Rural Health Services Research Network of BC

Rural Health Services Research Network of BC

The Rural Health Services Research Network of BC is creating a supportive infrastructure to facilitate the investigation of issues relevant to rural health services from the perspective of the population, health services, and clinicians. Its mission is to achieve and support excellence in rural health services by, for, and with Indigenous and non-Indigenous rural communities, providers, and researchers. The goal of the Network is to increase communication, collaboration, and capacity for better research and health outcomes for rural communities.

Achievements & Impact

Recruited part-time research and communications staff, and added new members to its Advisory Committee

 

 

Hosted a Community Forum on rural health services and climate change

 

 

Held the “Planning Resilient Communities and Adapting Rural Health Services in British Columbia: Responding to Climate Change and Ecosystem Disruption” Symposium, attracting 110 participants

 

 

 

Wrote grant proposals and provided financial support to six medical students and one team conducting rural research

 

Looking ahead

Rural Health Services Research Network of BC Overview

In 2020–2021, the Rural Health Services Research Network of BC, led by Dr. Stefan Grzybowski, continued to fulfill its mandate by initiating and planning activities and services for researchers, clinicians, and community members investigating issues relevant to rural health services. The Network hired one part-time research assistant and one part-time communications officer over the past year. Its Advisory Committee also added a new member from the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) and two youth panel members, who are medical students.

The Network’s activities primarily focused on enhancing rural resilience and adapting rural health services in response to climate change and ecosystem disruption. This focus stemmed from a Community Forum, “Planning for Rural Health Services in BC in Response to Climate Change and Planetary Ecosystem Disruption”, hosted by the Network early in the year, attended by 12 community representatives. The team also presented on enhancing rural resiliency at “The Climate Emergency: Diagnosis and Management Conference”, hosted by the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, with 87 participants.

Priorities identified during the aforementioned Community Forum were further discussed with the Rural Coordination Centre of BC and several Network advisory groups. This led to the planning and implementation of a second event: A two-day virtual Symposium on November 30 and December 1, called “Planning Resilient Communities and Adapting Rural Health Services in British Columbia: Responding to Climate Change and Ecosystem Disruption”.

The Symposium, which attracted over 110 rural health researchers, physicians, community members, policymakers, and youth, had a tremendous impact. Participants expanded their knowledge of numerous topics, including land-based healing and well-being, mental health impacts of climate change in rural communities, and BC First Nations’ perspectives on climate justice, climate change, and health. In addition, two members of the Kimberley Youth Action Network Environment team, who presented at the Symposium, were featured in a BC Local News story, creating greater awareness of the event and its topics. Following the Symposium, the Network’s team developed and disseminated a report of the event’s proceedings.

Further to these two highly successful events, the Network began developing funding proposals to scale up its work in the coming year. It also provided MEDD FLEX financial support for six medical students who are working remotely on rural health projects, and one team-building award to two UNBC rural researchers.

In the coming year, the Network aims to support rural research teams through the knowledge dissemination process through its networking channels and by helping organize small-scale workshops and symposia. The team will also continue working on relationship building with community, government, and health authority stakeholders and take other needed steps to strengthen rural health systems’ ability to respond and adapt to climate change, ecosystem disruptions, and other stressors and inequities, such as food insecurity and racism.

How have we shown or built resilience in BC during a challenging year?

“Throughout this unprecedented time of the pandemic and the resulting public health directives, such as the work-from-home order and cancellation of any in-person gatherings, the Rural Health Services Research Network of BC had to reschedule its in-person Symposium to a virtual format in Fall 2021. With the help of staff, students, members of our planning committee, and advisors, we were able to successfully transition to an online platform and reach over 100 participants. We also continued the conversations by forming a working group that continues to meet virtually and is working on a project proposal.

The goal of the event was to strategize how we can collectively enhance the resilience of rural communities to respond to climate change and ecosystem disruption. The Network provided the opportunity and space for healthcare partners, academics, community members, youth, and others to gather virtually to engage in important conversations regarding climate change resilience, mitigation and adaptation, to build new relationships, and identify shared priorities and co-create strategies on how the rural health community in BC can respond to climate change and strengthen resilience in rural communities.”

Dr. Stefan Grzybowski
Physician Lead, Rural Health Services Research Network of BC, RCCbc

Team Members: Arlin Cherian 

Some Related Areas

Research, Evaluation & Quality Improvement