Skip to main content

Written on .

Department of Medicine Weekly Roundup - Oct 18

Please see below for the following updates:

  • Flu vaccines available beginning Monday, Oct. 21, COVID-19 vaccines available soon: See schedule for fall vaccination clinics
  • Masking changes at Unity Health effective Oct. 15, 2024
  • Cardiac Surgery Virtual Grand Rounds - Dr. Gosta Pettersson (Oct 18, 2024; 8:00am)
  • Bike cage closure at St. Michael’s: Oct. 21 and 22
  • Deadline Approaching: 2024 CAME Rising Star Certificate of Excellence Award

Flu vaccines will be available in the clinics starting Monday and the availability of COVID-19 vaccines depends on delivery – please continue to check Twice a Week for updates.

For Schedule please visit link: Flu vaccines available beginning Monday, Oct. 21, COVID-19 vaccines available soon: See schedule for fall vaccination clinics - UnityNet

COVID-19 is now at a moderate community transmission leading into influenza (viral) season. Based on provincial and local guidance, we are updating our masking requirements at Unity Health. On Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024 the following changes at Unity Health will come into effect after consultation with our Infection, Prevention and Control (IPAC) and Workplace Health, Safety and Wellness teams.

Note: Long-term care home specific guidelines will be updated separately. A communication will be sent out with details of changes at the Houses of Providence (HOP).

For staff, physicians learners and volunteers

Masking is now required:

  • When providing direct care to patients, residents or clients or when within close proximity to patients, residents or clients in inpatient and outpatient areas
    • This includes masking when entering a patient’s room, when assessing or caring for patients in an exam room or when assisting or transporting patients through the facility

Note – in situations where clinicians feel that masking is not in the best interest of the patient, it can be omitted (with the patient’s consent) – for example when communicating key information to patients that are hearing impaired, or when having sensitive end of life discussions.

Masking is optional in the following spaces:

  • Public non-clinical areas (e.g. cafeterias, lobbies), or in clinical areas isolated from patients (e.g. nursing stations) or where patient contact is transient (e.g. walking down a hallway in a clinical area)

For visitors

  • Visitors will be asked to mask in clinical areas where patients are present, including patient rooms and waiting areas
  • Visitors who are feeling unwell should not visit.
  • Visitors should not be turned away if unwilling to mask

For patients/clients

  • All patients should mask in waiting areas
  • Outpatients should mask in clinical areas where other patients are present, including during group therapy
    • Outpatients are not required to mask in exam/assessment rooms
  • Inpatients are  not required to mask inside their rooms
  • Care should never be denied to patients unable or unwilling to mask

Unity Health is a mask-friendly space and all are welcome to continue masking in all areas. Masks are available at all facility entrances and in clinical areas. Masking requirements are subject to change depending on virus activity in the hospital and community. Updates will become available as needed.

Resources to communicate this change:

Masking plays an important role in prevention the transmission of COVID-19, influenza and other respiratory viruses. However, it is not perfect, and is only one of many important strategies to reduce risk.

Other important measures include staff and patient vaccination, hand hygiene, avoiding visiting or coming to work when sick with an acute respiratory infection, as well as infection prevention and control measures such as early recognition of patients with symptoms of a respiratory viral infection, combined with prompt testing, isolation and the use of droplet-contact precautions.

Information about the current masking requirements will be available on Unity Health’s website and updated posters will be posted at hospital entrances. If you have further questions, please contact the Infection Prevention and Control team for your area.

On behalf of the Division of Cardiac Surgery, St. Michael's Hospital and the program Chair Dr. Subodh Verma, you and your colleagues are cordially invited to the next St. Michael's Cardiac Surgery Heart Team Grand Rounds scheduled to be held via Zoom Webinar on Friday October 18, 2024 at 8:00-9:00am ET.

 
It is our distinct honour to welcome Dr. Gosta Pettersson from  the Cleveland Clinic. Dr. Pettersson brings a wealth of surgical experience and will present on "Endocarditis Guidelines and Surgical Reconstruction: State of the Art". I will follow with a short presentation to give the Canadian perspective on endocarditis guidelines to implement best practices for our patients.  This will be followed by a brief case presentation by our fellows Drs Dinela Rushani and Michael Ruiz.
 
Please plan to join us for Grand Rounds on Friday, October 18th, 2024 at 8:00am ET - the full details are below.

ZOOM LINK: https://ca01web.zoom.us/j/61408155931?pwd=TRmUtffRT7fIVgB4eBO9pjqMbTAdXk.1

Construction in the bike cage at the Queen St. entrance is almost over, and we will be removing the scaffolding to complete this work. Thank you for your patience and feedback as we continue to build improvements at our facility.

The cage will again be temporarily closed Monday, Oct. 21 to Tuesday, Oct. 22 due to construction. There will be NO ACCESS to the bike storage space during this time. Bike storage is scheduled to re-open on Wednesday, Oct. 23 for regular access.

Questions/concerns can be directed to Redevelopment Project Manager – Sena Adzido ([email protected]) or Project Assistant – Bhavneet Bola ([email protected]).

The deadline is fast approaching for submission of nominations for the 2024 CAME Rising Star Certificate of Excellence.

Please ensure your nomination package is submitted in a PDF format to [email protected] by Friday, October 25, 2024.

 

Details for the CAME Rising Star Certificate of Excellence Award are below:

 

Over the past several years, The University of Toronto has been managing the Canadian Association for Medical Education (CAME) Certificates of Merit adjudication process for faculty nominations. For the past few years, included in this process is the Rising Star Certificate of Excellence geared toward medical students, residents/fellows, and graduate students.

Guidelines

This award is intended to recognize outstanding education learners who have demonstrated a commitment and/or passion for medical education. This could be education research, curriculum or workshop development, leadership, advocacy, etc., that has had a positive impact for the health professions education community at their school or beyond.

The CAME Rising Star Certificate of Excellence consists of a certificate and the opportunity to write an article for the CAME Voice. The University of Toronto is entitled to award up to three awards: 1 for medical students; 1 for residents/fellows; 1 for graduate students.

Each Department of the Temerty Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto is eligible to nominate one resident or clinical fellow for a Rising Star Certificate of Excellence Award.

Nomination Criteria

  1. All nominees must be registered with the Postgraduate Medical Education office for the current academic year.
  2. Nominees will have made a contribution to medical education deemed to be valuable within their medical school (teaching, assessment, evaluation, educational leadership, course coordination, education and research).
  3. Nominees should not have already been nationally awarded for this contribution.
  4. Members currently serving on the CAME Executive or CAME Board of Directors are not eligible.

Nominations should include:

  1. A letter from the Program Director outlining the specific contributions of the resident/clinical fellow in the area of education. Letters should not exceed two pages.
  2. A Curriculum Vitae of the candidate. This will only be used by the selection committee if clarification of the details in the nomination letter are required.
  3. A high-resolution photo of the applicant.

Nomination letters and CVs should be submitted electronically by 11:59 pm on Friday, October 25, 2024, to Dr. Suzanne Schneeweiss, U of T's CAME Representative via [email protected]  

Additional award information can be found at: https://www.came-acem.ca/awards/came-rising-star-certificate-of-excellence/

 

 

Open