Health Science Professionals

Important information about bc government changes that affect your drug coverage plan The BC Government has announced that the Reference Drug Program, which forms part of the provincial PharmaCare plan, will be expanding effective December 1, 2016. What this means for all HSA members who work under public sector contracts (HSPBA, NBA, CSSEA, CBA) is that some medications which are...

HSA REPORT MAGAZINE, SEPTEMBER 2016 BY VAL AVERY, PRESIDENT, HSA We're hearing a lot of interesting things from members like you. Over the summer, HSA circulated several surveys and invited members to participate in focus groups. Each explored different challenges and opportunities facing our union, and we'll be following up this fall with additional surveys, worksite visits and the annual...

HSA REPORT MAGAZINE, SEPTEMBER 2016 BY LAURA BUSHEIKIN "I love what I do. I can't believe I get paid for it." HSA member Eric Cheng is a respiratory therapist at Eagle Ridge Hospital in Port Moody, and a co-founder of the Canadian charity Respiratory Therapists Without Borders. Being a respiratory therapist (RT) puts Cheng on the front lines of health...

Your elected HSA representatives and staff have been hard at work since the union's 45th convention in May. The upcoming regional meetings will be a good opportunity to provide updates on that work, and a chance for stewards and other activists to connect and discuss the issues in your region. In preparation for those meetings, please take a few minutes...

Members have told HSA that workload issues caused by shortages of key health science professionals have reached critical levels. In a series of surveys conducted over the summer, members from across BC and a range of professions expressed concern that workload was making it difficult to deliver quality care, and leaving patients waiting too long for important procedures. To address...

Nadeem Zia (centre, blue tie) HSA REPORT MAGAZINE, JULY 2016 Surrey Memorial Hospital pharmacist Nadeem Zia was recently invited as a guest speaker to the 19th International Pharmacy Conference and Exhibition in Lahore, Pakistan. “I was very interested to go so I started planning the overseas trip,” said Zia. “My first challenge was getting vacation time, and the second was...

HSA has sent a letter of support to the US Association of Vascular and Interventional Radiographers, whose members are now threatened by policy changes that would allow nurses to perform their laboratory and imaging work. "As the union representing 75 unique health science professions here in BC, we know that these professions require extensive training and unique skills," writes Val...

HSA REPORT MAGAZINE JULY 2016 BY VAL AVERY, PRESIDENT I am very proud of what we have achieved in the last 45 years. I am especially proud of what we have been able to achieve in these last few years. In the face of governments determined to squeeze our members for every penny, we have adapted, finding ways to achieve...

HSA REPORT MAGAZINE JULY 2016 As HSA adapts to a changing world and chooses to be a stronger, more innovative union, the Local Leadership Training program will provide members with cutting-edge training and professional skills to improve HSA workplaces, protect our professions and build a stronger union. HSA members face increased pressure from governments and employers, attacks on our members'...

Jas Giddha is justifiably proud of this bulletin board HSA REPORT MAGAZINE, JULY 2016 BY LAURA BUSHEIKIN "My goal is pretty simple: to make a positive difference in any way I can," says Jas Giddha, a medical radiation technologist at Surrey Memorial. This goal fuels Giddha's work, his HSA involvement, and his many other volunteer activities. In fact, Giddha has...