Bluewater Palliative Care Retreat

Bluewater Palliative Care Retreat The Bluewater Palliative Care Retreat is an annual conference, bringing world class speakers to th

09/23/2025

Only 2 days until the 2025 Bluewater Palliative Care Retreat! If you registered, you should have received an email from bluewaterpalliativecareretreat@gmail.com earlier today with information about the Retreat, as well as links to the Zoom meeting (for those attending virtually), and links to the evaluations for each talk (grouped into Day 1 and Day 2), as well as the Retreat as a whole.

If you registered and did not receive this email, please check your Junk/Spam folder. If you still cannot find the email, contact bluewaterpalliativecareretreat@gmail.com.

We look forward to seeing some of you on Thursday!

Please remember that registration CLOSES tomorrow, September 17th at 12:00pm (noon), so head over to www.bpcr.ca to regi...
09/16/2025

Please remember that registration CLOSES tomorrow, September 17th at 12:00pm (noon), so head over to www.bpcr.ca to register if you have not already done so.

This will be the last of our speaker profiles, and this is a two-for-one. Dr. Caroline McGuinty and Freya Kelly will speak about "Palliative Care in Heart Failure" on September 26th.

Dr. Caroline McGuinty is a Cardiologist at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute. She graduated medical school from the University of Ottawa in 2010. She completed internal medicine training and a cardiology residency at the University of Toronto. After completing residency training, Dr. McGuinty pursued a fellowship in advanced heart failure and heart transplantation, as well as a fellowship in palliative care at the University of Toronto. Dr. McGuinty’s clinical focus is heart failure and heart transplant. She is the medical director of the Cardiac Supportive and Palliative care program at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute. Dr. McGuinty’s research interest is in non-malignant palliative care for patients with end-stage heart disease.

Freya Kelly is the advanced practice nurse for the University of Ottawa Heart Institute Cardiac Supportive and Palliative Care Program. Freya received her Honours Bachelor of Health Sciences in 2013, her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2015, and subsequently her Master’s of Science in Nursing in 2017, all at the University of Ottawa. Freya’s research interests include cardiovascular nursing research, patient self-management tools and resources, and evidence-based practice implementation.

ONLY TWO MORE DAYS TO REGISTER! PLEASE VISIT WWW.BPCR.CA IF YOU HAVE NOT REGISTERED ALREADY.In our next speaker profile,...
09/15/2025

ONLY TWO MORE DAYS TO REGISTER! PLEASE VISIT WWW.BPCR.CA IF YOU HAVE NOT REGISTERED ALREADY.

In our next speaker profile, we are happy to introduce Dr. Joanna Laba, who will speak about "Management of Brain Metastases" on September 25th.

Dr. Joanna Laba is a Radiation Oncologist at the Verspeeten Family Cancer Centre and an Associate Professor in the Department of Oncology at Western University. She holds a Bachelor of Applied Science in Engineering from the University of Windsor, earned her medical degree from the University of Toronto, and completed her residency in Radiation Oncology at McMaster University. Dr. Laba further specialized with a fellowship in lung cancer and stereotactic radiotherapy at Western University. A Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and a member of the Canadian Association of Radiation Oncologists, Dr. Laba’s clinical expertise focuses on lung cancer, palliative radiotherapy, and advanced radiation techniques for treating brain and spine metastases. She serves as the Clinical Lead for the Brain Metastases Treatment Program and the Radiation Oncology Lead for the Thoracic Disease Site Team at the Verspeeten Family Cancer Centre.

We look forward to hearing from Dr. Laba about this important topic!

Please note that the 2025 has now been certified for up to 9 Mainpro+ credits through the College of Family Physicians o...
09/12/2025

Please note that the 2025 has now been certified for up to 9 Mainpro+ credits through the College of Family Physicians of Canada.

Next in our series of speaker profiles is Dr. Julie Lebert, a Medical Oncologist at Sarnia's own Bluewater Health.

Dr. Lebert will speak about "Immunotherapy Adverse Effects" on September 25th.

