Justice Institute of British Columbia

About: Justice Institute of British Columbia is a based out in . It is known for research contribution in the topics: Poison control & Mental health. The organization has 52 authors who have published 74 publications receiving 1729 citations.

Four dimensions of paramedic practice in Canada: Defining and describing the profession

Abstract: IntroductionThis article presents a framework for describing four dimensions of paramedic practice: Practitioners, Practice Setting, Care and Patient Disposition. The framework emerged from a qualitative study conducted to identify potential research directions and opportunities to advance paramedicine and paramedic education at Justice Institute of British Columbia in Canada. MethodsResearchers conducted semi-structured interviews with 17 stakeholders in Canadian paramedicine to explore the current state and emerging expectations of paramedic practice and paramedic education. ResultsThe study found no consensus, and little agreement, on what term or terms best describe the profession. Participants agreed that the core of paramedic practice involves an advanced care paramedic responding by ambulance to the patient’s side in an emergency to assess and treat urgent medical and traumatic conditions, then transport the patient to further medical care – most often an emergency physician at an emergency department. However, participants also described paramedics as healthcare providers who are increasingly taking on varied operational roles to improve patient care and address gaps in an evolving and stressed healthcare system. Four dimensions emerged for describing key characteristics of paramedic practice: the Practitioners, Practice Settings, Care and Patient Disposition. DiscussionThe framework described in this article may be useful for examining and better understanding both traditional and evolving paramedic roles. This, in turn, informs the efforts of paramedic educators, regulators, employers, and professional associations to support practitioners in the field. The article uses the framework to contrast two distinctly different community paramedic programs.

The logic of projects and the ideal of community development: Social good, participation and the ethics of knowing

Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between project-based organizing and the initiatives labelled as “development” by critically engaging with some unchallenged assumptions inherent in the notion of both projects as a means through which social change can be achieved and the wider possibility of delivering social good as an objective of development. Design/methodology/approach – From a phenomenologically informed critical participatory perspective the authors focus on contradictions within the practices of community development (CD) by attending to the interplay between the dominant project form of organizing that frames those practices and the rhetoric of “development”. Findings – Drawing on two CD examples, the authors illustrate and discuss the contradictions and damaging consequences of the developmentalism-projectification double-act. The position is that social good is local and contextual and draws expediently and contingently on the means through which it can be achi...

Conceptualizing the impact of special events on community health service levels: an operational analysis.

Abstract: Mass gatherings (MG) impact their host and surrounding communities and with inadequate planning, may impair baseline emergency health services. Mass gatherings do not occur in a vacuum; they have both consumptive and disruptive effects that extend beyond the event itself. Mass gatherings occur in real geographic locations that include not only the event site, but also the surrounding neighborhoods and communities. In addition, the impact of small, medium, or large special events may be felt for days, or even months, prior to and following the actual events. Current MG reports tend to focus on the events themselves during published event dates and may underestimate the full impact of a given MG on its host community. In order to account for, and mitigate, the full effects of MGs on community health services, researchers would benefit from a common model of community impact. Using an operations lens, two concepts are presented, the ‘‘vortex’’ and the ‘‘ripple,’’ as metaphors and a theoretical model for exploring the broader impact of MGs on host communities. Special events and MGs impact host communities by drawing upon resources (vortex) and by disrupting normal, baseline services (ripple). These effects are felt with diminishing impact as one moves geographically further from the event center, and can be felt before, during, and after the event dates. Well executed medical and safety plans for events with appropriate, comprehensive risk assessments and stakeholder engagement have the best chance of ameliorating the potential negative impact of MGs on communities. Lund A, Turris SA, Bowles R. Conceptualizing the impact of special events on community health service levels: an operational analysis. Prehosp Disaster Med.

The psychosocial and socioeconomic consequences of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE): a community impact study.

Abstract: The detection of the first indigenous case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in Canada on May 20, 2003, had significant consequences for the livestock industry. As a result, borders were closed by several trade partners, particularly the United States. The outbreak led to direct and indirect economic impacts to the “cattle” industry exceeding $6 billion. As a consequence of a number of risk management interventions implemented by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and provincial agencies, the BSE outbreak appears to have been largely contained. The initial results from our study of the socioeconomic and psychosocial impact of BSE on the health and well-being of rural and farm families living in Canada, a topic that remains largely unexamined are presented. Our analysis of the outbreak raises a number of questions concerning the resulting consequences for farmers, their families, and their communities, including considerations from a social determinants' of health perspective. In particular...