PHC

In England, a physician terminally ill with cancer has turned to social media to chronicle her view from both sides of the bedside and to try to improve the health care system for patients.

Here in British Columbia, a campaign to save people from dying of sepsis - widespread inflammation caused by an infection - used YouTube videos and Twitter chats to meet its goal of saving 150 lives in 150 days. By the end of the 150 days, the tally of lives saved stood at 151.

Social media is meeting medicine and the prognosis is favourable.

The following exchange regarding St. Paul's Hospital occurred between NDP MLA George Heyman and health minister Terry Lake in the BC Legislature during Question Period on March 26, 2014.

NDP MLA George Heyman:

A battle between B.C. doctors and the federal government over the prescription of heroin to severely addicted users is set to enter Supreme Court.

A local health authority and a legal rights group take their fight to court Tuesday to keep a heroin program alive after the federal government cracked down on doctors prescribing hard drugs.

Providence Health Care and the Pivot Legal Society are pushing for an injunction that would allow the former to maintain its SALOME treatment program that was serving more than 200 people.

Douglas King of Pivot said that since the federal government imposed changes last year, recovering addicts exiting the treatment portion have been unable to continue taking the clinical heroin.

The Hospital Employees Union says a company hired by Providence Health Care to contract out medical transcription work has gone bankrupt in the U-S.

HEU spokesperson Mike Old says the bankruptcy is concerning for medical transcription services in the Health Authority.

Old says it is also concerning when you consider patient’s privacy.

Shane Woodford Reports

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