First if you are a woman or if you are someone who loves a woman in whatever capacity, I want you to feel empowered to speak up for your right to appropriate health care. Your body is yours, you are well within your right to refuse care that infringes upon your bodily autonomy. You are not at the behest of your healthcare professional. You are well within your right to question, ask, and fully understand what is happening and why before you give consent.
Author: Jocelyn, RN, BScN
On average, women in the ER will wait 15 minutes longer than men for pain relief, they are also less likely to be given any narcotic or opioid pain medication and more likely to be given something sedative instead. The implicit bias of hysteria in women does still exist in today’s world, but that might not be the only thing impacting women’s experiences of pain.
Flavanols are a specific type of flavonoids found in vibrantly coloured fruits, berries, and vegetables. These amazing metabolites have neuroprotective effects for our brains and can suppress neuroinflammation, increased blood flow and the potential for inhibiting neurodegeneration.
Colorectal cancer is cancer that affects the colon or the rectum and is one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths in Canada. Although it can affect people at any age, it is most common in those over the age of 70. If you are 50 years old or older and are at low risk for colorectal cancer, screening can be performed every two years by a stool sample
What is your liver? Let’s get to know this friendly fella that lives on the right upper quadrant of your abdomen. Your liver is your friend and is incredibly vital to your overall health. You may have heard that the liver can regenerate itself, but it is not magical. Years of abuse to your liver can impair its ability to heal itself. Damage to your liver can happen through over the counter medications, prescription medications, a poor diet or obesity, hepatitis infections, uncontrolled diabetes, and of course alcohol misuse.
When I was in nursing school, 2008, I had an instructor who dedicated a lot of her nursing career to palliative care. Something she said really resonated with me–often cries of “I just want to die” and begging to be “put out of their misery” were the result of unimaginable pain and suffering. She went on to explain that these pleas are fleeting and in-the-moment. My bedside experience solidified her teachings that once we get our patient more comfortable, those desires to die will lessen.
As we entered into lockdown during 2020 amidst a pandemic, we found a common theme that occurred as a result of government-mandated social isolation—an increase in overdose deaths. While we can speculate on the many reasons why the two corresponded with one another, we will first aim our focus towards understanding what “addiction” actually is.