health care

Diversity in health care

Left to right are Rabbi Jonathan Infeld, Dr. Salman Zarka, Dr. Tim Oberlander and Dr. Erik Swartz at Congregation Beth Israel, where Zarka gave a few talks Nov. 21-23. (photo from Beth Israel)

“Our professional ethics, as well as Israeli legislation, mandate that we provide life-saving medical care to anyone in need. We do so for all citizens in Israel without discrimination based on religion, origin, race or political beliefs. We provided this care for Syrians and previously treated Lebanese patients, until the border was closed in 2000,” Dr. Salman Zarka, director of Ziv Medical Centre, told the Independent.

Zarka was in Vancouver last week, speaking at Congregation Beth Israel on the ethics of triage, on treating Syrian patients in Israel, and about his community, the Druze.

“I am delighted to visit Canada and share with different audiences the amazing work we’ve been doing at Ziv Medical Centre this past year, dealing with both war and emergency situations,” Zarka told the Independent. “This visit is also a great chance to thank the supporters in Canada from the Jewish community, Beth Israel, the Federation and the Ronald S. Roadburg Foundation.

“The visit is a chance to share our ongoing efforts in treating the wounded, as well as past activities related to caring for Syrian casualties,” he said.

Caring for an “enemy”

“The humanitarian aid to Syrians lasted for around five years, from 2013 to 2018, until [Bashar al-]Assad took back control of southern Syria, closed the border, thereby stopping patients and wounded from Syria coming to Israel,” said Zarka, who led the establishment of the now-closed military field hospital that provided medical support to Syrians wounded in the country’s ongoing civil war. He and his colleagues at Ziv Medical Centre have also provided care to Syrians.

“It is indeed unusual and uncommon to extend a professional and human hand to your enemies during their time of need,” he said. “On the other hand, we have an ethical duty to treat every patient and every wounded person. This dilemma existed at the start of the process, when wounded Syrians arrived at the Israel-Syria border. We treated them and asked ourselves what we should do next. On one hand, the Syrians are one of our most severe enemies, yet our ethics and professional standards oblige us to save lives and provide aid to all in need. Moreover, Israel is known for its global humanitarian assistance. Ultimately, we chose to provide care, treating close to 4,600 Syrians, including children, women and men.”

Before he retired from the military, Zarka served in various capacities in the Israel Defence Forces, including many leadership roles, and is currently a colonel brigadier in the reserve force. He is an expert in public health and public health administration, as well as being a practising physician, among other things. He was Israel’s chief COVID officer during the pandemic. In 2014, he became the director at Ziv Medical Centre, in Tzfat, about 11 kilometres from Israel’s border with Lebanon.

“Ziv Medical Centre employs about 2,200 staff members who come from the unique multicultural background of the region,” said Zarka. “At Ziv, secular Jews work alongside ultra-Orthodox Jews, Muslims, Christians, Druze, Circassians and Bedouins,” he said. “The hospital atmosphere is familial, and everyone collaborates to achieve the noble goals of saving lives and bringing healing to those in need. Cultural differences influence how people perceive illness, and our multicultural staff enables us to offer culturally sensitive care for various health needs.”

After the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on southern Israel, the northern part of the country faced increased threats from Hezbollah in Lebanon, leading to mass evacuations of the region.

“For over a year now, the north has faced a complex situation with rocket fire and evacuations,” said Zarka. “This state of conflict forces Ziv Medical Centre to operate from protected spaces and remain prepared for mass casualty incidents. The need for readiness and staying in protected areas limits our ability to treat patients comprehensively, but it is unethical to deny necessary medical treatment to our northern population, which depends on Ziv for their routine treatment.”

The challenges are numerous.

“Some of our patients left the area, preventing us from continuing their care, while others relocated nearby and continued their treatment,” Zarka said. “Both the evacuated population and those facing rocket fire, injury and loss require increased mental health support, leading to a rise in emergency room visits. Additionally, some of our staff had to evacuate from their homes, posing challenges for employees who continued to work at Ziv despite the distance.”

The security situation in the north requires the medical centre to reassess its reinforced spaces, while continuing to provide necessary medical care to patients, even during emergencies, said Zarka.

“The end of the war and the return of residents to their homes will pose significant mental health challenges for both adults and youth, as was seen following the COVID-19 pandemic,” he added. “Preparing to expand services in the region is essential. The north will require substantial investment not only for recovery but for growth, making it a beautiful and unique area, home to multicultural residents, many of whom are from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, who depend on Ziv Medical Centre for their health care.”

Israel’s Druze community

There are about 150,000 Israeli Druze. The Druze religion is monotheistic; it branched off from Shia Islam in the 11th century and has since incorporated elements of other religions. The Druze are ethnically and linguistically Arabic, mainly living in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Israel, notably, in northern Israel.

“The Druze community in Israel chose, even prior to the state’s establishment (back in the 1930s), to ally with the Jewish population, a minority at the time, possibly as a bond between minorities,” explained Zarka. “The Druze supported the Jews before the state was founded and fought in the War of Independence. Afterward, the Druze decided to enlist in the IDF as volunteers and requested mandatory enlistment for their men, which began in 1956. Druze men serve in the IDF like Jewish men, with high enlistment rates in combat units, continuing with a significant service, achieving senior ranks. I served in the IDF for over 25 years in key roles in the Medical Corps, commander of medical services in the Northern Command and head of medical services, retiring with the rank of colonel.”

A 2023 article in the National Post noted, “Aside from combat roles, the Druze have a presence in health care: in 2011, the Druze made up 16% of the IDF’s medics, despite making up only 1.6% of the force.” The article gave Zarka as an example of a prominent Druze, having achieved success in both the military and in health care.

There are challenges for the Druze community in Israel, however.

