The Heart of It

As health care organizations across the world grapple with challenges, how can we emerge better, stronger and kinder than before?

Marika Sandrelli has worked in community education and development projects for more than four decades. In this episode of The Heart of It, she shares why being a mission-driven person is more powerful than any policy or legislation. She also discusses what pulled her into the health system, why compassionate trauma and resiliency-informed practice (TRIP) is needed in health care now more than ever, and the impacts of “brave” spaces in achieving lasting, systemic change.
Guest bio
Marika Sandrelli is a strategic leader with Mental Health and Substance Use Services at Fraser Health.
As a community organizer and activist she saw the health care system as confusing and advocated from the outside. One day someone said, “You have to learn the rules before you break them.” So, she joined the system and in 2015 won Fraser Health’s Health Care Hero Award for changing how learning and practice are approached in mental health and substance use.
Marika co-developed a Trauma and Resiliency Informed Practice course for researchers and evaluators, which she continues to facilitate along with her colleagues. Her caring approach has resulted in more skilled, confident, supported and supportive health care providers who are both better equipped to serve vulnerable patient populations with confidence and compassion, and take pride in the work that they do.
About The Heart of It
Every episode, Dr. Victoria Lee, president and CEO of Fraser Health, take listeners to the heart of health care, where passion, dedication and innovation drive individual, community and planetary health.
Listen to and watch more episodes of The Heart of It here. And be sure to subscribe to The Heart of It in your favourite podcast player app so that you don’t miss a beat.
This episode of The Heart of It was recorded on the traditional, ancestral and unceded shared territories of the Katzie, Kwantlen, Coquitlam, Semiahmoo and Tsawwassen First Nations, and on the home of the Surrey-Delta Métis Association.

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What matters to seniors? And how can deep listening ensure that we are not only meeting their needs, but driving compassionate and connected systems of care? In this episode of The Heart of It, Dr. Victoria Lee is joined by Dr. Akber Mithani for a journey into seniors’ care. He shares how he felt pulled to a calling in medicine at an early age, and how his family and community’s reverence for older relatives and friends drove him to this specialized field.

Over the course of their conversation, Dr. Mithani shares stories from his own practice, including a 100th birthday that he will never forget, and what he envisions for the future of senior’s care in his own communities and across the globe.
Guest bio
Dr. Akber Mithani is the regional medical director for long-term care and assisted living at Fraser Health. He is also a clinical associate professor at the Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia. He has a lifelong passion for the care of the elderly, a well-respected expertise in long-term care and a robust experience with medical leadership.
He received his medical doctor training at Memorial University of Newfoundland. He has worked in various clinical service areas including geriatric psychiatry and medicine, long-term care and acute specialized geriatric programs. He is an active researcher and educator in the field of geriatrics and has participated in over 30 peer-reviewed funded research projects, abstracts, book and journal publications. He currently supervises and teaches family practice residents in their mandatory clinical geriatric rotation and has lectured extensively across the world in areas of Islamic ethics and spirituality, especially in relation to end-of-life decision making and a palliative approach to care.
About The Heart of It
Every episode, Dr. Victoria Lee, president and CEO of Fraser Health, take listeners to the heart of health care, where passion, dedication and innovation drive individual, community and planetary health.
Listen to and watch more episodes of The Heart of It here. And be sure to subscribe to The Heart of It in your favourite podcast player app so that you don’t miss a beat.
This episode of The Heart of It was recorded on the traditional, ancestral and unceded shared territories of the Katzie, Kwantlen, Coquitlam, Semiahmoo and Tsawwassen First Nations, and on the home of the Surrey-Delta Métis Association.

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We know it can be scary or overwhelming to visit an emergency department, and you may wait longer than you’d like to receive care. We’re here to care for you and look after you – and all the 2,000 people who visit our emergency departments every day.

This episode goes behind the scenes of our emergency departments to explore the challenges facing them, how patients are triaged and what contributes to wait times. Host Dr. Victoria Lee is joined by Dr. Craig Murray, an emergency physician at Surrey Memorial Hospital, and Mary Van Osch, who leads our Emergency Medicine Network.

Chapters
What is an emergency department? – 1:30
Know your care options – 3:30
The triage process – 5:09
Wait times – 6:53
Why are more people visiting emergency departments? – 17:33
What happens when someone is admitted to the hospital? – 26:29
Why you may be asked the same questions many times – 42:01

Guest bios
Dr. Craig Murray is an emergency physician as well as the co-regional medical director and co-regional department head for Emergency Medicine at Fraser Health.

Mary Van Osch is the regional lead for Fraser Health’s Emergency Network.

About The Heart of It
Every episode, Dr. Victoria Lee, president and CEO of Fraser Health, takes listeners to the heart of health care, where passion, dedication and innovation drive individual, community and planetary health.

Listen to and watch more episodes of The Heart of It here. And be sure to subscribe to The Heart of It in your favourite podcast player app so that you don’t miss a beat.
This episode of The Heart of It was recorded on the traditional, ancestral and unceded shared territories of the q̓ ic̓əy̓ (Katzie), q̓wɑ:n̓ƛ̓ən̓ (Kwantlen), kwikwəƛ̓ əm (Kwikwetlem), Qayqayt and Semiahmoo First Nations, treaty lands of the sc̓əwaθən məsteyəxw (Tsawwassen) First Nation, and on the home of the Surrey-Delta Métis Association.

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In season two, we'll be exploring what happens behind the scenes at Fraser Health to ensure patients receive the best care possible.
We’re going to dive into what happens when patients need surgeries and CT scans, how to access mental health and substance use services, and the home-based supports available for seniors.

We’ll also learn how our hospitals are trying to reduce wait times in emergency departments and how virtual health services can help you find information and support from the comfort of your home.

We can’t wait to share these episodes with you. Don’t forget to subscribe in your favourite podcast player app so you don’t miss a beat.
Learn more about The Heart of It: https://www.fraserhealth.ca/podcast

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When we heard that Helen Bevan was going to be in town, we jumped at the opportunity to connect with her. Helen is one of the leading voices in the world when it comes to health care transformation.
In this episode, Helen and Victoria cover a range of topics related to how health systems can provide the best care possible for patients, including continuous improvement of care and services, compassionate leadership and Fraser Health’s own engagement radicals.
Guest bio
Helen is a leader of large-scale change, an innovator and an activist in health and care. She is currently Professor of Practice in Health and Care Improvement at Warwick Business School at the University of Warwick and a Strategic Advisor to the National Health Service’s Horizons team.

Helen has spent more than three decades working in England’s National Health Service, focusing on large scale transformational change. She has led and facilitated many nationwide improvement initiatives, including those in cancer services, urgent and emergency care, and dementia care and treatment.
About The Heart of It
Every episode, Dr. Victoria Lee, president and CEO of Fraser Health, take listeners to the heart of health care, where passion, dedication and innovation drive individual, community and planetary health.
Listen to and watch more episodes of The Heart of It here. And be sure to subscribe to The Heart of It in your favourite podcast player app so that you don’t miss a beat.
This episode of The Heart of It was recorded on the traditional, ancestral and unceded shared territories of the xwməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) and səl̓ilwətaɁɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations, and home to the Vancouver Sea to Sky Métis Association.

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