I Dare You to Drink the Vinegar

What even is a mental health nurse? The role of a mental health nurse in British Columbia in 2025 is as complex as it is vital. The profession, rooted in compassion and advocacy, finds itself at the crossroads of seismic shifts in health policy, resourcing, and the broader social landscape. Rapid regulatory changes, ongoing crises in workplace safety, and deepening debates about the ethics of involuntary psychiatric treatment have created a reality where nurses are both carers and regulators, advocates and enforcers. Living within these tensions can be deeply challenging and, at times, profoundly disheartening. The Regulatory Landscape and Coercive Change Mental health nursing in BC has long been shaped by the province’s Mental Health Act, which mandates both voluntary and, critically, involuntary treatment for people experiencing mental health crises. Recent years have seen increased scrutiny and revision of this legal framework, with the language and practice of “protection,” for bot...

 The first blog entry I wrote of I dare you to drink the vinegar seems like a lifetime ago. I guess it many ways it was.  When I read that 2008 blog post all I can see is a big rant by 20-something me, before kids, before a nursing career. But underneath the f-words and sarcasm I see something in younger Michelle: a raw, unfiltered reflection on boundaries, emotional restraint, and the complexities of human behavior. At the time, I had just entered the world of mental health nursing. I didn’t know it then, but I was already forming the values and perspectives that would carry me through nearly two decades in the field. Back then, I didn’t have the language of trauma-informed care or emotional regulation. I didn’t yet know the neurobiology of mania or the intricacies of professional boundaries. But I did know how it felt to witness cruelty disguised as honesty. I knew what it meant to hold space for someone else's pain, even when that pain was being dismissed by others. And I...

Organizational change is a complex and often challenging process, particularly in healthcare settings where the stakes are high, and the outcomes directly impact both staff and clients. This blog post explores a real-life case study from an Integrated Treatment for Mental Health and Addictions (ITMHA) facility in British Columbia (BC). The facility serves individuals with concurrent disorders (a combination of mental health and substance use issues) requiring specialized care that is both holistic and client-centered. Despite its critical role, the organization has faced persistent challenges, including staff resistance to change, poor communication, and leadership instability. Understanding the Context The ITMHA facility opened in 2008 to address gaps in care for clients transitioning from acute hospital settings to community-based living. Despite its 100-bed capacity, the facility has never operated at full occupancy, and staff turnover remains high. The center operates across three ...

Nurse educators hold a pivotal role in shaping the future of nursing practice. They provide students with the foundational knowledge, clinical expertise, and ethical frameworks needed to ensure their success as competent, safe, and compassionate professionals. One aspect of nursing education that consistently presents challenges is scope of practice. This is where have to take a cold hard look at the overlapping lines of responsibility, authority, and competence because they can sometimes blur. As members of a self-regulated health care profession who have advanced knowledge in adult education it is important to explore the complexities surrounding scope of practice for nurses in Canada, the impact on nursing education, and how nurses who are in educator roles can navigate these challenges to foster a collaborative, well-prepared nursing workforce. Understanding Scope of Practice in Nursing In Canada, nursing is a regulated profession, with each province and territory having specific l...

You know what's tough? Completing a PhD. It is especially tough finishing a PhD during a global pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic, unfortunately, feels like a distant dream now—a memory fading faster than we care to admit, thanks to our collective short attention span. It’s as if the global crisis was a dream we all shared, but now that we’re emerging from it, we’ve already moved on to the next crisis. But for those of us still navigating the residual chaos—juggling a full-time nursing job with the demands of a PhD program—those pandemic-induced challenges linger. The fatigue, the trauma, the overwhelming shift in healthcare dynamics may not be as vivid now, but the weight remains. For nurses pursuing a PhD while working full-time, the journey has become a balancing act that feels like an endless tightrope walk, with academia, nursing, and personal life constantly shifting underneath. It’s a daunting challenge—especially in a profession that has faced unprecedented demands during the...

 In a nation as vast and diverse as Canada, political division has become an unsettling reality. We are witnessing an era where blame and animosity have seeped into our everyday conversations, fostering a culture of hostility rather than understanding. In such a climate, the importance of choosing kindness cannot be overstated. This isn’t merely a lofty ideal; it is a necessity for the well-being of our communities and the fabric of our society. Dr. Simone Roach's work on the "Cs" of caring—Compassion, Competence, Confidence, Conscience, and Commitment—provides a meaningful framework for navigating these tumultuous times. By integrating these principles, we can cultivate an environment where kindness flourishes, even amidst deep-seated political differences. Compassion: Understanding Before Judging Compassion is the cornerstone of kindness. In a politically charged atmosphere, it is easy to fall into the trap of viewing others as adversaries rather than fellow citizens w...

Take a step back, and drink in the landscape of a free market saturated with social media influencers and repackaged cable television fueled by artificial intelligence bots and empty promises of an American Deam. Take it in North America. Warmly embrace our world dominated by the relentless pursuit of more—more wealth, more consumption, more productivity and somehow also packaging a selling the idea of less as a romantic, quaint notion that also leads to us buying more, just in a different way. We find ourselves running on this hamster wheel, caught in this narrative that celebrates growth at all costs, human costs, the cost of humanity. Capitalism, we love it, we make movies about it, we write books about it. I mean that in a very real way when you take a look at the latest (and I mean latest by the last 40 years) blockbuster hits and New York Times best-sellers. It is the engine of progress. It presents itself as a promise of infinite abundance. It's the Fountainhead embodied as ...

As the healthcare landscape evolves, the role of nursing must adapt to meet the challenges posed by an increasingly complex system. Innovative strategies that prioritize the nursing workforce are essential for delivering high-quality patient care. Central to this discourse is the establishment of safe patient ratios, which hinge on a healthy nursing workforce capable of providing the expertise necessary for optimal patient outcomes. However, efforts to bolster a dwindling nursing workforce often overlook a crucial element: retention is about more than salaries and the mere production of new graduate nurses. Historical Context: Lessons from Early Hospital Systems The early days of the hospital system provide valuable insights into effective nursing strategies. Initially, hospitals were staffed by student nurses who received education tailored to the needs of the institutions where they worked. This model fostered a deep commitment to patient care and a strong sense of belonging within t...

We are facing a critical nursing shortage in Canada following in the post-COVID-19 pandemic crisis (Tomblin Murphy et al., 2022) . Nursing shortages are not new (Cohen, 1989; Park, 1983; ‘The Nursing Shortage’, 1963) , but the impact of COVID-19 alongside global crises like climate change and war have spotlighted the significance of the problem at this historical moment (Peters, 2023) . I recently completed by PhD in Nursing at the University of Alberta. The journey was a long five years in which I had to navigate a pandemic, raising 4 kids, working full-time a nurse leadership and in direct hospital-based care in one of the largest urban centres in Canada, and significant family crises. I love the diverse opportunities that my nursing career has brought me. I feel a strong connection my professional identity as a nurse and appreciate the monumental impact that the discipline and profession have had on shaping the healthcare system and shaping the health of people in Canada. However, i...