Two local nurses were recognized for their professional achievements at the recent Nursing Excellence Awards ceremony hosted by the College of Registered Nurses of British Columbia.
Betty Reid Girard and Steve Silva received excellence in nursing practice awards for their respective contribution to nursing practice.
Girard was recognized for her more than 20 years of work as a frontline clinical nurse, teacher, cardiovascular care specialist and patient advocate.
She has worked at B.C. Children's Hospital, Royal Columbian Hospital, Fraser Health and Kwantlen University.
Silva was recognized for his more than 10 years of work as a renal nurse and recently a vascular access specialist at St.
Paul's Hospital's hemodi-alysis unit in Vancouver.
Nominees for the awards must demonstrate outstanding performance in at least four of the college's six professional standards.
Potential winners must also exhibit competence and excellence in their own work settings.
Mall donation
Brentwood Town Centre shopping mall recently donated $7,500 to the Burnaby Hospital Foundation for the purchase of new medical equipment at the hospital. As Burnaby Hospital celebrates its 60th anniversary, the donation will help purchase diagnostic, surgical and medical technology that will help thousands of patients each year, according to a press release from the foundation.
"For over 50 years, this community has been Brentwood Town Centre's home," said Emma Fyfe, general manager of Brentwood Town Centre, in the release. "Burnaby Hospital plays an important role in our community for both our customers and our employees. This donation is our way of saying thank you and celebrating the hospital's 60-year history of helping everyone."
Over the past year, the Burnaby shopping centre has held a variety of fundraising programs and events to raise the funds with the support of customers and tenants.
Survey finds
Alzheimer's disease is the third most feared condition in B.C. after cancer and heart disease, according to a recent poll conducted by Insights West and the Alzheimer Society of B.C.
The survey found 61 per cent of people living here - including Burnaby residents - are concerned about getting the degenerative brain disease, despite it not being as prevalent in B.C. as cancer, heart disease or even diabetes.
"There is still a lot we don't know about the causes and we don't have a cure, so it's not a surprise that Alzheimer's disease is ranked so high as a health concern," said Dorothy Leclair, an Alzheimer's Society of B.C. support and education coordinator, in a press release.
According to the poll, 39 per cent of people in this province know someone with Alzheimer's.
Age is the greatest known risk factor, and as the baby boomer generation moves into their 65plus years, this becomes more of a concern for the largest demographic group in our population, Leclair noted.
A more positive finding from the survey is that 52 per cent of respondents believe there will be a cure found in the next 10 years.
In the meantime, there needs to be more awareness and education about the disease, said Lori Kelly, another support and education coordinator for the society.
"The reality of the impact is often unexpected and incredibly overwhelming as this heartbreaking illness progresses," she noted. An early diagnosis means earlier access to support and medical treatments to help manage the symptoms of the disease.
Here in Burnaby, families can turn to the society's local support and education group, which meets monthly.
To learn more about the disease and about the Alzheimer Society of B.C. go to www.alzheimerbc. org.
Do you have an item for Medical File? Send items to Marelle at mreid@burn abynow.com.
