PCN 4 Featured Provider: Donna Paradowski, Nurse Practitioner
Donna Paradowski is a Nurse Practitioner (NP) working at Well Health Kerrisdale Station Medical Clinic in PCN 4.
What made you choose to practice medicine in PCN 4, Westside?
I chose Kerrisdale partially due to familiarity and accessibility to my chosen residence as I relocated to create a walking lifestyle. I am about to start the 3rd year of my initial PCN contract. I relocated back to British Columbia to embrace the opportunity to have my own independent practice. I have been practicing as a nurse for 37 years, 15 of those as a family practitioner.
What are your hopes for PCN 4?
I worked in a decentralized PCN model of care in Edmonton, Alberta for 12 years. I provided collaborative care with a group of 10 physicians within a decentralized PCN model. Each clinic could identify which support services such as a dietician, social worker/counseling, kinesiologist, and a respiratory therapist would best compliment their panel demographics. The allied services has an office space within the larger clinics consistent with the concept medical home. Other PCN groups within the Edmonton zone adopted either a blend of centralized/decentralized. I was obliged to teach an evening class twice per year. This could be prenatal classes; Anxiety Relation Management I would be paired with another practitioner such as a social worker. I am forever grateful for this opportunity. The patients expressed a high level of satisfaction with the model. I hope to advocate for a similar version of my prior PCN experience as I believe it will alleviate some of the burden reported by practitioners.
Please tell us a little bit about your clinic and the patients you serve
I am a family trained practitioner and therefore enjoy a spectrum of patients 0 to 100 + years. I maintain an interest in women’s health particularly related to pessary care, hormone replacement therapy and contraception management. I previously ran a high-risk foot protection clinic in Alberta and thus I have a background regarding neuropathy and wounds as it relates to peripheral vascular/endocrine disease consistent with chronic disease management, a cornerstone of primary care. I enjoy a growing proportion of new mothers and their infants/child/youth which links back to my Northern Rural practice in Public/Home Community Health. I do conduct home visits to support end of life care or frail seniors as required.
My past rural/northern/nursing experiences taught me early the importance of collaborative care towards a common good outcome of care. Northern practices expose practitioners to multiple presentations without immediate access to specialty consult. Certainly, due to technology this is no longer the case but provided me with a solid knowledge base.
