Student Ambassador – and find out why the program might be a great fit for you.
What first got you interested in becoming a Student Ambassador?
A couple of months into my second semester, I was invited to go with one of my science instructors to a gathering for prospective Science and Technology students at Science World. I had a blast talking about Douglas, why I chose Douglas, my classes and what I’d learned so far.
I was pretty much doing a Student Ambassador’s job there, but I didn’t know about the program yet. And Susan Oesterle, the Associate Dean of Science, came and asked me, “Hey, are you a Student Ambassador?” She told me to apply for the program, and that I’d be really well suited for it. So I looked into it, applied and got in.
What is the application process like?
You have to fill out an application. And you need to meet a few different requirements, stuff like GPA and whatnot. They don’t want you to prioritize being a Student Ambassador over your grades or anything like that.
The interview is actually really fun. The FSO brings all the applicants together with their staff and some current ambassadors. They mix formal one-on-one questions with big group activities. The team designs it that way to see how you interact with people in different scenarios.
Read more: Staying connected during a pandemic: my Student Ambassador experience
What was your favourite part of being an Ambassador?
High school visits were so much fun. You go with someone from the FSO to schools and talk to the students about Douglas, mostly grade 11s and 12s. A lot of the time, it’s a big open-house deal where other colleges and universities visit on the same day. In that case, you’re setting up a table and letting interested students come to you.
Besides school visits, Student Ambassadors also help out with information sessions, campus tours and a lot more. I loved working in such a tight-knit team; every event I took part in was a group effort.
What did you talk about the most with prospective students?
I made a lot of mistakes in my first year as a student, and I’ve always been open about that, especially with new students. It helps them prepare for what lies ahead and to fill in gaps and clear up misconceptions.
For example, I always heard that going into college, a student with a 90 percent average should expect to drop to an 80 percent average. But this isn’t totally true. I actually think I do a lot better in my courses now than I did in high school.
Read more: Have fun and build valuable skills this Fall with the Student Ambassadors
How did the Student Ambassador role shape your time at Douglas?
Very positively. It can be daunting coming from high school to college, a bigger place with more people. If you just go to your classes, you don’t really get to explore everything the College has to offer. Even if you don’t end up using a lot of those resources, it’s still nice to know where everything is. Joining the Student Ambassadors meant doing campus tours, seeing many of our programs in action firsthand and meeting the coordinators who make it all happen, all while making tons of friends in the program.
At this point, if I came back here in 10 years, I’d still know where things are! It made me appreciate the scope of what Douglas does. That in turn gave me a sense of familiarity, comfort and, ultimately, confidence.
What are the most valuable skills you developed through the Ambassador program?
The program takes what you have and really expands on it, mainly leadership, communication and interview skills. Communication resonates the most with me, in terms of projecting a professional image, understanding decorum and learning how to speak to various types of people. Throughout your time as an ambassador, you’re constantly talking to people of different ages, different academic situations, different industries, different backgrounds.
What’s your advice for someone who wants to become a Student Ambassador?
I definitely encourage it! It makes you more confident and gives you a reason to be excited for school. It’s a chance to further yourself, a chance to help build community, and a chance to find mentors and tools to help you achieve your long-term goals.
You do want to be mindful of your time, especially if you have both school and a job. But as much of a commitment as it may be, it’s such a worthwhile one. Programs like this are what give you the college experience you want.
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Want to become a Student Ambassador? Start now: https://www.douglascollege.ca/student-services/student-life/student-leadership/become-student-ambassador
Goal diggers: Geological Resources students land the perfect mining jobs this summer
One of the first things Geological Resources students learn is that the world runs on rocks. Minerals build everything from smartphones to skyscrapers, pencils to airplanes. The diploma program at Douglas trains budding geological technicians and geologists in how to search for and unearth these rich reservoirs. Now, its latest class is ready for a field test.
This summer, eight students have flown out to remote communities across B.C. for their first mining jobs. Hear from three of them about their love of geology, their time at Douglas and how the Diploma in Geological Resources program (GRDP) linked them to these coveted positions.
“‘Send us your resumé.’”
Cameron Washi’s love for geology started with precious memories. This summer, she’s on the hunt for precious metals in B.C.’s Golden Triangle.
