A hefty harvest for the Calgary Food Bank

Tuesday, September 26th saw retirees from TransAlta harvesting what is likely to be a record-breaking yield. All of the produce will be donated to the Calgary Food Bank.

Photo from Pixabay

According to Fred Ritter, coordinator of the Get Growing Garden project, “‘It becomes more satisfying that we can play a part and help the needy folks, given the rising cost of food and so on, and folks out there struggling to put food on the table.'”

Click here to read the full story.

Help to Define Patient Safety

Volunteer Week

National Volunteer Week is April 7-13, 2019! This week provides an opportunity to recognize the important role that volunteers play. Alberta Health Services is recognizing its over 14,400 volunteers. One of these individuals is also a member of our Pts4Chg community. Thanks for all you do, Gloria.

Become a Patient Advocate

    Do you reside in the Edmonton area?
    Are you a caring, empathetic, compassionate individual who is looking for a way to make a difference in the lives of others?

If your answer to the above questions is “Yes,” the Open Arms Patient Advocacy society is looking for you. Click here to read more about this exciting opportunity.

BedMed Study Opportunity – Get Involved

“Did you know that the time of day when you take your blood pressure medication might be important? The University of Alberta is leading BedMed, a Canada-wide blood pressure study, to answer important questions on treatment for high blood pressure. With your help, we can find out.” (Bedmed Facebook Page.)

Wanted: Awesome People

Are you an awesome person?
Do you live in Alberta?
Are you interested in improving surgical care provided to Albertans?
If so, here is an opportunity for you…..

“The Surgery Strategic Clinical Network is seeking members for the new Provincial Working Groups in Surgery described in the 2018-2021 Alberta Surgery Plan.
There are three Working Groups available:

  • Access to Surgical Care
  • Surgical Safety & Quality
  • Surgical Analytics

We’re looking for people who are committed to improving surgical care provided to Albertans. We need people from all five AHS Zones including citizens, patients and family members, hospital specialists and primary care physicians, nurses and allied health, operations and support staff and others. Members must be willing and able to work as a team to develop innovative, practical and feasible solutions to the most important problems facing our system. Members will bring their own experiences to the table but must also be willing and able to think about the provincial system as a whole. Previous experience in quality improvement would be an asset but is not essential.”

Click here to read the full call.

Share Your Experience


Do you or someone you know have glaucoma?
Did you or someone you know have an operation related to this disease?
If you answered “Yes.” to the above questions, you might be interested in the following opportunity to share your experience. Below are the details sent to Pts4Chg by CADTH.

CADTH is an independent, not-for-profit organization. CADTH reviews health technologies to help health care decision-makers, patients, health care professionals, health systems leaders, and policy-makers make well-informed decisions and improve the quality of health care services

CADTH researchers are currently planning a review of minimally invasive glaucoma surgery, as compared with other ways to manage glaucoma. They will be doing a comprehensive literature review of patient and caregiver perspectives on glaucoma surgery, in addition to assessing trials on clinical and cost effectiveness.

To help CADTH develop the plan for the research and provide CADTH researchers with the patient perspective into glaucoma and surgery, we would like to hear from individuals who have experience with glaucoma treatments (including surgery). We are looking for volunteers to review our plan and comment on whether we have captured all the important aspects of diagnosis and care from a patient’s perspective.
CADTH would send the volunteers the draft plan for the project, (it’s a 3-page document) and then we would schedule an informal telephone call to discuss the project and make sure we are covering all the issues that are important to patients. The summary notes from the call will be sent to you for your approval before it is shared with CADTH researchers. Your name will be removed from the summary and anything you wish to have removed from the summary notes will be deleted.

CADTH hopes conversations like these will benefit future patients who experience the same condition and that the results of the review and any recommendations that come from it will better reflect the needs of patients if patients like you are consulted in the development of our work.

Thank you for considering to speak to CADTH about your experiences with glaucoma. For more information, or to volunteer please contact: Tamara Rader TamaraR@cadth.ca

The Health of All

Is there a connection between time spent in nature and one’s health and wellbeing? According to many people, spending time outdoors, whether that be sitting quietly bird watching or walking in a park, has a positive effect on how they feel mentally, emotionally and physically.

If spending time in nature is something you would like to do more of this summer, the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) is currently seeking volunteers.

We invite Canadians of all ages to join us in caring for Canada’s natural places. People can help monitor migratory birds, conduct butterfly surveys, protect nesting habitat for turtles, plant native trees and flowers, build or enhance trails and boardwalks, conduct shoreline cleanups, remove invasive species, build nest boxes and more. Everyone can play an important role in caring for the environment by signing up for one of our Conservation Volunteers events, and by encouraging their friends, family and co-workers to join them in volunteering for nature.

Volunteering for NCC is not only a way to benefit your own health but nature’s health as well. Click here to find out more.