Leading through the first wave of COVID: a Canadian action research study

Purpose This first phase of a three-phase action research project aims to define leadership practices that should be used during and after the pandemic to re-imagine and rebuild the health and social care system. Specifically, the objectives were to determine what effective leadership practices Canadian health leaders have used through the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, to explore how these differ from pre-crisis practices; and to identify what leadership practices might be leveraged to create the desired health and care systems of the future. Design/methodology/approach The authors used an action research methodology. In the first phase, reported here, the authors conducted one-on-one, virtual interviews with 18 health leaders from across Canada and across leadership roles. Data were analyzed using grounded theory methodology. Findings Five key practices emerged from the data, within the core dimension of disrupting entrenched structures and leadership practices. These were, namely, responding to more complex emotions in self and others. Future practice identified to create more psychologically supportive workplaces. Agile and adaptive leadership. Future practice should allow leaders to move systemic change forward more quickly. Integrating diverse perspectives, within and across organizations, leveling hierarchies through bringing together a variety of perspectives in the decision-making process and engaging people more broadly in the co-creation of strategies. Applying existing leadership capabilities and experience. Future practice should develop and expand mentorship to support early career leadership. Communication was increased to build credibility and trust in response to changing and often contradictory emerging evidence and messaging. Future practice should increase communication. Research limitations/implications The project was limited to health leaders in Canada and did not represent all provinces/territories. Participants were recruited through the leadership networks, while diverse, were not demographically representative. All interviews were conducted in English; in the second phase of the study, the authors will recruit a larger and more diverse sample and conduct interviews in both English and French. As the interviews took place during the early stages of the pandemic, it may be that health leaders’ views of what may be required to re-define future health systems may change as the crisis shifts over time. Practical implications The sponsoring organization of this research – the Canadian Health Leadership Network and each of its individual member partners – will mobilize knowledge from this research, and subsequent phases, to inform processes for leadership development and, succession planning across, the Canadian health system, particularly those attributes unique to a context of crisis management but also necessary in post-crisis recovery. Social implications This research has shown that there is an immediate need to develop innovative and influential leadership action – commensurate with its findings – to supporting the evolution of the Canadian health system, the emotional well-being of the health-care workforce, the mental health of the population and challenges inherent in structural inequities across health and health care that discriminate against certain populations. Originality/value An interdisciplinary group of health researchers and decision-makers from across Canada who came together rapidly to examine leadership practices during COVID-19’s first wave using action research study design.

Are Canadian medicine librarians directly supporting medical student health and wellness? A nation-wide survey

Introduction: Students in Undergraduate Medical Education (UGME/UME) programs face a variety of stressors that can impact well-being. To address this, the Committee on Accreditation of Canadian Medical Schools (CACMS) mandates that medical schools offer support and programming that promotes student well-being. Academic librarians are accustomed to providing outreach that meets their faculties’ needs. Therefore, the goal of this study was to explore if Canadian undergraduate medical education librarians are supporting medical student wellness at their medical schools, and how they are doing so. Methods: A bilingual, electronic survey containing multiple choice and open-ended questions was distributed across two Canadian health sciences library listservs during the summer of 2020. Librarians supporting UGME/UME programs now or within the last three years were invited to participate. Results: 22 Responses were received, and 17 complete datasets were included in the final results. The majority of respondents have encountered a medical student in distress (n=10) and have adjusted their teaching style or materials to help reduce stress in medical students (n=9). Other initiatives such as resource purchasing, wellness-themed displays, planning wellness-themed events and spaces, and partnerships on campus in support of medical student wellness were less common. Discussion: The data in this study provides evidence that Canadian undergraduate medical education librarians are mindful of medical student well-being, and are taking steps to provide relevant support to this learner group. Librarians could adopt similar initiatives at their libraries to show support for learner wellness, and enhance their programs’ accreditation efforts in this area.

A case series of infectious complications in medical tourists requiring hospital admission or outpatient home parenteral therapy

BACKGROUND: Travelling for medical care is increasing, and this medical tourism (MT) may have complications, notably infectious diseases (ID). We sought to identify MT-related infections (MTRIs) in a large Canadian health region and estimate resulting costs. METHODS: Retrospective and prospective capture of post-MT cases requiring hospital admission or outpatient parenteral antimicrobial therapy was completed by canvassing ID physicians practicing in Calgary, Alberta, from January 2017 to July 2019. Cost estimates for management were made with the Canadian Institute for Health Information’s (CIHI’s) patient cost estimator database tool applied to estimated rates of Canadians engaging in MT from a 2017 Fraser Institute report. RESULTS: We identified 12 cases of MT-related infectious syndromes. Eight had microbial aetiologies identified. MTs were young (mean = 40.3 y, SD = 12.2) and female ( n = 11) and pursued surgical treatment ( n = 11). Destination countries and surgical procedures varied but were largely cosmetic ( n = 5) and orthopaedic ( n = 3). Duration to organism identification (mean = 5.3 wk) and treatment courses (mean = 19 wk) appeared lengthy. CIHI cost estimates for management of relevant infectious complications of our cases ranged from $6,288 to $20,741, with total cost for cases with matching codes ( n = 8) totalling $94,290. CONCLUSIONS: In our series of MTRIs, etiologic organisms often found in Canadian-performed post-procedural infections were identified, and prolonged treatment durations were noted. Young women pursuing cosmetic surgery may be a population to target with public health measures to reduce the incidence of MTRIs and burden of disease.

