Academic News

Extreme heat can have many implications for health care professionals. Knowing who is at the greatest risk of experiencing adverse health effects related to extreme heat is of great importance in the acute care and community settings. Additionally, from a systems perspective, health care facilities need to prepare for extreme heat events to ensure the safety of their patient population (Health Canada, 2011).

The graph below highlights the current and projected number of days exceeding 30 degrees Celsius for Canadian cities. You can see an increasing trajectory of the number of hot days for each Canadian city identified in the graph. The number of days with a maximum temperature of 30°C is projected to double by 2021-2040 and more than triple by 2081-2100, likely resulting in further heat-related mortality. Overall, Canada is projected to become much warmer, and urban areas tend to experience higher temperatures due to the urban heat island effect. Read More →

On the morning of June 6, 2018, 13 members of the Nursing Department at Red River College celebrated their convocation from the Masters of Education program at the University of Manitoba. This dedicated group of instructors was a part of the RRC M.Ed. cohort who studied together to achieve this milestone. The focus of study for these instructors was in Adult and Post-Secondary Education. We are proud to bring our expanded knowledge base to the instruction of our students!

Pictured are the 13 newly minted “masters”
(front row) Richel Roque, Kim Pinel, Monica Burfoot, and Winona Burgess
(back row) Kate Tate, Monica Nash, Bonnie Peers, Sandra Holben, Bernadette Mandrick, Karen DiPietro, Karen Parker, Tyler Steiner, and Navdeep Sekhon

Pictured are the 13 newly minted “masters”
(front row) Richel Roque, Kim Pinel, Monica Burfoot, and Winona Burgess
(back row) Kate Tate, Monica Nash, Bonnie Peers, Sandra Holben, Bernadette Mandrick, Karen DiPietro, Karen Parker, Tyler Steiner, and Navdeep Sekhon

The Nursing Department also had seven more instructors who graduated this past year with their Masters of Nursing. Congratulations to Rebecca Cameron, Joanne Loughery, Deb Miller, Tammy Moran, Jennifer Morin, Tara Roberts, and Corrina Zacharkiw!

Post and photo by Bernadette Mandrick – Nursing Instructor

Heather and Stu Charles, BIT 50th Anniversary Block Party, 2018

Talking to computers wasn’t a completely foreign concept when Stu and Heather Charles entered Red River College’s Computer Analyst Programmer (CAP) program in 1977. Read More →

With an increase in forest fires within the province of Manitoba, it is time to refresh your memory regarding the Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) and how air quality can impact health.

It is important to assess your risk in terms of the Air Quality Health Index. Some populations are at an increased risk of experiencing the health effects related to air quality. These populations include individuals with cardiovascular conditions (angina, previous heart attack, stroke, heart rhythm problems), respiratory illnesses (asthma, chronic obstructive lung disease, chronic bronchitis, emphysema, lung cancer), and individuals with diabetes, as this population will often have cardiovascular disease. Young children and seniors, those active outdoors, and pregnant women are also at higher risk.

People who are otherwise healthy may have the following symptoms:
• irritated eyes
• increased mucus production in the nose or throat
• coughing
• difficulty breathing, especially during exercise

Some people may be unaware that they have lung or heart disease. Consult your doctor if you have any chest pain or tightness, sweating, difficulty breathing without exertion, consistent cough or shortness of breath, fluttering in the chest, or feel light headed.

Do you know how to use the AQHI? Read More →

The Nursing Department is preparing to compete once again in the International Nursing Skills Competition, hosted by the Shanghai University of Medicine and Health Sciences. Last year, students Elyse Griffith and Rachel Rubin won 2nd place overall and 1st place in the international category! To hear more about Elyse and Rachel’s experience, check out Elyse’s blog post.

As we get closer to summer vacation, the Nursing Department is in the process of choosing two new students to represent Red River College. Once chosen, the students will train with instructors Allyson Cooper and Sandy Alguire before heading to Shanghai, China in November to put their simulation skills to the test!

Stay tuned to find out which two students will be heading to China in the Fall!

Post written by Meagen Chorney – Nursing Instructor

As part of the Nursing Department’s initiatives to develop international relationships and opportunities, we are sending two BN students to Denmark for summer school!

Caitlyn Edwards and Alycia Dettman were selected through an interview process to attend the international summer school, International Health: Welfare Technology and Dementia, hosted by Via University College. The students will spend two weeks in Aarhus, from August 6th – 16th, as they “get a unique chance to collaborate with other professions. The programme includes theory and visits to elder care centres which are at the forefront of using health- and welfare technologies” (Via University College, 2018).

The vision of Red River College is to be recognized globally, as we serve a global population in Winnipeg. Peer reviewed evidence shows travelling assists with cultural competence. Additionally, we (like many countries) have an aging population. We want to educate nurses about how interesting and fulfilling a job working with older adults can be. Read More →

Last November, faculty from Denmark visited us in Winnipeg, touring our city and learning about Red River College. This past February, the Nursing Department was able to reciprocate.

Members of the Nursing faculty had the opportunity to visit Denmark as part of our efforts to develop international relationships. Our faculty met with representatives from Via University College and experienced the wonderful sights Denmark has to offer.

Read More →

Project Term: Winter 2018

Open Democracy Manitoba builds non-partisan election websites to help citizens inform their vote. Within their sites are features like an address lookup tool, archived previous election results and automatic news fetching regarding specific candidates, and the general election.

Read More →

Project Term: Winter 2018

Tribbute is a data-driven marketing firm in Winnipeg that also has a relationship with Red River College. Our students at the ACE Project Space were able to help out Tribbute in automating some of their in-house processes. Read More →

Project Term: Winter 2018

As a second iteration through the ACE Project Space, the Tooliaba project sought to create more functionality for this sharing economy style service website. Tooliaba’s goal is to satisfy a niche of users who can rent the hardware tools they own out to others and also rent tools they don’t have.
Read More →