“Much has been said about the ‘blood pact’ forged between the Druze and the Jews in Israel, which, unfortunately, translates into casualties in Israel’s various military conflicts,” Zarka told the Independent. “Alongside this connection, particularly strong in the IDF and security forces, there exists a civilian gap in the so-called ‘pact of life.’ The Nation-State Law [in 2018] did not address minorities in Israel, omitting the crucial term ‘equality,’ making the Druze feel relegated to a lesser status compared to their Jewish fellow citizens.

“Beyond the significance of this matter, which is not merely declarative, Druze towns (mainly villages) have long suffered from planning and land allocation issues, complicating construction and housing, even for discharged IDF soldiers. Addressing these two issues, namely equality and long-term planning, is central to the relationship between the Druze and the government.”

Changing roles, duties

Pharmacist Ted Mah headlined the first session of this year’s Empowerment Series, which is presented by Jewish Seniors Alliance with the help of the Phyliss and Irving Snider Foundation.

The Oct. 29 talk on Zoom was called Make Friends With Your Pharmacist. Mah spoke about the roles and responsibilities of pharmacists, which now include supporting people’s health and well-being, in addition to filling prescriptions and other duties.

Mah graduated from the University of British Columbia in 1995 and began his career at a Safeway Pharmacy in Victoria. After five years, he was promoted to management and, for seven years, operated the Safeway Pharmacy at City Square in Vancouver. Currently, he is the manager of the Safeway location on Arbutus in Vancouver.

The Zoom started with a few words about Jewish Seniors Alliance by Gyda Chud, a former co-president of JSA and also chair of the program committee. Chud spoke about JSA’s theme of “Seniors Stronger Together” and its three guiding principles of “Outreach, Education and Advocacy” and how they can empower us.

Mah said he enjoyed his training at UBC. In his fourth year, when he did an internship at a hospital, he became very aware of the positive impact that pharmacy can have on patients when the rules and procedures are properly followed.

According to Mah, Safeway Pharmacies have a central distribution venue, where the preparation of medications is handled by robots to reduce the possibility of human error in the counting of pills. In all the stores’ pharmacies, audits are done regularly to ensure proper care and count of medications, including narcotics. Expired medications are disposed of.

Most pharmacies can make blister packages of weekly medications available upon request. Plastic see-through pouches are also available, labelled with the name of the medication, dose and time of day that it should be taken. For people with visual impairments, there is a chip and a machine that will read out the contents of the bottle.

There have recently been many changes in what pharmacists are permitted to do to assist patients and save time for physicians. Pharmacists can now administer more vaccines than they were able to in the past; for example, they can now give polio shots. They can also prescribe medication for many minor ailments without a doctor’s prescription: these include antihistamines for seasonal allergies, nasal steroids, antibiotic eye drops, contraceptives, and medications that help with skin conditions including eczema, dermatitis, diaper rash and bacterial infections. As well, pharmacists can prescribe topical creams for such problems as toenails, dandruff, oral cancer and cold sores, yeast and urinary tract infections, shingles, and a host of other ailments.

The Empowerment session Q&A included a question about renewing ongoing prescriptions without consulting a doctor. Mah said this would depend on something called “adaptation,” which includes the renewal itself, as well as changing the dose, formulation or other aspects of a

prescription. A pharmacist can generally do these things, however, a doctor can order that a prescription not be adapted.

Another question concerned the new mRNA vaccine for COVID, which, at this point, should be given annually, like the flu vaccine. There were also several questions about supplements, such as vitamins or calcium.

Mah said pharmacists can do medication reviews by appointment. This could include a discussion of supplements, such as how they interact with various medications. Information about people’s prescriptions is entered into PharmaNet, the province-wide data network.

Mah said drugs that a person is no longer using should be returned to a pharmacy in a Ziploc bag for disposal. For syringes, one should pick up a special container from the pharmacy.

Another question concerned psychotropic drugs, and also the tolerance of various drugs for different age groups, especially seniors. Mah said this is a question for a physician but added that, when a new drug is prescribed, it is usually only enough for 30 days at most, in case there is a negative reaction.

Other questions concerned taking a flu shot and COVID shot together, which is fine to do, and how long one should wait after having a COVID shot to have a booster – apparently three months is now OK.

Pharmacists must engage in regular professional development to maintain their licences, said Mah, who added that there is a current shortage of pharmacists in British Columbia because their new roles and responsibilities have increased the demand for their services.

Tamara Frankel, a member of the program committee and a board member of JSA, thanked Mah for his participation and for all his helpful information. The event was co-sponsored by the Peretz Centre for Secular Jewish Culture.

Shanie Levin is a Jewish Seniors Alliance Life Governor. She is also on the editorial committee of Senior Line magazine.

Rustad revives Tories

BC Conservative leader John Rustad believes “we need to have a heavy focus on getting our economy back up and running in this province.” (photo from conservativebc.ca)

John Rustad’s party has been on a bit of a losing streak. It’s been 96 years since the BC Conservatives last won a provincial election. But Rustad – and plenty of keen political observers – see a once-in-a-century opportunity when voters choose a new government Oct. 19.

Opinion polls show Rustad’s Conservatives, who took less than 2% of the vote in the last provincial election, close to, tied with, or in some cases surpassing the incumbent New Democrats.

In a dramatic deal to unite right-of-centre forces and forestall a reelected NDP government, the BC United party folded its tent last month. Kevin Falcon, who rebranded the official opposition BC Liberals to the BC United party last year, made a deal with Rustad to end the United campaign and endorse the Conservatives. Falcon’s party had plummeted so far in the polls that complete obliteration seemed likely. The move blindsided members of Falcon’s caucus, some of whom are now running as independents, a few of whom are running as Conservatives and several more of whom have retired from politics.

Speaking to the Jewish Independent, Rustad said Jewish British Columbians should see him as a friend.

“The community will find an ally in me,” said Rustad, citing rising antisemitism as unacceptable.

