McLeod Law LLP Presents the 2016 Health Care Symposium

Three of Alberta's finest health care professionals will share their invaluable insights exploring a new paradigm for the treatment of chronic pain, including coaching the brain, and radiological treatment options.

We invite health care professionals, including physicians, psychiatrists, psychologists, physiotherapists, chiropractors, occupational therapists, rehabilitation professionals, massage therapists and other medical specialists to attend.

Our Esteemed Panel of Presenters:

Dr. Bevan Frizzell, MD, BSc, FRCPC, Musculoskeletal Radiologist
Debbie Patterson, Registered Physiotherapist
Dr. Gaylord Wardell, MD, BSc, FRCPC, Anaesthesiologist

Date:            Thursday, May 5, 2016

Location:      Delta Calgary South
                    135 Southland Drive SE, Calgary, AB
                    Bonavista Ballroom located in the Tower Building

Time:           4:00 - 5:00 pm Registration & Reception
                                            (Food & beverages will be provided)
                    5:00 - 8:30 pm Presentations
                    8:30 - 9:00 pm Dessert Reception

Register before April 28 to reserve your seat!

Register Now

Registration is required. This program is free of charge. Seating is limited.

Continuing Competence Credits are available for the ACAC upon request at the Symposium. For all other CPD requirements, confirmation of attendance will be provided upon request at the Symposium registration desk. 

Presentation Overviews:

Interventional Radiology in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain
Presenter: Dr. Bevan Frizzell

Dr. Frizzell will discuss common soft tissue injuries and disorders that may contribute to chronic pain, including lateral epicondylitis, rotator cuff pathology and greater trochanteric tenobursitis. He will also discuss novel imaging and interventional radiology treatment methods, including regenerative medicine techniques.

The Brain and Pain: Coaching for Control
Presenter: Debbie Patterson

Debbie Patterson will share her approach to treating chronic pain directed at understanding the complexities of the brain.

She will explain the concept that persistent pain is an output from the brain resulting from complex neuroprocessing, involving all aspects of who we are as people: physically, cognitively, emotionally, relationally and spiritually.   

Negative neuroplastic changes result in the brain literally being hijacked by the pain system. Ms. Patterson's treatment approach involves coaching the patient to encourage positive neuroplastic change in which the pain system learns to function again as a necessary alarm system, and not as a disease.   

Chronic Pain: Is it time for a new paradigm?
Presenter: Dr. Gay Wardell

Dr. Wardell will discuss the long overdue need for a new paradigm to address the real cause of chronic pain. 

Chronic pain is the number one health problem in Canada. Chronic pain affects over 20% of Canadians; more than heart disease, cancer and diabetes combined. 
 
For 2,000 years, "tissue damage and inflammation" has been cited as the underlying cause of pain. This approach is no longer providing effective means of treating chronic pain. Current therapies to treat chronic pain include surgery, anti-inflammatory drugs, and opioids and have failed to reduce the growing number of suffering patients.

About the Presenters:

Dr. Bevan Frizzell is a Musculoskeletal Radiologist with Alberta Health Services and EFW Radiology, founder of the Advanced Spinal Care Centre (a division of EFW Radiology) and Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Calgary. Dr. Frizzell created the Interventional MSK/Spine Radiology program in Calgary in the late 1990s at Foothills Medical Centre. His multi-disciplinary group now has the largest, most comprehensive MSK/Spine Interventional Radiology practice in the country.

Debbie Patterson is a registered physiotherapist in the provinces of Ontario and Alberta. She is a founding member of the Pain Science Division of the Canadian Physiotherapy Association. Debbie has practiced orthopaedic physiotherapy for over 35 years, treating both acutely injured and chronic pain patients. She now exclusively treats people with chronic pain. She is a trained and certified Progressive Goal Attainment Programme (PGAP) clinician and is trained in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. Debbie teaches interdisciplinary courses on persistent pain across Canada and is an invited speaker to conferences and events.

Dr. Gay Wardell is the founder and Medical Director of Santé Surgi Centre, a private surgical facility in Medicine Hat where he practices in pain management, palliative care, anaesthesiology, and phlebology. He is also the Past President and founding member of the Pain Society of Alberta, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting excellence in delivery of pain care. He is a pioneer for chronic pain management in Alberta with extensive knowledge of complex pain management.

Dr. Wardell has been practicing medicine for nearly 35 years and is a pragmatic leader who takes a holistic approach in addition to considering the intricate details. He is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and a Diplomat of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine, Medical Director of Wardell Centre for Chronic Pain Disease and a 2016 candidate for the first sitting of the Royal College of Canada Pain specialty exam.

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The Health Care Symposium is being hosted by the Personal Injury Group at McLeod Law LLP, bringing leading edge developments and education to front line health care professionals to improve the assessment and treatment of accident victims.