From June to September, Cameron is working as a junior geologist with P2 Gold up in Stewart, B.C. – over 1,400 km north of Vancouver. The Triangle region contains some of Canada’s most historically major deposits of gold, drawing countless miners to this day. Cameron spends her days “traversing,” or riding helicopters through the peaks to collect samples of the earth, while her team drills for gold and copper.
She connected with P2 through the AME Roundup, a conference for mineral explorers to network, trade ideas and launch initiatives. The GRDP sends students to the conference every year to find jobs, make contacts and learn more about the industry. The program covers the costs of attendance, which is required for students to graduate – and a chance for them to impress the industry professionals they meet.
“Every company booth I visited was looking to hire students,” says Cameron. “It’s funny because normally they want fourth-years from university. But they’d hear about the skills I got training in at Douglas – mining, exploration, geological mapping – and they’d be like, ‘Crap. Send us your resumé.’”
The job mirrors Cameron’s early adventures in nature, exploring craggy campsites with her family.
“I spent half my childhood outdoors,” she says. “My parents would take me camping, and I’d come home with rocks for my collection. So I grew up eager to learn about the environment. That soon narrowed down to geology.”
Long term, Cameron wants to complete a bachelor’s degree and work her way up to becoming a senior geologist.
Read more: “From glaciers to volcanoes: The 2019 Iceland Field School in photos”
“Without us, these resources would never be found”
Jason Wong has had minerals on the mind since middle school. Now he’s spending the summer as an exploration assistant with Equity Exploration, a mineral exploration company with roots right here in Vancouver.
Jason’s task is to head to a given dig site, pull up rocks, and analyze them for signs of mineralization. In other words, he helps figure out where exactly the minerals are buried. “A big focus is finding the minerals people need for everyday life: iron, graphite, copper, magnetite,” he explains. “Without companies like ours, these resources would never be found and used.”
Before Equity, Jason scored interviews with several companies in search of the right gig, many of which he met through AME Roundup. He was referred to his current position by a classmate who’d interviewed with Equity before.
“A friend of mine had an offer that he wasn’t able to commit to, but he helped connect me with Equity,” Jason explains. He paid this windfall forward, linking another classmate with the recruiters at Equity, who got hired as well. As Jason elaborates, the GRDP program is a tight-knit group where students form strong friendships.
“It’s an intimate experience, and networking aside, it’s worth it to build all these new relationships.”
Jason’s plans for the future are open. He’s happy to stay in mineral exploration or branch out into other, related fields – one of the strongest contenders is volcanology.
Read more: “This Geology instructor moonlights as a volcano explorer”
“Something people are desperate to have”
“Kids have big dreams – medicine, space travel – and mine was a life of dinosaur bones,” says Riley Cruickshank. “Turns out there’s no money in paleontology. With geology, you earn more and you keep the digging and truck-driving.”
Riley is in Quesnel working as a junior geologist with Hardline Explorations Corp, travelling from project to project. He describes it as a “jack-of-all-trades” job: geotagging, surveying the ground, core-logging to identify the minerals in rock deposits and much more, all while travelling from project to project. No dinosaur bones involved.
Riley moved into the GRDP from General Studies and immediately appreciated the practical perks. Like Cameron, he found the diploma put him ahead of his university-educated peers at Roundup when it came to fieldwork.
“It’s like, maybe you can see this rock under the microscope and tell me what’s in there. Cool. Now how do we get that out? Cue silence,” Riley says. “The practical experience Douglas gave us is how we got the edge competing for jobs.”
After this job, Riley plans to get his bachelor’s degree, which he needs to become a senior geologist. Eventually he wants to pursue his PhD and teach the next generation of mineral explorers. He expects their work will be more essential than ever — whether people realize it or not.
“Geology affects infrastructure. It’s not just me dig hole, shiny rock, good desk sample. That shiny rock tells you that something is there. Something you probably need for your technology, your electricity, your fuel. Something people are desperate to have.”
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The Diploma in Geological Resources can lead to a career as a junior geologist, a geological technician or engineer and many other positions. Many of the credits in the Geological Resources program transfer to bachelor’s programs at research universities throughout B.C. If you choose to pursue and complete a Bachelor of Earth Science, you move one step closer to getting your license as a senior geologist or environmental geoscientist.
For more information, visit our website.
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