May 2026

The monthly E-News shares provincial program information and updates about the Facility Engagement program. This information will interest Medical Staff Association (MSA) support teams, but please feel free to forward the newsletter to your MSA executives as well. 

2025-26 Annual Review Submission Update

Thank you to everyone who has submitted their Annual Review (AR) reports and to those still finalizing them. We sincerely appreciate your efforts to meet this year’s new reporting requirements.

So far, 60 of 76 eligible MSAs have submitted their 2025/26 AR report. Each MSA was asked to select one JCC Quintuple Aim domain mapped to FE that best represents the main impact of their engagement successes. This was meant to capture the areas of impact most recognized by MSAs, offering a provincial snapshot of FE impacts.

Of the 60 submissions received to date, over a third (35%) identified Physician Voice as the primary impact of engagement, 23% chose Community and Belonging, 23% chose Trust, and 10% selected Collaborative Decision-Making.

Thank you for distilling your complex engagement work into a single selection! In the coming months, the FE team will analyze the submissions to identify themes around impact, successes, opportunities, challenges, and local engagement activities.

Please share your feedback on the AR process through this survey. You are encouraged to share this survey with your team. Your input will help us improve next year’s process.

For questions, please reach out to the team at engagement@doctorsofbc.ca.

SEAT Database Updates 

Thank you to everyone who shared their latest SEAT (Site Engagement Activity Tracker) engagement activity updates via FEMS for the April 15th SEAT submission. The SEAT database has now been updated to include the latest data.

The database now includes over 3,700 activities across the province! However there are a number of valuable activities that haven’t been captured, so please remember to include activities in SEAT (by moving the SEAT toggle in FEMS from NO to YES) that build engagement and communication with medical staff colleagues and/or the hospital or health authority; contributes to physician wellness, leadership, redevelopment, training and/or technology; and/or seeks to improve patient quality. 

Demonstrating impact to our partners and funders is very important, and the SEAT database is an ideal place to capture this. Please be sure to include clear, meaningful outcomes from your engagement activities in the ‘Results’ section of SEAT. The results don’t need to be complex - we simply want to understand what has changed as a result of the engagement activity. Strong examples from the last submission included: specific metrics such as the number of positions filled through recruitment and retention efforts; reductions in referral backlogs due to rapid access initiatives; survey results measuring satisfaction levels; the development of protocols and documents supporting mitigation of diversions; and much more. Check out the SEAT database to learn more. 

TIP: Feeling overwhelmed by everything that comes with fiscal year end? You don’t have to wait until SEAT submission deadlines to get started. You can log your activities in SEAT anytime during the six months leading up to a due date. Getting it done early means less stress later - and more time to focus on other priorities. 

If you have any questions, please contact seatsupport@doctorsofbc.ca.

Upcoming Physician Wellness Network Events

The Physician Wellness Network (PWN), a Physician Health Program initiative, is thrilled to offer two virtual events this spring. 

The inaugural PWN Rounds is a provincial physician wellness speaker series, presented twice annually to all BC physicians and medical learners. Join us on May 20, 2026, from 5:30-6:30 PM PST, as Dr Will Bynum discusses “Shame Competence in Medicine.” This session will explore the concept of shame in medicine, its impact on individuals and health care organizations, and practical strategies for building shame competence in health care environments. Register now to secure your spot.

The PWN Virtual Spring Gathering will be held on June 11, from 4:30-7:00 PM PST. The theme of the Gathering is “Creating Spaces for Physician Wellness,” offering opportunities for knowledge sharing, learning, and connection. This event is exclusively for PWN members, with each organization allowed to send two representatives. For more information and to join the PWN, please visit their website.   

If you have any questions, please contact PHP.

Knowledge Sharing Updates

The FE Knowledge Sharing portal is excited to share two new pieces of content!

A new Pregnancy and Newborn Care Activity Roundup!

• The roundup features 10 stories from 10 sites across the province, highlighting strategies and projects that improve the patient experience, strengthen collaboration, and integrate mentorship and training across teams.

An Event Summary from the Supporting Rural Access to Specialist Care Virtual Symposium!

• This session from March 2, 2026, focused on understanding barriers and enablers to specialist care in rural communities and on building relationships and supports to establish rural specialist outreach clinics.

• Find video panel presentations, resources to support rural access to specialist care, JSC/SSC Research Project Findings, and more!

Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to engagement@doctorsofbc.ca. 

FEMS Tip of the Month

This month, we are covering best practices for claim submission.

When submitting expenses in FEMS, it is imperative that all backup be attached in full (i.e., detailed copies of receipts/invoices). If there are multiple parts, please combine them into a single PDF before attaching. This provides full transparency when the approver reviews the expense, and helps the MSA fulfill its fiduciary responsibility for Facility Engagement funds.

Facility Engagement has also created a new expense type in FEMS for capital expenditures. Capital expenditures are costs for equipment, furniture, and other long-term-use items such as computers and technology. When entering claims that fall into this category, please choose IOE-Capital Costs. Note: this is not for regular-use items in the physician lounge, such as coffee or snacks, or for single-use items like paper plates or napkins. For those costs, please choose IOE-Physician Lounge Expenses and MSA supplies.

One final reminder, now that all 2025-26 activties are closed, please be sure to check on any claims that did not get approved in 2025-26 and re-submit those into 2026-27 activities, while also checking on any remaining payment problems for 2025-26 to ensure those are resolved as soon as possible.

If you have any questions or need further clarification, please don’t hesitate to reach out to femssupport@doctorsofbc.ca.

PM Helpdesk Lunch and Learn Library

We’re excited that the FE provincial office and PM Helpdesk Consultant Erica Kjekstad have developed a comprehensive library document featuring all MSA Lunch and Learn sessions from 2022 through 2026. The links are on the e-News and Lunch and Learns tab on the FE website.

The April session is scheduled for Tuesday, May 12, 12-1 pm. Please keep an eye out for the calendar invitation in the coming days.

Should you have any inquiries, please don’t hesitate to contact engagement@doctorsofbc.ca.

In Case You Missed It - April

In case you might have missed it, the Facility Engagement provincial office released the following information to MSAs in April 2026:

• FEMS Slow Down April 9
• FEMS Update: SEAT and Activities Issues Resolved
• PMA Update
• FE Bulletin - April 2026

If you have any questions, please contact engagement@doctorsofbc.ca.