camh physician of the year: 'i danced down the aisle'

last month, dr. renee logan was named the camh physician of the year for her exemplary leadership and contribution to the wellbeing of patients and the community at the centre for addiction and mental health (camh)  during the covid-19 health crisis.

she sat down with healthing.ca to talk about why she saw the pandemic coming, how it transformed her working life and the cracks in the system that it uncovered.

what is your role at camh?
i am a hospitalist, which is a medical doctor who provides medical care for patients who have been admitted to camh. but currently, i am the medical director of the infection, prevention and control (ipac) team, which includes infection control practitioners, a manager, and our senior director of clinical services. my role is to provide medical expertise to that team.

how did your role change with the start of the pandemic?
my role became huge when the pandemic came around to the point where i was seconded away from my clinical work to devote pretty much seven days a week to ipac work. how i handled the change really came down to the incredible support of my colleagues, and the amazing communication within the hospital structure itself.

can you walk us through your typical day?
my day must start with french press coffee that my 16-year-old daughter gets ready for me. in the morning, i have cereal, yogurt and fruit every day, although i have to admit that sometimes, by mid-afternoon, i would find my breakfast sitting on the counter, half-eaten. some days, we’re that busy.

you’re also the medical lead of the vaccine clinic at camh. what has that been like?
this summer, i became very involved with our small, but mighty, vaccine clinic. we’ve been able to provide vaccines for our staff, for in-patients and out-patients, members of the public, and now we’ve also started to do some outreach. we’ve gone to both the trinity bellwoods and alexander park encampments. those outreach efforts have been incredible experiences for me personally as a physician who works at a hospital all the time.

what has been the impact of covid-19 restrictions on the provision of medical care?
one of the major challenges that we faced was the implementation of ipac measures, such as isolation, distancing and masking while trying to provide our patients with the care they come to the hospital for, which is a therapeutic environment in which to recover.

are there any cracks in the system that the pandemic has uncovered?
i’m a family doctor by training, so the social determinants of health have always been at the core of my approach to medical practice. the pandemic brought that into sharp focus for me, and i think my involvement with the vaccine clinic has allowed me to feel so much more hopeful about equity and access.

how do you cope with the stress of your job?
working with an incredible team certainly helps. some colleagues i work with very closely make me laugh, which personally, is very important to me. amanda robbins, our clinic director, has also been a tremendous support. what drives me and allows me to cope is knowing that we’re all working towards a common goal — the hours are long, but it’s time-limited.

when did you realize that covid-19 might stick around longer than anyone expected?
as the medical lead for ipac, we were starting to see medical information trickle in around december and then we received some more information in january. in february, i thought to myself, ‘is this going to be it?’ when i went to medical school, we were told that in our lifetime, there will be a pandemic, so i’ve always worked in medicine with that at the back of my mind.

do you have any mental wellness tips?
we’ve all been impacted by the pandemic in myriad of ways. our routines have been upended, some people are suffering with economic strain, with grief or loss, disconnection, loneliness … i could go on. what i can speak to is what i’m trying to do as we make our way out of this pandemic. that is to remind myself of what i’m missing and try to gain some of that back into my life, even if only in small ways.

for me, that includes making sure i am getting sleep, going for long walks in urban and green spaces, listening to music, looking at art again, online. beyond that, for folks who are feeling stuck, i would urge them to reach out to their primary care providers and speak with them. camh.ca/covid-19 has some great resources for managing stress, and if people need immediate support, they should be attending their nearest emergency care department.

music is my joy and my tastes are wide and varied. one of the things i miss most is being able to see live music, especially in small venues around the city. my daughter’s friends know that i love a dance party — they would come to my house and have a dance party on a friday night. i did find time recently to watch the last season of the handmaid’s tale . it’s bleak, but it’s also a necessary reminder of why we need equity, respect and compassion.

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camh physician of the year: 'i danced down the aisle'

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