“What’s happening within communities and people not feeling safe, and what’s happening in our universities and in our school system and, quite frankly, in government – that is something that I will work very hard to bring to an end,” he said.

Rustad supports the current government’s commitment to mandatory Holocaust education.

“That was actually something I [said] we would be implementing before even the government talked about doing it,” said Rustad, who reflected on the impact a visit to the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre had on him during a tour of the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver. “There are too many people in British Columbia that don’t understand our full history and need to understand it – not just British Columbia’s or Canada’s history, but world history.”

Rustad was moved by the words of a Jewish woman in her 60s who recently told the Conservative leader she is considering leaving the province because of the antisemitism here. Her parents were Holocaust survivors, Rustad recalled the woman saying, and the climate in BC right now feels “a lot like 1932 from what her parents had described,” he said.

“I was shocked at that, to think that that’s how people could feel about what’s going on here in British Columbia,” he said. “So, to me, that really hit home in terms of changes that we need to be able to do in British Columbia.”

Standing against antisemitism and against hate in any form, said Rustad, is core to who he is.

“People should be able to be safe, people who come here, they should be able to raise their children and not feel as though they’re being persecuted or not feel that sort of fear,” he said.

Issues Rustad is hearing from voters include employment and affordability, which he said are leading too many people to consider abandoning the province.

“With one in three people in BC thinking about leaving this province, and particularly one in two youth thinking about leaving this province, having them being able to build a future in BC is critical and that means we have to be able to address affordability, which includes housing,” he said. “You can address those things but if people don’t have a job, they’re not going to stay. So, we need to have a heavy focus on getting our economy back up and running in this province, and start to address this massive deficit that we have.”

Keeping people in the province also requires that people feel safe, he added.

“It means we have to address addictions and crime, to make people feel safe in British Columbia – and that crime is not just physical crime but also hate crimes,” Rustad said.

Appropriate access to health care is another topic Rustad will raise throughout the campaign.

The folding of the BC United party and the agreement to incorporate some United MLAs and candidates into the Conservative slate has been a sometimes-public struggle. The Conservatives had already identified candidates in the vast majority of the province’s 93 ridings. BC United also had most of their candidates in place. The Falcon-Rustad deal meant many candidates, mostly BC United, had to bow out.

“It’s been interesting, obviously, having options,” Rustad said of his party’s juggling act with a surplus of nominees. “But, at the same time, I believe strongly in loyalty to my candidates, to people who have worked hard to help us build this party and so I’ve tried my best to honour that as part of this process, but also to make sure that we honoured the discussion that we had between the United party and the Conservative party.”

He estimated that somewhat fewer than a dozen BC United candidates have now been nominated by the Conservatives and said his party is still in talks with United officials about other issues. BC United still exists as a party, even though it has stopped campaigning. It could be revived in future and must run at least two candidates in the election after this one to maintain its registration.

The BC Conservatives have not elected a member to the BC Legislature since a 1978 by-election.

Rustad and the seven other members of his caucus were all elected as BC Liberals. Rustad was fired from the Liberal caucus two years ago by Falcon and became Conservative leader last year. He represents the sprawling central BC riding of Nechako Lakes and was first elected in 2005. He served as minister of aboriginal relations and reconciliation and as minister of forests, lands and natural resource operations under former premier Christy Clark.

Greens seek breakthrough

BC Green Party leader Sonia Furstenau wants to “make sure we have a province that is centred around well-being, that is centred around everybody’s basic needs being met and is centred around creating communities where everybody can thrive.” (photo from facebook.com/SoniaBCGreens)

Sonia Furstenau is hearing from Jewish voters that they feel abandoned. The BC Green Party leader wants to rebuild trust between the Jewish community and the province’s elected officials, she said.

“Trust comes from relationships, it comes from understanding and it comes from people really being reliable,” Furstenau told the Jewish Independent. “I think we have shown that we are committed to approaching the work we do from a place of building relationships.”

The Green leader, who hopes to exponentially expand her two-member caucus in the legislature in the Oct. 19 election, reflected on what she has heard from Jewish British Columbians recently.

“I’ve had many conversations in the past month with members of the Jewish community who have expressed to me … that people feel abandoned, that people are concerned about growing incidences of antisemitism,” she said. “It’s a recognition of the need to continue conversations and stay connected.

“But, at a provincial policy level, it’s education, education, education,” Furstenau said. “I know that the premier has made a commitment to [mandatory] Holocaust education and I think that is important and necessary. I want to expand that. We need every student in BC to graduate with a very firm and reliable fact-based understanding of 20th-century history. We need people to be able to withstand the disinformation that is now becoming so dominant in discourse, political and otherwise.”

To address the challenges, Furstenau said students need to be equipped against disinformation so that they can navigate the contemporary world with a solid grounding in history and what it means to be an engaged citizen in a democracy. That means understanding the Holocaust in the context of the 20th century, she said, but also in the context of the antisemitism that has existed for centuries.

“The key piece is that we are building an informed and inclusive community here in BC that does not tolerate hatred or discrimination or racism of any kind,” she said.

As much as she wants voters to consider policies or issues, Furstenau is urging British Columbians to think first and foremost about representation.

“When we go into the ballot box, we’re not voting for a party or a premier,” she said. “We’re voting for the person who is going to be our voice in the legislature.”

She is asking people to take seriously “the question of who is going to be the best representative for me in my community,” she said.

“We have a first-past-the-post system,” she said. “We elect, in this case, 93 representatives to the legislature and, in the best-case scenario, we have a diversity of voices and viewpoints and ideas and we have a legislature where people can find the capacity to work together and across party lines.”

In addition to a number of independent candidates, likely including a few incumbents made politically homeless by the suspension of the BC United party’s campaign, Furstenau hopes voters will consider Green candidates and elect enough members who do not belong to either of the two largest parties to result in a minority government.

