BC Physicians who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) form a diverse population with shared and variable experiences, strengths, challenges, traumas, and communities. There is growing awareness of how racial inequities affect BIPOC physicians in both subtle and overt ways, whether you are an international medical graduate working in a remote area of the province, a third generation BC immigrant, or an Indigenous physician.
The BIPOC Physician Peer Support Group intends to provide a confidential forum where participants and facilitators support and empower each other through collectively investigating our lived experiences. The group aims to harness the power of safety in community to metabolize burdens and leverage any assets from our cultures of origin. In this way, we hope to contribute to a more inclusive, integrative, humanistic, and just healthcare system.
This BIPOC Peer Support Group is possible thanks to funding from Scotiabank, MD Financial Management Inc., and the Canadian Medical Association as part of the new Physician Wellness+ Initiative, which aims to address the urgent and ongoing health and wellness needs of physicians and medical learners.
When and Where
The group will meet monthly on Mondays from 7:15 to 8:30 PM, starting in January 2023. There will be a break in July and August, and the sessions will resume in September. The following dates and discussion topics are scheduled:
- September 18th – Setting Boundaries & Speaking Our Truth
- October 16th – BIPOC Physician as Leader: Challenges & Opportunities
- November 13th – Exploring Our Relative Power & Privilege
- December 11th – Our Community of Practice: Reflections and Feeding it Forward
There will be plenty of open discussion time so physicians can share what matters to them.
If you would like to share this support group among your colleagues and network, please share this one-pager or this webpage.
The BIPOC Peer Support Group will be facilitated virtually via Zoom. Please register in advance to join the group:
If you have any questions or need help registering, please email programs@physicianhealth.com.
Facilitators
Dr. Rahul Gupta
Rahul is a settler on the unceded land of the shíshálh and Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Nations. He works as an integrative medical physician, professional coach, mindfulness instructor, and advocate for provider wellness. He is a Certified MBSR Teacher through the Center for Mindfulness and facilitates mindfulness-based interventions for both providers and patients. He also is a Somatic Experiencing (SE) Practitioner and integrates trauma-sensitive approaches into all of his trainings. He has over 18 years of experience being an ICF- Certified Professional Coach, supporting physicians and healthcare teams in cultivating compassionate self & situational awareness.
Dr. Anne Nguyen
As a family physician and addiction medicine specialist, Dr. Anne Nguyen spent the first ten years of her career providing low barrier primary and hospital based care in Northwestern Ontario and Victoria, BC. As well as joining PHP as Physician Lead, she works as an addiction medicine consultant in Victoria hospitals. Anne is deeply grateful for the opportunity to work directly with physician colleagues and partner organizations to promote the health of BC’s doctors, and feels privileged to walk alongside her peers on their journeys to healthful personal and professional lives during these challenging times for the profession.