Dr. Lebert grew up in Wyoming, Ontario. She completed her medical degree at the Schulich School of Medicine at Western University, where she graduated at the top of her class and was awarded the Alumni Gold Medal in recognition of her academic achievements. After completing her training in Internal Medicine at Western, she specialized in Medical Oncology, studying at Memorial University of Newfoundland. Dr. Lebert also has her Master’s degree in Chemical Biology.

Today's speaker spotlight features Patricia Strachan, who gives a talk on "Nursing Communication" on September 25th.Patr...
09/10/2025

Today's speaker spotlight features Patricia Strachan, who gives a talk on "Nursing Communication" on September 25th.

Patricia is an Associate Professor in the School of Nursing at McMaster University. She has served on international, national and regional initiatives to improve communication with patients living with advanced illness. Her research and scholarship have broadly addressed communication to integrate a palliative approach for patients with advanced progressive life-limiting illness. Patient, family and nurse experiences have informed her focus on development, support and optimization of nurses’ capacity for meaningful conversations in serious illness contexts. A passionate and innovative nurse educator who is fascinated by language, Patricia’s most recent innovation is the podcast "Radical Nurse Talk" where she focuses on nurses’ relational work in serious illness as a radical act of care.

We look forward to hearing you speak Patricia!

A REMINDER TO REGISTER FOR THIS YEAR'S BPCR BY NEXT WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 17TH AT 12:00PM.Today's speaker bio features Dou...
09/08/2025

A REMINDER TO REGISTER FOR THIS YEAR'S BPCR BY NEXT WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 17TH AT 12:00PM.

Today's speaker bio features Doug George, who gives a talk on "Palliative Care in Indigenous Populations" September 26th!

Doug is from the Anishnaabe Nation of Potawatomi and Ojibwe descent. He currently resides in the Kettle & Stony Point First Nation. Born in the early 60’s, Doug resided in his home community during the important formative years of his life and was able to witness huge transformations within Indigenous culture, spiritual, social, and political patterns. At the age of five, Doug was caught in the web of the 60’s Scoop in Canada, where hundreds of Indigenous children were fostered or adopted outside of their home communities in non-Indigenous, white, European families. Upon return to his home community at the age of twelve, Doug had a strong passion to revitalize his language, culture, and spiritual connection of his ancestors. Later, Doug went on to complete a Bachelors Degree in Psychology from the University of Western Ontario and a Master’s Degree in Social Work from Wilfrid Laurier. Today, he is often asked by his fellow community members to officiate in traditional Anishnaabe ceremonial practice on matters pertaining to life and death. Doug currently works as the Manager for Indigenous Relations and Navigation Services at Bluewater Health. He has been involved in operation of Indigenous community health services for over twenty-five years.

We look forward to hearing you speak Doug!

We are happy to introduce you to Dr. Sheri Bergeron, who will speak on September 25th about "Palliative Care in Persons ...
09/04/2025

We are happy to introduce you to Dr. Sheri Bergeron, who will speak on September 25th about "Palliative Care in Persons Experiencing Homelessness"!

Dr. Sheri Bergeron completed her undergraduate degree in Health Sciences at Brock University. She attended medical school at McMaster University. She completed her residency in Family Medicine through Western University and went on to complete her fellowship in Palliative Medicine also at Western University. She holds a Certificate of Added Competency in Palliative Medicine with the College of Family Physicians as well as Palliative Medicine specialty designation with the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons.

Dr. Bergeron has been working full time at the Hospice of Windsor and Essex County for over 10 years and is the current medical director. She also provides palliative physician support to Journey Home Hospice, an end of life care facility that specializes in those experiencing structural vulnerability. She is
active in medical education with an adjunct faculty appointment through Western University.

A REMINDER TO REGISTER FOR THE 2025 BPCR IF YOU HAVE NOT DONE SO ALREADY. REGISTRATION WILL CLOSE WED SEPTEMBER 17TH AT ...
09/02/2025

A REMINDER TO REGISTER FOR THE 2025 BPCR IF YOU HAVE NOT DONE SO ALREADY. REGISTRATION WILL CLOSE WED SEPTEMBER 17TH AT 12:00PM (NOON).

