2020 Awards recipients

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Recipients of the 14th annual BC Health Care Awards were announced today in a pre-recorded video awards presentation.

Six Gold Apple and seven Award of Merit recipients are being honoured.
View the program.


Health Care Hero 

Linda Warner
Clinical Research Manager, BC Children’s Hospital
Provincial Health Services Authority

Watch the Video

Linda Warner is a champion and advocate for those in need in her own community and abroad. A humanitarian at heart, Linda believes in effective health care for everyone, everywhere. In addition to her work in BC, she has volunteered with charities in marginalized communities devastated by destruction and poverty, including Dominican Republic, Mexico, Haiti and Tanzania. Her crowning achievements include volunteering as a pediatric nurse in Haiti with Rose Charities, a Canadian charity helping people overcome poverty through education, community support and health care, and working to improve growth and development among children, especially with regards to improved immune systems, as Clinical Research Coordinator for the national CHILD Study.

Outstanding Health Care Volunteer *NEW category*
 

Joe Wittkofski
Volunteer, Nanaimo Travellers Lodge Society o/a Eden Gardens
Island Health

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Joe Wittkofski is a retired photographer/videographer who has captured the hearts of Eden Gardens residents and their family members for the past five years by volunteering his talents to brighten up and the care home and record special events that can then be shared with loved ones who are not always able to attend in-person. His ‘joie de vivre,’ sense of adventure and spontaneous nature has captured many hearts and smiles, and enriched the lives of residents, resulting in laughter, joy and happier days at the care home. 

Dianna Mah-Jones Award of Excellence in Person-Centred Care 

Scholar in Residence Program of Research: Mobilizing Person-Centred Care and Patient-Oriented Research in Mental Health and Substance Use
Island Health

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Island Health’s Scholar in Residence (SIR) program is building the organization’s research capacity by engaging patients as partners to answer the health care questions that matter to them, with the broader aim of improving health systems. With overdose deaths at crisis levels across the province, the SIR program team are working with people with lived experience to learn how best to reduce stigma so people feel safer and more willing to access care and services when they need it the most.

Top Innovation

Open Heart Surgery Surgical Site Infection Program (OHS SSI)
Island Health 

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The rate for open heart surgery wound infections in Island Health was well above the average in Canada, resulting in patient care concerns and costing the organization $900,000 dollars per year. Recognizing that improvements were needed, the multidisciplinary Open Heart Surgery Surgical Site Infection (OHS SSI) Prevention and Reduction program was created. The work of the OHS SSI program has resulted in a significant reduction in infection rates and has reduced organizational costs by $500,000 per year. Patient experience has improved significantly, decreasing the length of hospital stays and restoring confidence for future patients.

Workplace Health Innovation 

Mindfulness for Psychological Health study 
Fraser Health 

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Mindfulness training is one of the ways Fraser Health is creating a workplace where team members are supported in taking care of their personal psychological health and well-being. An organization wide mindfulness study was created to find out whether practicing mindfulness had a direct impact on work performance, engagement and well-being. Participants from the study showed improvements in well-being, engagement, job satisfaction, performance and reported reduced feelings of job "burnout." Some participants reported feeling ongoing increased engagement with their work, a clear indication of the lasting impact mindfulness has on employee wellbeing. 

Collaborative Solutions 

'One' System of ECLS Care – Partnering To Save Lives in BC
Vancouver Coastal Health 

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‘ECMO,’ or Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation, is a collaborative program developed by 42 health partners from more than 10 organizations that is resulting in better care and outcomes for patients with significant heart or lung conditions. ECMO is an advanced form of life support that pumps and oxygenates blood outside the body so a patient’s heart and lungs can rest while they transition to other lifesaving devices, or potentially wait to receive transplants. It is a safer alternative to using a ventilator, which can lead to permanent damaging effects and even death. This collaboration has resulted in the creation of effective new clinical protocols and patient management pathways that are holistic and address all the steps in a patient's journey, from survival to safety to quality of life. 

Award of Merit

Health Care Hero 

Dr. Richard Merchant
Royal Columbian Hospital, Fraser Health

Suzanne Lehbauer
Executive Director
Castlegar Hospice Society, Interior Health

Outstanding Health Care Volunteer 

Doug Morris

Leadership Volunteer, Medical Imaging
Victoria General Hospital, Island Health  

Dianna Mah-Jones Award of Excellence in Person-Centred Care

Intensive Care Unit Patient & Family Advisory Council
Royal Inland Hospital, Interior Health

Top Innovation

Emergency Relocation and Receiving Guide
Northern Health

Workplace Health Innovation 

Investigation into the Cleaning Methods of Smartphones and Wearables from Infectious Contamination in a Patient Care Environment (I-SWIPE)
Royal Jubilee Hospital, Island Health

Collaborative Solutions

Emergency Network - Model of Care
Fraser Health




Since the inauguration of the awards in 2007, 152 Gold Apples and 101 Awards of Merit have been presented to deserving BC health care employees.

BC Health Care Awards recipients represent the best in BC health care. They are people who are truly making a difference for our province’s patients and health system.

Past Recipients