“What I think would be an ideal outcome in this election is [a scenario where] no single party has all of the power,” she said, “that we have a legislature with a diversity of voices and representation and we are seeding the conditions where we’re working collaboratively, finding common ground and focusing on solutions for people.”

Furstenau is knocking on doors and the issue she hears about most from voters are affordable housing, cost-of-living, access to reliable health care and climate change.

“When people talk about housing, of course they talk about the fact that we have a growing homelessness crisis in this province,” she said. “The vast majority of people that I talk to about this want to see solutions so that we don’t have people who are living without homes in our communities. That’s a really key piece and some of the politicization and rhetoric that we are already hearing in this election misses the mark, as far as I’m concerned. We can solve this. We can make sure that nobody in our community is living without housing, and we should. For us, the key thing is that British Columbia could be the best place on earth to live. It’s a beautiful place, it’s full of extraordinary people, it’s got an enormous amount of richness and diversity and what we want … is to ensure that everybody here has the best chance to have a good life in British Columbia.”

The coalescence of right and centre-right candidates is not a positive development for democracy, in Furstenau’s view.

“I don’t think that having fewer choices on the ballot is a good thing,” she said. “I think, in a democracy, more choice is better. I think this was an unfortunate loss for the people of BC and I think that suggesting that we should have concentration of political parties and fewer political parties is the wrong direction. We just have to look south of the border to see where that leads us. I was disappointed by the decision that Kevin Falcon and a small number of people apparently made to fold an entire political party. That’s not the kind of leadership that we need right now and it’s not an approach to democracy that we need right now.”

Barring unforeseen developments, there are three main parties to choose from, and Furstenau hopes for a Green electoral breakthrough.

“We are determined to elect the biggest Green caucus in history,” she said. “We have six or seven key ridings where we see that possibility.” In addition to her own riding of Cowichan Valley, she cites other Vancouver Island ridings as possible pickups, including Saanich, Courtenay-Comox, Esquimault and Victoria-Beacon Hill, as well as West Vancouver-Sea to Sky, which the party narrowly lost last election, and opportunities in the Kootenays.

“We’ve built our platform around the idea of well-being, that when we have a society that is rooted in the well-being of its citizens, of its communities and its natural world, we get to a place where we don’t have the kind of conditions to create more hatred and more discrimination,” Furstenau said. “We know that political parties will scapegoat groups of people, including Jewish people. We know that, when people don’t feel safe and secure, we get into political discourse that is dangerous and so our response to that is let’s make sure we have a province that is centred around well-being, that is centred around everybody’s basic needs being met and is centred around creating communities where everybody can thrive and we have to be focused on that and that’s what we are doing.”

Family hopes to save lives

At the Sept. 26 event Bridging Hope, which takes place at King David High School, Noah Bogdonov, left, and his parents, David Bogdonov and Elana Epstein, will speak about their family’s experience with addiction. (photo from Bogdonov-Epsteins)

“We want to share our experience, strength and hope with addiction,” said David Bogdonov about what he and his wife, Elana Epstein, and their son, Noah Bogdonov, will talk about on Sept. 26 at Bridging Hope: Science and Testimonial in the Fight Against Addiction.

The Independent spoke with the Bogdonov-Epsteins recently, to get to know them a bit before the event, which is being presented by Canadian Friends of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, King David High School and Vancouver Talmud Torah.

David is an engineer and works for a company that builds waterparks, while Elana, who has a social work background, has been a yoga teacher for about 20 years and a wellness/spiritual coach for about 15 years. “Currently, I am supporting a ton of moms in the addiction community,” she said.

The couple has three sons. “Boys R Us” quipped David. “Noah is the firstborn, at 28 years old; Tal is our second, at 24; and Benjamin is our youngest, at 22.”

It was in October 2022 that they became sure that Noah was struggling with addiction. “Before that,” said Elana, “about three or four months before the ‘awakened moment,’ we knew that he had been struggling but he was telling us he had gotten it under control, not to worry, then it went downhill, crashing very fast.

“He started in high school – not unlike the vast majority of kids in high school – using weed and alcohol,” she said. “We didn’t like it, but we assumed it was part of his teenage years and that he would grow out of it and come to his own realization of how to find balance in life and, sadly, that never happened.”

Initially, it was Noah’s friends who tried to help.

“They held an informal intervention and asked him to get it under control,” said David. “That was in May of ’22, and that’s when we became aware of it, but he pulled the wool over our eyes and convinced us that he had it all under control. That’s when we started to make sense of all the red flags we had seen for a long time.”

Months later, when David and Elana were in Whistler, Noah was slower than usual to respond to a text message. “I woke up one morning and said that we need to go home, something is not right. He was staying at my brother’s apartment, who was away, and we knew. I said, we need to go, and we went, and we found him, and he was in dire straits,” said Elana. “But, he said, ‘I don’t want to live like this anymore.’ We asked, ‘Does that mean treatment?’ He said, ‘Yeah.’ We got the ball rolling, and he went right in, no hesitation, no more denial. He was ready, we were ready, and that was the beginning of the rest of his life.”

It’s been almost two years since Noah has been in treatment. He spent about 100 days at the Last Door Addiction Recovery Treatment Centre, in New Westminster, then was in transition housing, where he had a relapse that lasted two months, said David. It’s been 16 months since Noah’s relapse.

“David and I never stopped going to the weekly meetings, doing our own work,” said Elana, even while Noah was relapsing. The Last Door has family group meetings, which they’ve been attending regularly since Noah was two weeks into treatment, said David, calling their participation in the group a “very key element” of their own recovery.

Noah is working at Maintain Recovery, a sober living house, which he manages. “It’s a common story for many recovering addicts to get immersed in the life of recovery,” said David. “They often start to work in the organizations and so on. It’s part of what keeps them clean and keeps them on the path, which is really wonderful to watch.”

