The Report

HSA REPORT, MARCH 2015 BY DAVID DURNING, HSA OHS OFFICER Diagnostic Medical Sonographers – workers who specialize in the use of imaging devices to produce diagnostic images, scans and videos – have always been at risk for developing work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Those injuries include tendonitis, bursitis and muscle and nerve damage to hands, arms, elbows, shoulders, necks and backs. HSA...

HSA REPORT, MARCH 2015 BY VAL AVERY, HSA PRESIDENT Workload and stress are among the most serious workplace challenges of our time. As a union, we're seeing an increasing number of members, from all professions, paying a terrible price for this. Compromised performance, increased illness and disability wreak havoc on professionals, their families, and the health care system itself. We...

HSA REPORT, DECEMBER 2014 Name: Alka Kundi. Nickname in high school: Well, my name is Alka, so the nicknames should be obvious. Alkaseltzer, Alcoholic and Alkatraz. In retrospect, I'm not sure if these were nicknames or if people were just making fun of me, but oh well. Job title and department: Labour Relations Officer, Servicing. What you actually do, in...

HSA REPORT, DECEMBER 2014 By David Durning, HSA Senior OHS Officer Over the years, Canadian workers have fought for and gained important workplace health and safety rights. The diligent exercise of these rights is proven to be the most effective way of ensuring workplace hazards are controlled. These rights, enshrined in legislation and regulation, are: the right to know about...

HSA REPORT, DECEMBER 2014 Nu Lu was frustrated. As a physiotherapist at Vancouver General Hospital, she needed to get her patients up and moving. The rehabilitation she and her fellow physios provide is important – if it didn't get done, the patients didn't get to go home. But many of them were on short oxygen lines attached to the wall...

HSA REPORT, DECEMBER 2014 Professional recognition days, weeks and months come and go. Posters go up on bulletin boards, posts go up on social media sites. Maybe there’s cupcakes. It’s a great chance to educate and celebrate the work that makes our health care and community social service systems work, but it’s getting harder to break through the noise and...

HSA REPORT, DECEMBER 2014 By Val Avery, President HSA's first office was a little place on Kingsway. As the number of members grew steadily, so did the need to find new space. We soon moved to an office on Hastings at Boundary, staying there until 1994, when we moved to Metrotown. Only a few years later, in 1998, we moved...

HSA REPORT, DECEMBER 2014 By Laura Busheikin There's no doubt that having to take time off work due to an injury or illness brings a multitude of challenges. Aside from the medical demands, there are forms to fill out and anxiety around getting the proper benefits. There are often feelings of isolation. There is the uncertainty of not knowing when...

HSA REPORT, DECEMBER 2014 By Carol Riviere, Communications Deep ties to her community and long-time union activism helped HSA vice-president Janice Morrison secure a spot on Nelson city council in the recent municipal election. "My family have lived here since the 1920's, and I've served my community in many different ways in the 25 years I've called Nelson home," says...

HSA REPORT, DECEMBER 2014 by Dennis Blatchford, Pensions and Benefits Advocate I'm advised by Pacific Blue Cross that fertility drugs are not covered under the new 50 per cent cost share arrangement for non-PharmaCare formulary medications. Why are these drugs not covered? The agreement on the 50/50 cost share on non-PharmaCare formulary medications did not sweep in classes of drugs...