No images? Click here
In This Issue - December 2023
Update:
- Updated Botulism Guide for Health Care Professionals
- Reversing Vaccination Coverage Setbacks: Is it Working?
Review:
- Welcome New Niagara Physicians!
- Respiratory Surveillance
Educational Opportunities:
- UPCOMING CME: Niagara Region Public Health Rounds: Focus on Maternal Mental Health and Adverse Childhood Experiences
- WEBINAR RECORDING: Caring for Persons on Methadone in Primary Care
Updated Botulism Guide for Health Care Professionals
The Ministry of Health has updated the Botulism Guide for Health Care Professionals. Please note the following changes to the name and mobile contact number for the Botulism Reference Service (BRS) lab:
- Monday to Friday (8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.): Call the BRS office at 613 296-1139 (mobile) or 613 957-0885 (lab) prior to sending suspect food and clinical specimens to Ottawa for laboratory analysis
- Samples should be sent by courier (do not use Canada post) to:
Dr. John W. Austin or Dr. Richard Harris, Botulism Reference Service Health Canada
Room 456, Sir Frederick G. Banting Building 251 Sir Frederick Banting Driveway Tunney’s Pasture, PL2204E
Ottawa, ON, K1A 0K9
As a reminder, specimens are not processed at BRS after work hours. Do not ship specimens to BRS after work hours without first consulting with the BRS office.
More Information
Reversing Vaccination Coverage Setbacks: Is it Working?
According to the World Health Organization, significant progress has been made in restoring coverage of three doses of diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis-containing vaccines in most regions. However, recovery is uneven, especially in many low-income countries. Unfortunately, coverage with measles -containing vaccines has not recovered as well.
In Ontario, short-term strategies for catch-up immunizations have had some success, but more is needed. Evidence suggests that those who miss routine immunizations may not catch-up later. Since 2022, other Public Health units have had to deal with outbreaks of:
- Meningococcal disease
- Pertussis
- Varicella
- Measles
Health Care Provider Action
Consider what long-term strategies your practice can implement to improve the vaccination rates of your patients.
- Refer to Public Health Ontario’s evidence brief, which confirms the value of multi-faceted interventions, multiple settings, reminder / recall systems, and co-administration of multiple vaccines
- A recent poll suggests 40% of Canadians do not intend to get their XBB COVID-19 vaccine or a flu shot. Yet the evidence is clear that vaccination is the best way for people to remain protected against severe outcomes, including hospitalization. If you haven’t already done so, please offer COVID-19 vaccine to your patients by joining the COVID-19 Vaccine Administration Program.
More Information
- Contact the VPD program at 905-688-8248 or 1-888-505-6074 ext. 7396
Welcome New Niagara Physicians!
Family Physicians
The Niagara Region would like to welcome the following physicians to family practice in Niagara for 2023. For a list of physicians accepting new patients, please visit Niagara Region Public Health's Find a Doctor Page.
- Dr. Moamen Hiba, St. Catharines
- Dr. Michael Grasic, Niagara North FHT, Virgil
- Dr. Simeon Nwuso, Port Health Clinic, Niagara Falls
- Dr. Jerome Kho, Niagara Medical Group FHT, Niagara Falls
- Dr. Kara TenHoeve, Niagara Medical Group FHT, Niagara Falls
- Dr. Shalini Sharma, Fort Erie Group, Fort Erie
- Dr. Amanpreet Singh, Niagara Region Medical, Niagara Falls
- Dr. Chuks Nwulia, Niagara Region Medical, Niagara Falls
- Dr. Demi Atoyebi, Niagara Health Centre, St. Catharines
- Dr. Godwin Matthew, Niagara Health Centre, St. Catharines
- Dr. Yabondo Mukendi, Niagara Health Centre, St. Catharines
- Dr. Katie Olubowale, Lincoln Medical Centre, Beamsville
- Dr. Mohammad Sakhi, Ontario Street Clinic, St. Catharines
- Dr. Sameh Zayed, Welland
- Dr. Wael Shublaq, Welland McMaster Family Health Team, Welland
- Dr. Oscar Onyebuchi-Iwudibia, Healthmax Hub Medical Centre, St. Catharines
- Dr. Madgy Hanna, Fort Erie Group Family Practice, Fort Erie
- Dr. Tobais Kauffman, Thorold Medical Centre, Thorold
Niagara Health
Niagara Health welcomed a number of new physicians this past year. To see new physician recruits from 2023, visit the Niagara Health website. Additionally, Niagara Health recently published a news article about recruitment on November 13, 2023: Dozens of New Doctors Welcomed to Niagara Health.