David and Elana are being so open about their family’s experiences because, said David, “We take quite seriously that part of the overdose crisis is caused by the stigma surrounding drug addition and we subscribe to the notion that addiction is a disease and should be treated like any other disease. You don’t shame someone for having cancer, you shouldn’t shame someone for having the disease of addiction. So, we are both passionate about that.”

“For me,” added Elana, “it goes beyond the stigma…. I really feel like if there were more language, more community, more education, more connection around this, you know, if I had had someone … approach me and say, listen, this is what addiction looks like, your son seems to be starting down a path that gets worse before it gets better…. In Noah’s life, we had no knowledge of addiction, we did not know what it looked like, we were totally blindsided,” she said.

“We don’t have trauma, there was no story he was hiding and trying to make peace with,” added Elana. “He was a boy who got caught up in using recreational drugs, like everyone else, [but] he was the one who was the addict who couldn’t stop. The moment when, with Noah’s permission, it became clear that we had a role to play in our community, where there’s a lot of shame and we don’t talk about it, so the kid dies. That’s not, on my watch, ever going to happen. If I can touch one family’s life because of our story, I will continue to do this till the day I die.”

Bridging Hope takes place at King David High School. Discussing the science of addiction will be Dr. Yaron Finkelstein, a professor of pediatrics, pharmacology and toxicology at the University of Toronto and a staff physician at the Hospital for Sick Children (known as SickKids); Dr. Yonatan Kupchik, senior lecturer and director, department of medical neurobiology, Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada (IMRIC), Centre for Addiction Research (ICARe), the Hebrew University of Jerusalem; and Dr. Rami Yaka, head of HU’s School of Pharmacy. For tickets to the event ($18), visit register.cfhu.org/bridginghope.

Community milestones … Segal appointed to OBC

Gary Segal was one of 12 people appointed to the Order of British Columbia this year. The province’s highest honour celebrates people who have distinguished themselves and excelled in their field of endeavour. Segal was recognized in the category of Community Leadership for his philanthropic contributions to health care. A special investiture ceremony will be held at Government House in Victoria on Sept. 4.

photo - Gary Segal — Gary Segal *(photo from Order of BC)*

Born and raised in Vancouver, Segal is known for his philanthropic endeavours that transcend geographical and cultural boundaries. Described as a catalyst for change, Segal’s commitment to humanitarian causes has left an indelible mark on communities near and far. Notably, as capital campaign chair for Ronald McDonald House BC and Yukon, he played a pivotal role in raising $32 million to establish a new, state-of-the-art facility at BC Children’s Hospital, vastly expanding support for more than 2,000 families annually across BC and Yukon. His dedication extends globally through the Bring Back Hope initiative he founded following a transformative experience in Ethiopia, where he champions accessibility to life-saving surgeries for severely disadvantaged children in dire medical need.

Segal’s efforts have garnered prestigious recognitions, including the Order of Canada, Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and appointments to boards such as the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee.

At the University of British Columbia, Segal’s impact is profound, particularly through his support for the faculty of medicine’s branch for global surgical care, where his contributions have funded groundbreaking initiatives and the development of a master of global surgical care program. As chair of the VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation, Segal continued to drive innovation in health care, ensuring sustainable and exemplary care.

Pushing back against antisemitism

With antisemitism rising in British Columbia, professionals from three sectors – health care, post-secondary education and K-12 schools – have started organizing so incidents of hatred in their workplace are challenged at every opportunity.

The Jewish Academic Alliance of British Columbia and the Jewish Medical Association of British Columbia have launched in the past few months, while BC Teachers Against Antisemitism has grown more active since the Hamas terror attacks on Oct. 7, 2023.

“Antisemitism is reaching crisis levels in BC, and we are proud to be able to support the important work of these newly formed groups at this critical time for our community,” said Ezra Shanken, chief executive officer of the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver.

“I am in awe of all of our community members and allies who are stepping up to address what is a clear crisis at workplaces across the province – particularly since employees are uniquely positioned to address workplace issues with their employers,” noted Nico Slobinsky, vice-president, Pacific Region, Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs.

“We have seen an incredible increase in worrying activities – from terror-affiliated organizations like Samidoun setting up an encampment at UBC to teachers making inappropriate comments towards Jewish students in the classroom, to troubling behaviour in our healthcare system. Yet, we have seen little by way of new activity by government,” said Slobinsky.

“The rise of antisemitism inside health care has been chilling. In a profession dedicated to healing people, we’ve witnessed hateful words and actions that have some fearing for their safety,” said Sharon Gershony, clinical instructor, pediatric nuclear radiologist, BC Children’s Hospital. “The Jewish Medical Association of BC is a supportive community for Jewish physicians, trainees and allied healthcare professionals. Together, we will create safe workspaces by confronting antisemitism with engagement, education and promotion of respect and greater tolerance.”

“Post-secondary institutions across BC have been a focal point of antisemitic activities and actions, some of these threatening the safety of faculty, staff and students. There is no place for this in BC,” said David Silver, a University of British Columbia professor who is helping form the Jewish Academic Alliance of BC. “By bringing together Jewish professors, educators and staff from across campuses, the Jewish Academic Alliance of BC will work to ensure that hate is confronted and campuses are again a place where Jews can feel safe.”

“Since Oct. 7th, some horrible things have happened in classrooms and in schools – to teachers and students alike, who have been singled out because they are Jewish and only because they are Jewish,” said Ginaya Peters, founder of BC Teachers Against Antisemitism. “We have had to become more active and will continue to push back against the hatred and discrimination and create a safe learning environment for all.”

– Courtesy Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver

Freedom and friendship

Achiya Klein and Joy at Trout Lake Park in Vancouver April 4. Klein and Joy were brought together by the Israel Guide Dog Centre for the Blind. (photo by Cynthia Ramsay)

“The Israel Guide Dog Centre is not just a centre,” said Achiya Klein. “It’s like a family.”

