DR. JENNY BASRAN
LEADING INNOVATIONS in geriatric care
By Maria Ryhorski
dition to being a practising clinician, associate professor at the College of Medicine and an internationally sought-after hile the Canadian Medical Association works to raise speaker. awareness of the need for a national seniors strategy, Dr. Jenny Basran already knows better than most, how geri- Dr. Basran’s determination to create a health care environatric care will need to evolve to meet the needs of Saskatch- ment that is supportive of the complex health needs of older ewan’s growing population of older adults. As the only geri- adults has driven her expansion from direct patient care into atrician in the province, Dr. Basran has tackled the front line education, health system transformation and technology. challenges of ensuring this province’s seniors receive the support they need to age well. “I was really focused at the beginning on trying to recruit more geriatricians,” says Dr. Basran. She realized early on, This work has earned her the heartfelt appreciation of her however, that recruiting enough to fill the need might not patients and families, the admiration of her students and be realistic, so she shifted her thinking. colleagues and the 2015 SMA Physician of the Year Award, presented at the Spring Representative Assembly on May 8. “Everybody pretty much is going to end up having geriatric patients in their practice except for paediatricians and ob“Dr. Basran is an incredible systems thinker and visionary stetricians,” she says, “so I thought, ‘how do I make sure that leader,” said Mr. Graham Fast, project lead for the ED Waits & everybody who is involved in the care of an older adult actuPatient Flow Initiative, of which Dr. Basran is clinical co-lead. ally has some knowledge of geriatrics?’” “She has developed and articulates a clear vision for transformative change to the way that health care is delivered to Education was the answer. In addition to teaching at the Colseniors and other complex patients in Saskatchewan.” lege of Medicine, Dr. Basran worked with a team to develop the Geriatric Skills Day program that ensures all new phyThrough her work ranging from the front lines of medicine, sicians have the knowledge and skills to manage geriatric to education, to health system transformation, to research, patients and those with complex health needs. Dr. Basran has grown to identify gaps and barriers to quality geriatric care in the current system, and help engineer In addition to skills training, Dr. Basran feels that educating solutions. Among her current roles, she is a core member health care providers to see the whole person and not just of the Health Technology Expert Review Panel, and head of their ailments is crucial to providing good care. Geriatric Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan, in ad-
W
12
SMA DIGEST | SUMMER 2015