In our ongoing preview of the upcoming 2025 BPCR, we are happy to introduce Dr. Gillian Mount, who is scheduled to give a talk on "Palliative Care in Hematologic Malignancies" on September 25th!

Dr. Mount is an adult hematologist specializing in Inpatient Hematology at Victoria Hospital in London, ON, a clinical niche she has grown to love over the past 6 years. She holds a cross-appointment with Palliative Care and is an Assistant Professor with the Department of Medicine, where she aims to dispel the misconception of palliative care within Hematology.

We look forward to hearing Dr. Mount speak on this important topic!

DON'T FORGET TO REGISTER: The 2025 Bluewater Palliative Care Retreat is less than 4 weeks away! The link to register can...
08/30/2025

DON'T FORGET TO REGISTER: The 2025 Bluewater Palliative Care Retreat is less than 4 weeks away! The link to register can be found at www.bpcr.ca

Our headline speaker this year is Dr. Sunita Puri. She will give two talks on September 26th, "Saying What We Mean and Meaning What We Say" and "Being the Witness". Dr. Puri is an Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of California, Irvine School of Medicine, where she is the Director of the Inpatient Palliative Care Service. A 2025 Literature Fellow of the Bogliasco Foundation, she is the author of That Good Night: Life and Medicine in the Eleventh Hour, a critically acclaimed literary memoir examining her journey to the practice of palliative medicine, and her quest to help patients and families redefine what it means to live and die well in the face of serious illness. A graduate of Yale University and the recipient of a Rhodes Scholarship, her writing has appeared in the New Yorker, Atlantic, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Tricycle, Slate, Wall Street Journal, and the Journal of the American Medical Association, among other places. She and her work have been featured in the Atlantic, People Magazine, PBS’ Christian Amanpour Show, NPR, the Guardian, BBC, India Today, and Literary Hub. In 2019, the Guardian made a mini-documentary of her work with her patients, which has been viewed over 3.5 million times. She has been awarded writing residencies at the Bogliasco Foundation, MacDowell, Yaddo, Hedgebrook, Mesa Refuge, and UCross. A sought-after speaker who has delivered lectures around the world, Dr. Puri is passionate about the ways that the precise and compassionate use of language can empower patients and physicians to have the right conversations about living and dying. You can follow her on IG and Twitter:

Dr. Puri's website: https://sunitapuri.com/
Buy "That Good Night": https://www.amazon.com/That-Good-Night-Medicine-Eleventh/dp/0735223319
Documentary link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZdDXNmD9wk

**REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN**Registration for the 2025 Bluewater Palliative Care Retreat is now live! Join us 📅 Sept 25-2...
06/07/2025

**REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN**

Registration for the 2025 Bluewater Palliative Care Retreat is now live! Join us 📅 Sept 25-26 in 📍 Grand Bend, Ontario for an inspiring day of Palliative Care education. Follow the QR code or visit www.BPCR.ca to register.

09/27/2023

We have received several emails today inquiring about whether information has been sent to access the virtual Retreat. An email was sent yesterday morning - and will be resent tomorrow morning - with the link to the Zoom webinar and online evaluations. The email was sent by "Bluewater Palliative Care Retreat".

PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU CHECK YOUR JUNK/SPAM FOLDER, AS IT MAY HAVE BEEN DIRECTED THERE.

ANNOUNCEMENT REGARDING BPCR 2023.Due to unforeseen circumstances, Dr. Amy Montour will be unable to join us to deliver h...
09/25/2023

ANNOUNCEMENT REGARDING BPCR 2023.

Due to unforeseen circumstances, Dr. Amy Montour will be unable to join us to deliver her talk on Indigenous Ways of Knowing in Palliative Care this year. We have adjusted the Day 1 agenda to accommodate this change. The updated agenda is below, with changes highlighted in yellow.

The organizing committee apologizes for this change, but we are confident BPCR 2023 will still be an enriching educational experience for all.

Address

4-460 Christina Street North
Sarnia, ON
N7T5W4

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 4pm
Tuesday 8am - 4pm
Wednesday 8am - 4pm
Thursday 8am - 4pm
Friday 8am - 4pm
Saturday 8am - 4pm
Sunday 8am - 4pm

Telephone

+15193373848

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