Klein and his assistance dog, Joy, came to Vancouver from Toronto earlier this month with Atarah Derrick, executive director of Canadian Friends of the Israel Guide Dog Centre for the Blind. The Independent met with them at Trout Lake Park April 4.

It was an educational experience to see Klein and Joy interact, like a unit. Even when Joy was off leash, clearly enjoying the freedom of running around on her own, meeting other dogs, she would respond to Klein’s occasional check-in whistles or calls. Being a Hebrew-speaking dog, one wonders what she had to say to her Canadian compatriots. Only once, enticed by the lake, did Joy hesitate to return to Klein, but she did – and before taking the plunge she so obviously wanted to take. On our walk, Derrick explained that all the

Israeli guide dogs have English names so that the animals will know it’s them being called – imagine, she said, if a client called out a name like Yossi in an Israeli market, for example.

Klein has had Joy since the end of last October, since his first guide dog, Night, passed away at the age of 8.

“Having a guide dog is my way to get my independence again,” said the Israel Defence Forces veteran, who was injured in 2013. “I can do whatever with a guide dog because I can walk alone, with no fear, and being comfortable.”

Klein has serious visual impairment. “I have some sight,” he said, “but it’s minimal.”

A team commander in Yahalom, a special unit of the IDF that deals with the handling of dangerous ammunition and weapons, Klein was injured in a Gazan tunnel. “I was on a mission to demolish the terror tunnel that crossed into Israel,” he explained, “and, when we were walking in the tunnel … there was a booby-trap, and I got injured from that when it exploded.”

Klein moved to Canada with his wife, who is Canadian, in 2023. Noach Braun, the founder of the Israel Guide Dog Centre, personally brought Joy to Klein, where he worked with the pair for 10 days. The training period was shorter than usual because Klein had already had a guide dog. Normally, after matching a client with a dog, the pair train together for a few weeks at the centre, which then provides more training in the client’s home environment.

“It’s not like they just give you a dog and say, ‘OK, good luck,’” said Klein. “It’s more than that, and I think that one of the best examples is, after Night passed away, even though I was in Canada and I was supposed to go to Israel to receive a new dog, because of Oct. 7, I couldn’t make it to Israel, so Noach … came here during the war. He came here with Joy and I think that’s a beautiful story, to show what it means to be a part of the family.”

According to Derrick, who has been leading the Canadian Friends of the Israel Guide Dog Centre for the Blind since 2021, the centre has placed 796 guide dogs, 39 post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) dogs and 442 emotional support dogs, for a total of 1,277 since its founding in 1991. In 2023, there were 176 puppies being raised by centre volunteers, she said.

“The IGDCB (as it is known in Israel) serves Israel’s blind community by providing them with mobility, independence, self-confidence and companionship through the faithful assistance of guide dogs specially trained in Hebrew to meet Israel’s rigorous and challenging environment,” Derrick explained in an email. “We also breed and train service dogs for IDF veterans who have service-related PTSD and provide emotional support dogs for children on the autism spectrum.”

Canadian Friends of the Israel Guide Dog Centre for the Blind was established almost 20 years ago and Canada accounts for 6.6% of donations, according to its 2022 annual report. It is one of Derrick’s goals to increase that amount.

“I have always been passionate about community service and working in the charity sector, raising funds for vulnerable communities,” she said. “I’m a real dog person and, when the opportunity opened at Canadian Friends of the Israel Guide Dog Centre, it was the perfect match for my skills, interests and passions – helping people, Israel and dogs!”

Last year, Derrick and Braun visited Vancouver to visit donors and meet others interested in the centre’s work. “Everyone asked us to come back soon, preferably with a client and their dog, so they could see our work in action,” said Derrick, which was why she came this spring with Klein – who has become, she said, since being injured, “a Paralympic rower, a dedicated skier, a father and an asset to the IDF” – and Joy.

“We visited Vancouver Island first, with a meeting in Ladysmith to meet new friends there,” said Derrick. “We then headed south to Victoria, specifically Chabad of Vancouver Island. Then we moved east to Vancouver, where we met with Schara Tzedeck, the Kollel, and held a parlour meeting at the home of new friends. It was such a lovely visit, and we got to meet terrific people with whom our work really resonated.”

Initially, former Jewish National Fund shaliach (emissary) to Vancouver Mickey Goldwein, his wife Lili and her dog, Zita, were to accompany Derrick on the BC visit. Unfortunately, they couldn’t make the journey from Israel.

Lili Goldwein was partnered with Zita in 2018, explained Derrick, “because Lili’s vision had significantly deteriorated. Mickey joined the Israel Guide Dog Centre for the Blind’s board in 2022.”

The need for the centre and its services has increased since Oct. 7.

“Due to this war, we altered the criteria for receiving an emotional support dog to provide an immediate response to those injured or suffering due to the war,” said Derrick. “Since then, we have provided our emotional support dogs to children and adults with special needs whom the war has immensely impacted. Some of these people fought on Oct. 7 and were discharged immediately because of the trauma they endured. Some are widows of fallen soldiers. Some have been afraid to leave the house for months.

“We are aware of some soldiers who have lost their vision in this conflict, and we need to be ready for them when they need us. This is in addition to the current clients on the waitlist,” she said.

The war also has disrupted the centre’s training, which may impact the number of guide dogs it can provide this year. “But we are doing our best to meet the challenge,” said Derrick.

photo - Atarah Derrick, executive director of Canadian Friends of the Israel Guide Dog Centre for the Blind, with Cookie — Atarah Derrick, executive director of Canadian Friends of the Israel Guide Dog Centre for the Blind, with Cookie. (photo from Atarah Derrick)

And they are meeting the challenge while still feeling the effects of the pandemic.

