December 2021 Newsletter

December 2021

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Happy holidays from all of us at The Lung Association of Saskatchewan! 2021 has certainly been an unpredictable year, but one that has continued to be full of hope as vaccinations became available for adults, adolescents, and now young children. You can find more information on how to access vaccinations for you and the ones you love here. Please continue to stay safe by wearing a mask, sanitizing your hands and keeping safe distances in public spaces.

As many of us may be spending time at home over the holidays, I encourage you to keep everyone as safe as can be. Please consider the gift of healthy lungs and homes this holiday season by purchasing a radon kit. Not only is the kit approved by Health Canada, but our on-line system is efficient and secure. Purchases support ongoing work in lung health in Saskatchewan!

As we approach the end of 2021 and look forward to a new year, I want to take this opportunity to thank all who have made a gift to The Lung Association of Saskatchewan. Whether you gave of your time and talent, purchased a raffle ticket, or made a gracious monetary donation of any amount, you continued to fuel our work here in the province - contributing to Saskatchewan lead research, providing education to health care professionals, advocating for clean air and healthy lungs, and supporting patients and caregivers battling lung disease. You lift us up and make us stronger.

On behalf of our Board and Staff, I wish you great health, prosperity and care this holiday season.

Sincerely,

Erin Kuan – President & CEO

There is Still Time to Give

Give the Gift of Lung Health!

A radon test kit for family and friends makes a terrific holiday gift!

Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer. The prairie provinces are a hot spot for this radioactive gas as it's a by-product of uranium in the soil. You can't see or smell it, but radon is in all of our homes. The question is, how much? Testing for radon is easy and affordable.

ORDER KIT

Our Health Promotion Team is Making an Impact!

Fort Qu'Appelle

On November 8th the Health Promotion team visited Fort Qu’Appelle, Saskatchewan. They met with Cory Gambler, an addictions counsellor and recent panelist on the “Ask The Experts:Is It Your Time to Quit?” Webinar with the File Hills Qu'Appelle Tribal Council to collaborate on the Youth4Change project.

Cory Gambler gave our Health Promotion team a tour of the Miko-Mahikan Red Wolf Centre and shared their successes with their prevent and harm reduction programs and brand new plant grow pods, which are going into classrooms around Saskatchewan.

Saskatchewan Legislature

Representing the Take Action on Radon Coalition, we were excited to discuss radon initiatives in our province and we presented nine radon recommendations to the Honourable Paul Merriman, Minister of Health to protect Saskatchewan families and workers from the dangers of radon exposure. Additionally, we met with Vicki Mowat, Opposition House Leader and opposition critic for health.

Thank you to Jennifer May and Bethany Dick from our Health Promotion & Government Relations team, along with Pam Warkentin (Canadian Association of Radon Scientists and Technologists), Tod Boss (Fantech), and Kerri Tucker (Lung Ambassador) who are pictured above.

On behalf of the Government of Saskatchewan, Minister Merriman also proclaimed November 2021 as “Radon Action Month”.

RESPTREC Online Spirometry Course

This NEW RESPTREC online spirometry course will teach individuals how to conduct quality spirometry including: knowledge of spirometers, understanding of the ATS/ERS standards for spirometry, quality control, patient instruction and basic interpretation of the results.

Spirometry course page information

Each student will be assigned a faculty member who will provide feedback and mentorship throughout the course. We are here to support your learning journey.

A Fall Full of Education

The Lung Association of Saskatchewan was thrilled to work with four industry partners to host a number of education webinars this fall for public, patients, caregivers, and health professionals.

10 expert presenters, 7 diverse themes in lung health that included asthma, COPD, COVID-19, flu, and 1,500 total registrations set the stage for this incredibly successful series.

Many of these wonderful presentations were recorded and can still be viewed on our website!