THE INDOCTRINATION OF BC DOCTORS (Pt 1)

a Family Medicine Conference was held in Vancouver, BC this past February (Feb 22-25, 2012).

Here is an overview of the conference mandate (as per website):


This comprehensive three-day review course offers an update of knowledge central to the practice of family medicine in both rural and urban settings. Committed to addressing everyday practical issues, speakers present equally on current and special areas of concern to the primary health care professionals.


DR. R, an infectious disease doctor in Vancouver, gave a power point presentation on Lyme disease to the HUNDREDS of BC GPs in attendance. (the pictures in this post are the slides from his power point presentation)

I learned of this presentation from someone who attended the conference. they have requested they remain anonymous but have given me permission to share this information as well as their thoughts on what they experienced during the presentation.


"His presentation was horrendous.The impression I got is that he was trying to be entertaining and elicit laughs from his audience. His tone was dismissive of Lyme disease and mocked Lyme patients -I think many of his slides speak to his attitude." 


"He said there are 4 presentations of patients with Lyme disease: 
1. panic;

2. A huge bull's eye rash - he stated rash size of a dinner plate:

3. Self-diagnosis on the internet: 

4. A patient purchasing a 'positive' test:

If he had said this about any other patient group it would simply not be tolerated. On top of his dismissive tone, he also made factual errors in his presentation."


"He stated that the blood tests are virtually 100% positive if a person has had LD for more than 6 weeks; that a bull's eye rash will be huge" - as you can see on the following slide, he states that the risk of infection is so low in BC, that there is no need to give prophylactic treatment to a patient that has a tick bite with no rash - only if their ELISA test (given at 6 weeks post bite) sero-converts to positive then you treat. 

Waiting for a patient to sero-convert at 6 weeks post bite plus relying on the faulty Elisa Test to diagnose gives the infection ample time to invade the organs and tissues, thus putting the patient at great risk for developing late stage lyme with a heightened risk of it becoming a chronic/persistant infection.

After his presentation, which mocked Lyme patients and was full of misinformation, I can now understand why doctors still do not effectively diagnose or treat Lyme disease in BC.

IT'S TIME...

dear friends


in my last post, i wrote about the tabling of the National Lyme Strategy Bill in the House of Commons. it goes without saying that this bill needs to be passed. government action on the issue of lyme is long overdue. it's time to tell the truth about lyme disease. it's time for the ignorance and outright denial to stop. while our medical authorities and government continue to perpetuate the myth that "lyme is hard to catch and easy to diagnose", thousands of canadians are losing their lives to this devastating and insidious disease; thousands go either undiagnosed or misdiagnosed. and like our family, thousands have been forced to seek out of country care in order to get appropriate and life saving treatment.

what is unique to our family's story is that not only did our medical system fail to take care of our son - they took it a step further and are fighting us on our choice to get him medical care and treatment in the USA by a board-certified, licensed MD.  up until now, we felt the need to be somewhat 'edited' in disclosing the full reality of what we've been dealing with since february -which we wrote about in a post called genesis 50:20. we now feel that it's time to publicly speak out about the stark, cold reality that we've been living with. 



below is an excerpt written by dr v. sherr. it mirrors the reality of our situation.

"I have written about the rampant epidemiology of neuro-Lyme disease and its potent co-infections (especially the red cell parasite that causes babesiosis) and the fact that these are being systematically ignored, minimized, or distorted by this Nation’s overseeing Healthcare Agencies. Astoundingly, there are Agencies that, in ignorance or arrogance, may actively persecute the victims of such borrelial, pan-systematic illness, traumatizing parents and children as well as their treating physicians. 

There are those in authority who sponsor the official separation of children from parents whose only sin is that they persist in seeking help for their ailing children. Tragically, those authorities are empowered to permanently remove sick or partially healed young ones from their devoted families.

To their everlasting shame, medical authorities have stood by while innocent mothers have been sent to jail for insisting that their children were ill and again have stood by while the parent’s belief was verified by the death of their sick child while under State 'care'. 

The rights of patients and their treating physicians have been trampled by governmental and insurance agencies in ways reminiscent of the era when AIDs was trivialized and its victims spurned as “psychosomatic.” Today’s infected millions worldwide show how wrong they were. The phenomenon of that epidemic is being repeated with the spread of Lyme borreliosis. My writing is an effort to illuminate this dark and now vast expanse of Medicine and to inspire activism and compassion for those patients who are suffering in agony "    - Dr Sherr, MD, psychiatrist

the bottom line is this - BC Children's Hospital interfered with our son's USA prescribed IV treatment for Lyme & Babesia. in february 2012, they threatened us with Child Protective Services with a clear intention of striking to remove him from our home and care. Their aggressive actions are based ONLY on their ill-informed, uneducated  "OPINION" that he does not have Lyme because of his negative ELISA test. 