“COVID had two major impacts on our training,” said Derrick. “The first was in the socialization of our puppies. In their first year, it’s crucial to expose them to as many environments as possible. The office or university, the mall and the train station are all places where our pups get to experience lots of people, noises and smells and become more comfortable navigating those environments. Because of the lockdowns, most were cut off from those experiences, and many were not ready to take on service work. So, our success rate through COVID dropped, and our clients had to wait longer periods for their dogs. This was the case worldwide.

“The second was that we were not able to open our residences to clients in guide dog courses. When a person is partnered with a guide dog, they live in residence with us for two weeks while they train together with our professionals. This was impossible during COVID, so our trainers went to the clients and worked with them at home, one-on-one, to complete the course. We put a lot of mileage on our vans during those years.”

Now, it is hospital visits that account for some of the mileage being put on the centre’s vans, with puppies and guide-dogs-in-training traveling to offer comfort to injured soldiers and civilians across Israel.

“As the war rages on, we’re committed to continuing this mission of love and compassion,” reads the centre’s latest blog. “Because no matter the circumstances, a little bit of puppy love can go a long way in healing hearts and bringing people together.”

Seeing Klein and Joy together at Trout Lake Park and getting a glimpse of what having a guide dog has meant to Klein, the importance of the IGDCB’s work seems clear.

“They provide you with one of the most basic tools that you use every day,” Klein said. “But it’s not just a tool, it’s also a friend.”

To learn more about the Israel Guide Dog Centre for the Blind, visit israelguidedog.ca.

New role, familiar face

Ilan Pilo, left, and Rafi Yablonsky of the Canadian Shaare Zedek Hospital Foundation. (photo from CSZHF)

In Jerusalem, Yad Vashem stands as the foremost memorial centre to the Holocaust, dedicated to the millions of Jews murdered during the Shoah. Across the street, as if in defiant answer to the past, is one of the world’s busiest maternity centres, where 22,000 newborns meet the world every year, strengthening the future of the Jewish people.

The maternity section is just one of Shaare Zedek Medical Centre’s many specialized departments, advancing health not only at the start of life but all through the lifespan of patients. Shaare Zedek is home to an emergency preparedness and disaster response centre. It offers a one-stop multidisciplinary and comprehensive diagnostic breast health centre. There are departments focusing on heart health, medical genetics, digestive diseases, oncology and an array of other specializations – more than 30 in-patient and 70 out-patient departments in all. The hospital sees a million patients annually and has 1,000 beds. Located in the centre of west Jerusalem, it is, among so much else, a teaching and research facility.

Western Canadians will likely be hearing more about this particular facility as the Canadian Shaare Zedek Hospital Foundation has just opened its first office in this part of the country. But, while the organization may be a newcomer as a physical presence in Vancouver’s Jewish community, it will be a familiar face sharing the Shaare Zedek story.

Ilan Pilo, who served as shaliach (emissary) and regional executive director of Jewish National Fund of Canada from 2013 to 2021, has returned from Israel as the Western Canada executive director for the Canadian Shaare Zedek Hospital Foundation.

“I was thrilled and honoured to be offered the opportunity to be the first to launch the Western office in Canada,” Pilo said.

During his time back in Israel, Pilo served as principal of a postsecondary trades and skills school and, most recently, ran the campaign for Yariv Fisher, who won an upset victory to become mayor of Herzliya, north of Tel Aviv. Municipal elections across Israel were delayed twice due to the war and, almost immediately after seeing his candidate elected, Pilo jumped on a plane and headed for Canada, spending 10 days in Toronto orienting to his new role before landing in Vancouver in March.

The hospital is 120 years old and was founded to ensure medical adherence to halachah (Jewish law), providing appropriate care for Orthodox Jews in the pre-state era. While it still provides everything religious Jews need, including minyanim, it is also, Pilo said, a “safe zone” for all people, regardless of ethnicity, nationality or religion.

“When you look at the population in Jerusalem, you see that there are one million people – 300,000 of them are ultra-Orthodox, 400,000 are Arabs and the rest are, let’s say, secular Jews,” Pilo said. “It’s the most interesting and complex mix of people.”

That diversity is reflected not only in the patients but in the doctors and staff, Pilo said.

Right now, the hospital’s specialists in trauma are dealing with soldiers and civilians injured in the war. Since Oct. 7, Shaare Zedek has treated 300 wounded civilians and more than 700 Israel Defence Forces soldiers. In addition, hospitals in the north and the south of Israel have transferred 60 of their neonatal intensive care unit patients out of conflict regions to Shaare Zedek, where the NICU is housed in completely sheltered areas.

Rafi Yablonsky, national executive director of the Canadian Shaare Zedek Hospital Foundation, said he and the foundation’s board decided to expand operations across Western Canada because of the region’s philanthropic and Zionistic reputation.

“We hope that more Canadians learn about the transformative and world-leading work of Shaare Zedek Medical Centre in Jerusalem,” he said. “Our goal is to grow our donor base and volunteer base with business and philanthropic leaders out West.”

This is not the first time Pilo and Yablonsky have worked together.

“Ilan and I were colleagues when we worked at JNF Canada together,” he said. “I witnessed firsthand how Ilan is highly skilled as a world-class fundraiser, also motivating groups of volunteers to do their part in our community.

“Shaare Zedek is a public hospital that is privately funded,” said Yablonsky, “and it receives very limited support from the Israeli government to upgrade equipment and technology, develop groundbreaking international research and ensure state-of-the-art medical training is available to staff. As such, the hospital relies heavily on the generosity of donors around the world to supplement $30 million needed annually.”

For more information, visit hospitalwithaheart.ca.

A new voice for BC elders

Dan Levitt has been appointed to be British Columbia’s new seniors advocate (photo from Dan Levitt)

Dan Levitt is set to become British Columbia’s new seniors advocate. The appointment was announced last month by BC Health Minister Adrian Dix.