West Lincoln Memorial Hospital
West Lincoln Memorial Hospital has also seen a number of new faces this past year:
- Dr. Salim Ahmed - ED
- Dr. Orane Richards - ED
- Dr. Oliver Shaw - ED
- Dr. Shannon Baker - ED and Hospitalist
- Dr. Sarah Byce - ED
- Dr. Devon Gergovich - ED
- Dr. Elliot Grady - ED and Hospitalist
- Dr. Navot Kantor - ED
- Dr. Zubaida Siddiqui - ED
- Dr. Ashley White - ED
- Dr. Oscar Onyebuchi-Iwudibia - ED
- Dr. Hussain Ali - Hospitalist
- Dr. Nisha Goel - Hospitalist
- Dr. Romesa Khalid - Hospitalist
- Dr. Min Suk Kim - Hospitalist
- Dr. Anahat Sahota - Hospitalist
- Dr. Tishara Wijayanayaka - Hospitalist
- Dr. Lucas Ciprietti - GIM
- Dr. Emanuel Ebrahim - Anesthesia
- Dr. Alex McNulty - Anesthesia
- Dr. Emily Landon - OB/GYN
More Information
- Visit the Niagara Physician Recruitment page
Respiratory Surveillance
Surveillance Update: Influenza Activity is Higher
- Public Health Ontario’s most recent respiratory laboratory surveillance data indicates activity for both influenza A and influenza B is higher compared to previous weeks
- Provincially, COVID-19 is the most commonly circulating virus
- In Niagara, there are 65 cases of influenza so far this season; 1,641 across Ontario
2023 - 2024 Respiratory Season
Data source: Public Health Ontario's Ontario Respiratory Virus Tool, data as of December 2, 2023. Please note: Coronavirus refers to non-pandemic human coronaviruses. Provincially, SARS-CoV-2 is the most commonly circulating virus amongst samples analyzed.
Niagara reports flu activity surveillance information weekly on Fridays.
For more detail on the 2023 to 2024 respiratory season, please visit Public Health Ontario’s page for the Ontario Respiratory Virus Tool.
UPCOMING CME: Niagara Region Public Health Rounds: Focus on Maternal Mental Health and Adverse Childhood Experiences
Family physicians, Family Medicine residents, medical students, and all interested health care professionals are invited! This free webinar will feature presentations, discussion, and a Q&A panel.
Niagara Region Public Health Rounds has been certified for up to 1.5 MainPro+® credits by the College of Family Physicians of Canada.
Niagara Region Public Health Rounds is a self-approved group learning activity (Section 1) as defined by the Maintenance of Certification Program by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.
Cost: Free
When: Tuesday, February 6, 2024, from 6:00 – 7:30 p.m.
Where: Online through Microsoft Teams
Keynote peakers:
- Dr. Ryan Van Lieshout - Perinatal Psychiatrist, Clinician-Scientist and Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, the Albert Einstein/Irving Zucker Chair in Neuroscience, and the Canada Research Chair in Perinatal Mental Health at McMaster University
- Dr. John Krzeczkowski - Received his PhD in Neuroscience from McMaster University, conducted postdoctoral training at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and York University, and is currently an Assistant Professor in Health Sciences at Brock University
Learning Objectives
By the end of this session, participants will be able to:
- Understand the epidemiology of maternal mental health in Niagara and Ontario
- Discuss how maternal mental health relates to adverse childhood experiences, resilience, and health outcomes for the child
- Describe how treatment can be used effectively to improve maternal mental health
- Understand how to screen for maternal mental health concerns and refer to Niagara Region Public Health’s programs and services
Register
Visit the registration page on our website for more information and to register.
Deadline to register is Friday, February 2, 2024. Each participant must register individually.
WEBINAR RECORDING: Caring for Persons on Methadone in Primary Care - Toward Safer, More Inclusive Care
On November 14, 2023, EENet hosted a webinar in partnership with CAMH Opioid Internal Network (COIN) Community of Interest. In this webinar, you will learn:
- The evidence supporting methadone treatment for opioid use disorder
- Important drug-drug interactions, acute pain management for people receiving methadone, common side effects and implications of missed doses or treatment interruptions
- Harm reduction strategies for people who use opioids, and
- Communication pearls for collaboration among pharmacists, family physicians and specialist colleagues
Originally live streamed on: Tuesday, September 1, 2023, at 12:00 p.m. EST
Who is this workshop for?
This webinar will be of interest to primary care providers who provide care to patients prescribed methadone, including the following:
- General practitioners
- Family physicians
- Nurse practitioners
Learning Objectives
- Reflect on our own biases and health system biases as they relate to caring for persons who use substances.
- Build capacity to provide safe, meaningful, and comprehensive primary care to persons on methadone.
- Develop an approach to considering drug-drug interactions, acute pain management and common side effects of methadone.
- Identify opportunities to implement shared care, collaborative care, or transition of care for stable methadone clients to primary care.
View the Recording
Download the webinar slides and watch the recording. For more information, visit the website.
