Dr. Ken Turnbull passed away on July 3rd

Dear Colleagues

I sadly must report the loss of another of our excellent ‘old guard’. Dr. Ken Turnbull passed away on July 3rd. Dr. Turnbull worked in the VGH Department of Anesthesia, and became upon retirement from clinical practice, one of our treasured early simulation program support faculty.
He is survived by his wife, children and grandchildren.
There is no announcement of service yet.

Dr. Roanne Preston

Kenneth W. Turnbull, MD FRCPC
Acting Head – 1991

Dr. Ken Turnbull was a Professional Civil Engineer before he became an anesthesiologist and joined Vancouver General Hospital and UBC in 1972.
He was the chair of the Continuing Medical Education and Visiting Professor program until 2003. And in the same year, he initiated the use of the Centre of Excellence of Surgical and Education Innovation (CESEI) for anesthesia simulation. He invested in the Anesthesia Simulation Program over the years; getting it started initially and then the provided the ongoing weekly support until 2016.
He was promoted to Clinical Professor Emeritus in 2003 after retirement. He was awarded the Clinical Practitioner Award by the CAS in 2002

He was an excellent clinician and teacher who was involved in the wide variety of activities, in medical undergraduate and residency teaching, giving lectures nationally and internationally. He chaired many committees in the hospital and the University during his tenure and he was highly respected by his anesthetic and surgical colleagues and was a life time learner.

Welcome to the 16th Annual APT Research Day

Details are as follows:

• May 26, 2022 (Thursday)
• 1030 to 1530
• St. Paul’s Hospital, Cullen Lecture Theatre (map attached)
• APT research day program found here
• Zoom Meeting ID 95272 854360, Passcode 854360

Directional instructions to the Conference Centre:
• Thurlow Street Entrance: Follow the dark blue and white Conference Centre sign to elevator. Take the elevator to Level 1.
• From St. Paul’s Hospital Parkade: Take elevator or stairs to Providence Level 1.
• Burrard and Comox Street Entrances: Walk past the Information Desk (turn left if entering from Burrard) to the end of the hall. Take one flight of stairs down to Providence Level 1 (1st door downstairs). Turn right down the long hallway. At the end of the hallway, turn right to the Conference Centre.

Congratulations to Dr. Alana Flexman who was awarded a Michael Smith Health Research BC Health Professional-Investigator Award to support her research focussed on Perioperative stroke screening and outcomes in high-risk surgical patients.
Up to two percent of patients will experience a stroke during or after surgery and these patients have a high chance of disability and death. Currently, we don’t understand clearly how to prevent, detect, and treat stroke after surgery. Although risk factors have been identified including older age and cardiac surgery, high risk surgical patients are not usually identified and strokes can be missed, leading to fewer treatment options and more complications. Dr. Flexman’s pilot study showed that anesthesia and surgery can limit the accuracy of standard screening tools for stroke. We urgently needed a screening tool and protocol specifically for surgical patients. We also don’t understand well how patients recover after perioperative stroke, such as which patients survive, and whether they can stay in their homes. Building on our prior research, this multiphase study aims to: (1) Understanding which patients do poorly after perioperative stroke and whether those factors can be changed; (2) Compare mortality and other complications after stroke between those who had recent surgery and those who did not; and (3) Identify a useful perioperative stroke screening tool to quickly and accurately detect stroke after surgery.

Please find memo here.