“Dan Levitt has championed the rights of seniors for 30 years and with his extensive experience he is an excellent choice for BC’s seniors advocate,” Dix said in announcing the appointment. The Office of the Seniors Advocate is an independent branch of the provincial government, which acts in the interest of seniors and their caregivers.

Levitt becomes only the second person to hold the role, replacing Isobel Mackenzie, who will retire April 5 from the position she initiated a decade ago.

Levitt spoke with the Independent over lunch in the community centre that is part of KinVillage, the Tsawwassen continuing care retirement community he has headed as chief executive officer since 2021. Over the din of an adjacent bingo game, Levitt spoke of his career, the footsteps of his father and his plans for the new job.

The role of seniors advocate is unusual, he explained. British Columbia’s was the first in Canada, being created by legislation in 2013. To date, only two provinces, New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador, have followed suit, though others are considering it.

The purpose of the advocate’s office, which has a staff of 17, is to look at systemic issues that impact seniors and make recommendations to government.

“The five areas that we look at are transportation, housing, health care, income supports and community services that are geared around older people,” said Levitt. While the office has no authority to force governments to take steps, Levitt said his predecessor, Mackenzie, has recommended many proposals that have found favour with those in power. Not all recommendations will be adopted, he said, but “it usually helps to move the needle in a direction.”

“There isn’t that power, if you will, to say, ‘This must happen.’ But, many times, the recommendations are ones that are introduced and taken forward because they are the right things to do,” said Levitt, noting that his predecessor initiated a great range of measures that the government has taken up.

“Isobel and the office have been real pioneers in shedding lights on challenges and opportunities with an aging population,” he said. “That’s the purpose of these independent offices. They can reflect, in this case, what matters most to seniors, what are their concerns, and then move that agenda forward in helping to influence public policy.”

The position is nonpartisan and independent from government.

“In the recruitment process, no political official was involved,” said Levitt.

Levitt is not the first in his family to work in the senior care field. His father, Ken Levitt, was a longtime administrator of the Louis Brier Home and Hospital, during a time of significant expansion, including the development of the Weinberg Residence. The elder Levitt is now, among other things, past president of the Jewish Seniors Alliance of Greater Vancouver.

“I am following in his footsteps, for sure,” said the son. “And I think I am honouring, as he did, our parents by ensuring the health and well-being of older adults.”

As his new position requires he hold no outside affiliations, Levitt recently resigned from roles on the boards of directors of CommonAge, which advances the interests of older adults in the 53 Commonwealth countries, and the International Federation on Ageing. He has also given up adjunct professorships in gerontology at Simon Fraser University and in the school of nursing at the University of British Columbia, and a sessional instructor position at the British Columbia Institute of Technology.

Levitt’s undergrad degree in psychology is from UBC and he graduated from the University of North Texas, Centre for Studies in Aging, with a master of science.

“I need to dedicate 110% of my working time to this role,” he said of giving up his other gigs, which included speaking engagements worldwide on topics of aging and extensive public commentary on related subjects.

The vetting process for the seniors advocate position was a lengthy one – and Levitt compares getting the final word on his selection with the feeling of elation he gets when he places well in his avocation of competitive running.

“Probably like anybody else who’s been through a job search like this, when you get that nod, it feels pretty good,” he said. “I am a competitive runner in my age category and, when I place well in a race, you are elated. So, when I got the message, I was pinching myself, making sure I heard what I thought I heard. You feel this elation. Soon this wears off and you start realizing the responsibility, start realizing what this means now, and people are depending on you to make their lives better.”

Caring for seniors also means helping the people in their lives, he said.

“It’s not just the older people that we’re trying to support, who are directly impacted, but it’s their family members,” said Levitt.

Although he is not yet in the job – he’ll have to move to Victoria, coming home to Vancouver on weekends – he already has the first few months scoped out.

“I’m going to be doing a tour around the province of BC [meeting with seniors],” he said. “I’ll be asking them questions around what are those policies that help or hinder them in those five areas of transportation, housing, health care, income supports and community supports. We’ll be looking at those issues, listening to them, then we’ll come back to the office, synthesize the information and then we will release a report on what we found. That report will give us a mandate of what the biggest concerns are that seniors have and we’ll make recommendations to the government on how we can improve different aspects of seniors’ lives.”

In the statement announcing Levitt’s appointment, his predecessor had kind words for him.

“It has been an honour and a privilege to serve as seniors advocate for the Province of BC,” said Mackenzie. “Our population is aging and seniors need the ability to live independently at home, knowing the programs and services to support them are easily accessible to everyone. As issues such as dementia, housing and elder care become more complex, it’s crucial to advocate for strengthened seniors services throughout the province. I know Dan is ready to continue the cause and his efforts will make a difference in the lives of seniors for years to come.”

“I have big shoes to fill,” said Levitt, “because Isobel Mackenzie has done a phenomenal job starting the Office of the Seniors Advocate and really setting a very high bar, really pushing forward the agenda of older people, shining a light on some of the inequities and some of the systemic issues that impact older people and making recommendations that have stuck and changed just about every aspect of life for seniors.”

Levitt has spoken out on issues in the past, weighing in, for example, on the controversy around Lisa LaFlamme, whose firing as CTV National News anchor was blamed on sexism and ageism, and in challenging the ageism of birthday cards. While he will be taking on systemic issues on the larger stage of provincial policy, he urges individuals to speak up against ageism in everyday life and to celebrate aging.

Be aware of even subtle language that debases older people and their experiences, he advises.

“Don’t use the language that demonizes or goes into the negative stereotypes we often will see,” he said. “For example, ‘I’m having a senior moment.’ No one who is young says they’re having a junior moment.”

He encourages everyone to reject negative connotations around aging.

“Embrace your own age,” he said. “Embrace who you are and enjoy those birthdays and celebrate them and celebrate getting older. Don’t hide your age.”