it is a well documented fact that the ELISA test for Lyme is notoriously inaccurate. we begged BCCH doctors to order a Western Blot test - a more sensitive test for lyme. they refused. 


as a result, our son was kicked to the curb with an assertion that his condition was either psychosomatic or idiopathic - both of which are garbage diagnosis of ignorance.


parker has lyme. we eventually had his blood tested with a Western Blot Test. it came back positive. most important is that he responds to the treatment for it. his USA prescribed treatment for Lyme & Babesia brought him back from the brink of death. it saved him and was giving him back his quality of life...you can imagine the horror we felt when we were forced to remove his PICC line and lost access to the IV treatment that was clearly restoring his health.


let me make this very clear - we were forced to comply with BCCH's threats in order to keep our son safe in our home and under our care - where he could at least have access to oral abx therapy. as a result of the forced withdrawal of his IV treatment, his health is on a downward trajectory and he is being subjected to unimaginable suffering. we are currently fighting for his right to receive his IV treatment free from the fear of being removed from our home. below is the letter that DR H sent to BCCH and the doctor's involved in launching their attack on our family. DR H has advocated strongly for parker and his need for treatment - BCCH has NEVER responded to DR H. 

we need your help and support. the passing of the National Lyme Bill may not have a direct impact on our case - but the ripples of it will have an effect. the passing of this Bill can help prevent other families and children from facing this unimaginable nightmare that we are living.

Find your federal MP by clicking here.


All we are asking for is that you email your MP and MLAs. Please write your MPs and ask them to vote "YES" to the National Lyme Strategy Bill and let them know...

Lyme is in Canada. 

It is devastating the lives of many Canadians. 

Every Canadian is at risk. 

We need better diagnostic tests and access to treatment. 

Our government must step in and take action. Voting "YES" to the National Lyme Strategy Bill is a step in the right direction. it is a significant step...but a thousand miles lay before us.


Thank you to each and every one of you who continue to walk this journey with us.

NATIONAL LYME STRATEGY BILL

there has been a lot going on in the political pool of lyme lately and it's garnered a fair bit of media attention. it's exciting news to share...

On Thursday, June 22nd, Member of Parliament- Elizabeth May introduced a Private Member's Bill calling for the development of a national strategy to address the challenges of the timely recognition, proper diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease. The Bill also calls for funding for provinces and territories to implement the strategy. The Bill is multi-faceted, with detailed timelines that require adherence by the Federal Minister of Health at various stages, including when the conference must be convened, when the health minister would report back to MP’s, timeline for posting new national strategy on the official gov’t website, and many other critical details to ensure that the job is done right.


See the official Bill by clicking on this link - National Lyme Strategy Bill

Below is the press conference announcing the tabling of the Bill in the House of Commons. Please watch. My friend Chris' beautiful & courageous daughter, Nicole, shares just a brief glimpse of her battle with lyme. 

"Lyme disease can be devastating. Too many Canadians are now disabled, deprived of the joy of family and friends, of school or work, due to Lyme disease.  The public and the medical community need to be educated as to the increasing incidence and range of this disease.

Warming temperatures are leading the increase in range for the black legged tick.  Scientists are endeavoring to create enhanced surveillance tools, such as risk maps.  A national strategy could support this work and ensure that people can be vigilant in areas where the tick is becoming established.  If doctors know that the local risk has increased, they can help with early diagnosis and prevention. Scientists are warning that a warming climate will expand the geographic range of Lyme disease-carrying ticks further into Canada, so it is imperative that we are proactive.

Early treatment with antibiotics can avoid potentially serious long-term disabilities or even death.  Lyme disease requires improved diagnostic testing and proper treatment to avoid the long term effects of Chronic Lyme Disease." ~Elizabeth May

Although Elizabeth May is the leader of The Green Party, this bill is not party specific and is aimed at supporting all Canadians with a much-needed, coordinated national strategy to get rid of the massive roadblocks currently preventing quick diagnosis, timely and accurate testing, full treatment and longer term support and care. We need for this bill to get passed! We need your help to do so.


Here's how you can help:

• Contact/Email your federal MP and if at all humanly possible set up a face-to-face meeting. Find out who your federal MP is by clicking here

• Tell MP that you know others across Canada in the same predicament 

• Tell MP that you, your family or friend(s) are being denied the right to health care and the devastating impact that has had on their recovery, family life and finances. Feel free to forward them a link to my blog.

• Forward them a link to the National Lyme Bill C-442 - click here for link

• Ask if you can count on their support to get this bill passed.

• Make sure your MP knows this is not just a ‘Green’ party bill, it is a bill that could affect every single Canadian including themselves, or their loved ones.