Consensus Statement Regarding the Application of Biogen to Health Canada for Approval of Aducanumab

Alzheimer’s disease is a major cause of morbidity and mortality. Currently, there are no disease-modifying pharmacotherapies for this condition. Aducanumab, an amyloid beta-directed monoclonal antibody that targets aggregated forms of amyloid-beta in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease, has raised hopes that such a therapy has been discovered, but its approval by the US Food and Drug Administration has engendered a good deal of controversy. A similar application for approval has been submitted to Health Canada. In response to this, a group of Canadian clinical dementia experts representing a number of organizations, including the Canadian Geriatrics Society, was convened by the Canadian Consortium on Neurodegeneration in Aging (CCNA) to discuss the evidence currently available on this agent and seek consensus on what advice they would offer Health Canada on the application. There was wide-spread agreement that it would be premature for aducanumab to receive approval for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. It was also noted that the Canadian health-care system is poorly prepared at this time to deal with a disease-modifying therapeutic with targeting, administration, and monitoring characteristics like aducanumab. In this paper, the consensus reached is presented along with its underlying rationale.

224. Evaluating the Epidemiology of Bloodstream Infections: A Population-Based Study

Background Bloodstream infections (BSI) are a major cause of morbidity, mortality, and health care costs worldwide. Population-based studies are key to assess BSI epidemiology over time while minimizing selection bias but remain limited. Therefore, we aimed to assess the incidence of BSI in a large Canadian health region in a contemporary period. We hypothesized that there would be significant age and sex-based differences including over time. Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study from 2011 through 2018 using a population-based microbiology database to determine the annual age- and sex-specific BSI testing and case rates with the census as the population reference. BSI was defined as a positive blood culture for a pathogen. Episodes > 30 days apart were included for analysis. Incidence rate ratios (IRR) for testing and case rates including by sex were calculated to assess changes over time. All analyses were run at a two-sided α of 0.05 and were conducted with R 4.0.4. Results A total of 154,147 distinct individuals (49.9% male) were analyzed and 22,869 (14.8%) had a BSI at the first encounter in the study period. Overall BSI testing incidence ranged from 1529 to 1707 per 100,000 person-years and case incidence ranged from 180 to 292 per 100,000 person-years. Testing and case incidence for BSI was greatest in the 0-4 and 75+ years age groups (p < 0.01). Males compared to females had greater testing and case incidence rates in young and old age groups, but females had greater rates in the 15-44 years groups (p < 0.01). Overall IRR for cases comparing 2018 to 2011 was 0.62 (95% CI 0.59-0.65) reflecting a significant decrease over time. Testing also decreased over the study period with an IRR of 0.90 (95% CI 0.88-0.91). Testing and case IRRs were not significantly different stratified by sex. Incidence rates (per 100,000 person-years) of BSI testing and cases by sex from 2011 through 2018 in a Canadian health region Conclusion In our large population-based study of BSI, we identified that BSI remain frequent and the youngest and oldest age groups as well as males in these age groups have the greatest BSI incidence rates which may reflect both biological sex and gender-based differences. Encouragingly, BSI incidence rates have decreased over time at a greater increment relative to testing rates. Future studies of BSI should focus on pathogen and outcome-based evaluations. Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures

LGBTQ2S+ diversity: leading and celebrating pride

Organizations that actively promote diversity tend to be learning and practice environments of choice, excellence, and innovation. However, despite all our hard work and successful social equity efforts, discrimination still exists in Canadian health care and medical education. Leaders can influence diversity in their organization by taking four urgent actions.

Exploring Health Professional Criminality and Competence Using the Case of Canadian Health Care Serial Killer Elizabeth Wettlaufer

ABSTRACT Health professional criminal behavior and clinical incompetence are distinct concepts that both endanger the public. In this paper, we compare and contrast these concepts using the case of convicted Canadian health care serial killer Elizabeth Wettlaufer, who also exhibited a pattern of clinical incompetence throughout her career. As one Canadian province is proposing changes to self-regulation to become more like the United Kingdom, we highlight four ways to improve protection of the public in a self-regulating system. These include meta-regulation, standardized hiring practices, increased transparency by regulatory bodies and improved communication across regulators and other agencies.