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The Steak + The Soggy Hot Dog
This guest essay was written by Karen Copeland. Karen is a creative communicator and owns the Champions for Community Mental Wellness...
Karen Copeland
Dec 12, 20202 min read


Little Bird has Hatched
I struggled mightily in the early days of the pandemic. My first book, Bird’s Eye View, had been released just four months before in...

Sue Robins
Dec 6, 20203 min read


Sharing the Microphone
My editor told me when my book was published, I’d suddenly be considered an expert. Now that I have a book platform, I’ve found this to...

Sue Robins
Nov 21, 20202 min read


Death By a Thousand Cuts
I walk into the cancer hospital for my breast ultrasound appointment. I arrive alone and I’m wearing my mask. There’s a tall man, a staff...

Sue Robins
Nov 19, 20204 min read


Joy in Work
This essay is a draft chapter from my upcoming book called Ducks in a Row: Reimagining Patient Engagement. I once had a position in a...

Sue Robins
Nov 15, 20204 min read


Take A Chance On Him
A year ago yesterday, my son’s Nintendo commercial was released. It was his first paid gig as an actor. This was a time of great...

Sue Robins
Nov 14, 20202 min read


Let's Talk About Disability
This essay offers a sneak peek into the very last module in my Course Content called Let’s Talk About Disability. This is a special...

Sue Robins
Nov 4, 20205 min read


The Good and The Bad
Yesterday I drove past the Sunny Hill Health Centre building on Slocan Street in Vancouver just for old time’s sake. It brought back a...

Sue Robins
Oct 30, 20203 min read


I Support Queering Cancer
Once upon a time, I had breast cancer. My patient experience in the cancer hospital was mostly awful. I’ve written about it extensively -...

Sue Robins
Oct 27, 20203 min read


Happy Birthday Bird's Eye View
My first book, Bird’s Eye View: Stories of a Life Lived in Health Care, was published a year ago in October 2019. It's been a hell of a...

Sue Robins
Oct 26, 20204 min read


Virtual Conference Benefits
Back in the spring, my inbox became populated with cancellations of conferences that I was booked to speak at. Cancelled. Postponed....

Sue Robins
Oct 24, 20206 min read


Humans, not Heroes
Similar to air travel, hospital appointments are best if they are uneventful. Flying is a relief when it is boring and nothing goes...

Sue Robins
Oct 22, 20204 min read


Stay Curious, Researchers
I have researchers on my mind. Yesterday I participated on Town Hall panel called “Everybody Has a Story” for the Alberta SPORU Virtual...

Sue Robins
Oct 14, 20204 min read


This Isn't Working
I’m watching the growth of the second wave of this pandemic with horror. Public health officials are asking people to change their...

Sue Robins
Oct 9, 20204 min read


How To Dehumanize Health Care
How do you dehumanize health care? It's easy: turn people into numbers and ignore the patient story. People in health care say they...

Sue Robins
Oct 6, 20204 min read


Visual Art As Healing
(This is the second essay in a series about Patient Storytelling). In the midst of this global pandemic, COVID has turned many people...

Sue Robins
Sep 29, 20203 min read


Beyond the Podium
(This is the first in a series of essays about thinking creatively about patient storytelling). Let’s think outside the rectangular box...

Sue Robins
Sep 28, 20204 min read


We All Have Stories
I once gave a talk to a group of PICU nurses. I asked them – how do you take care of yourself when a child you are caring for dies? They...

Sue Robins
Sep 23, 20203 min read


Left Out. Again.
It is the first week of back-to-school in our school district. I am tormenting myself by thinking if governments FIRST made schools safe...

Sue Robins
Sep 16, 20201 min read


People Are Not Numbers
A few years ago I attended a hospital's strategy workshop. There was a lot of lecturing from the podium from people in business suits and...

Sue Robins
Sep 14, 20202 min read
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