Health Science Professionals

Your elected HSA representatives and staff have been hard at work since the union's 45th convention in May. The upcoming regional meetings will be a good opportunity to provide updates on that work, and a chance for stewards and other activists to connect and discuss the issues in your region. In preparation for those meetings, please take a few minutes...

Members have told HSA that workload issues caused by shortages of key health science professionals have reached critical levels. In a series of surveys conducted over the summer, members from across BC and a range of professions expressed concern that workload was making it difficult to deliver quality care, and leaving patients waiting too long for important procedures. To address...

Nadeem Zia (centre, blue tie) HSA REPORT MAGAZINE, JULY 2016 Surrey Memorial Hospital pharmacist Nadeem Zia was recently invited as a guest speaker to the 19th International Pharmacy Conference and Exhibition in Lahore, Pakistan. “I was very interested to go so I started planning the overseas trip,” said Zia. “My first challenge was getting vacation time, and the second was...

HSA has sent a letter of support to the US Association of Vascular and Interventional Radiographers, whose members are now threatened by policy changes that would allow nurses to perform their laboratory and imaging work. "As the union representing 75 unique health science professions here in BC, we know that these professions require extensive training and unique skills," writes Val...

HSA REPORT MAGAZINE JULY 2016 BY VAL AVERY, PRESIDENT I am very proud of what we have achieved in the last 45 years. I am especially proud of what we have been able to achieve in these last few years. In the face of governments determined to squeeze our members for every penny, we have adapted, finding ways to achieve...

HSA REPORT MAGAZINE JULY 2016 As HSA adapts to a changing world and chooses to be a stronger, more innovative union, the Local Leadership Training program will provide members with cutting-edge training and professional skills to improve HSA workplaces, protect our professions and build a stronger union. HSA members face increased pressure from governments and employers, attacks on our members'...

Jas Giddha is justifiably proud of this bulletin board HSA REPORT MAGAZINE, JULY 2016 BY LAURA BUSHEIKIN "My goal is pretty simple: to make a positive difference in any way I can," says Jas Giddha, a medical radiation technologist at Surrey Memorial. This goal fuels Giddha's work, his HSA involvement, and his many other volunteer activities. In fact, Giddha has...

HSA REPORT MAGAZINE JULY 2016 The outcome of the May 2017 provincial election will have a huge impact on HSA members, and the patients and clients we serve. "HSA is a non-partisan union, and proudly so," says HSA President Val Avery. "But that doesn't mean we won't warn our members –or the public – about dangerous, short-sighted policies proposed by...

Over the past 5 years, the BCNU leadership has taken an aggressive and adversarial approach that undermines the autonomy and professional integrity of HSA members in their workplaces and in their union. These actions have resulted in the expulsion of BCNU from the BC Federation of Labour, Canadian Labour Congress and other progressive bodies across Canada. The ongoing raids have...

Applications are being invited from HSA members who work under the Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association (HSPBA) collective agreement for $550 awards to support professional development. The awards will be distributed province wide, with two awards available to members in each of the union’s 10 regions. Awards will be randomly selected. Funding will be awarded for professional development related to...