jjablkowski's blog

Choosing Wisely Canada is the brand name of a campaign to ensure high quality medical care. One of their current publications lists 13 tests and treatments that family physicians and patients should question. The list may be long on logic but I think it is a bit short on wisdom—encroaching on what we call the art of medicine.  

As I begin my career as a medical student at the University of British Columbia, I find myself in a unique position. Having already studied, worked, and researched in the field of bioethics, I have had the privilege of being exposed to a wide array of literature and perspectives that have helped me form my ethics toolkit.

The Vancouver Sun recently reported that the foot-lift, sometimes referred to as “Cinderella surgery,” is becoming a fast-growing and somewhat controversial sector of the cosmetic surgery industry. Surgical procedures include bunion removal, toe shortening or lengthening, separation of webbed toes, varicose foot-vein removal, and foot plumping (fillers introduced to smooth bony feet). Some physicians think that surgery may be indicated to correct painful foot problems but that cosmetic surgery would not be needed if people would just wear sensible, well-fitting shoes.

A wide range of adaptive sports, sometimes referred to as disabled sports or parasports, are well known to all who watch the Paralympic Games or the more recent Invictus and Warrior Games. Apart from the rehabilitative and enjoyment value these sports offer to individuals with physical or mental disabilities, both permanent and temporary, the astounding individual and group accomplishments also help remove stigma associated with disabilities.

Lynn Holden, MD (UBC 1974) killed herself on 1 December 2015. She was 67 years old. Her family remembers her as a generous, kind, vibrant person, an accomplished baker, highland dancer, trumpet player, pianist, and poet.

At the time of her graduation from medical school she wrote:
    I dream I was alive
    Energy suspended
    The first rocket of a firecracker
    Ready to burst in lightening beauty of hope
    Radiant blush . . .
    I am waking up.
    My time is now.