What if your doctor could prescribe a walking group or a museum visit instead of just medication? Our first Student Blog explores how #SocialPrescribing could support student wellbeing on post-secondary campuses.

March is recognized as #BisexualHealthAwarenessMonth and focuses on the specific health disparities, particularly mental health, faced by the #bisexual+ community. Research shows that bi+ individuals experience higher rates of mental health challenges than their gay, lesbian, or heterosexual peers.

My 12-year old daughters donated one of their favourite stuffies for me to leave at the memorial in Tumbler Ridge. It’s heartbreaking just to think of them not coming home safely from school today and every day.

At yesterday’s CIHR Implementation Science Teams Networking Forum, @nurselillian.bsky.social shared how our Learning Health System partnership with @vchhealthcare.bsky.social is improving dementia transitions through a Learning Community. Learn more here: idea.nursing.ubc.ca/2025/02/21/b...

I applaud the Government of Manitoba’s decision to seize this private long-term care home in Winnipeg. Provinces should 100% be using their expropriation powers for public good in cases like this.

Frontline workers are holding our crumbling healthcare system on their shoulders. Should they choose to strike, I’ll be there on the picket line with them. Solidarity forever. #bcpoli

Sad to see that ABC once again voted against being a Living Wage certified employer

Explore this webinar by the Canadian Coalition for Seniors' Mental Health on exploring interventions for social isolation and loneliness in older adults Jan 14, 2026 | 12:00–1:00 pm EST | Register here: ow.ly/4KZR50XSyc5

We are hiring a Postdoctoral Fellow with a computer science or engineering background to lead the technical development and real-world implementation of autonomous mobile robot assistants in long-term care settings. Learn more and apply: www.postdocs.ubc.ca/ad/58967

Happy Holidays from CSPSC! Wishing you warmth, rest, and community connection as we head into 2026 🩵✨

Pseudoscientific grifters love claiming they’ll “heal your root causes” when they’re really selling unregulated supplements and expensive protocols. Meanwhile, real root causes (social determinants of health) exist: income, housing, food security, social connection, transportation…

This is a really important proposal from local food justice organizer Ian Marcuse. Save Sunrise Food Market! www.vancouverfoodjustice.ca/latest-news/... #vanpoli

Left the @COPEVancouver.bsky.social holiday party tonight feeling energized. This was my first COPE event! I’m so grateful for the warm welcome and the conversations with folks organizing across the city. Excited to keep learning and showing up 🌹

Storms are once again placing significant strain on BC communities and compounding the long-term impacts of past flood events. As local govs respond, we're calling for sustained funding and support to recover & invest in long-term flood risk mitigation. www.ubcm.ca/about-ubcm/l...

New space, same mission. We can’t wait to welcome you into our new home on the fourth floor of the UBC Gateway Building as we continue advancing dementia and aging care through #PatientOrientedResearch.

Heading to Dr. Yeeun Archer Lee’s talk on #SocialConnection at Trinity Western University today! Grateful to have just joined Yeeun’s team as a research assistant to help turn knowledge into action.

Born and raised in Hong Kong, I’m absolutely devastated by the Tai Po apartment fire that has killed 55 and displaced thousands. 36% of residents in this public housing estate are older adults (65+), many with limited mobility. Thinking of the seniors, families, and kaifongs tonight.

COP30 overpromised, underdelivered, empowered distractions, backtracked on issues and once again gave big oil and big ag a free pass. Unfortunately, the suspicions of climate scientists (here in Brazil and abroad) were confirmed again.

New qualitative study coming out of @oxprimarycare.bsky.social explored factors surrounding #SocialPrescribing link worker retention in the UK. As a community connector in Canada, I see similar ambiguities here at home.

If you haven’t already, make sure you subscribe to @medsky.social! It’s a Bluesky network and labeler for healthcare folks that adds little topic labels (like “Primary Care” and “Public Health”) under your name. You can DM them and they’ll help you get started!

So proud to contribute to the Canadian arm of the IAIC study on perceptions of aging and aging well with colleagues from @idea.nursing.ubc.ca. Great to see @nurselillian.bsky.social repping 🇨🇦 to share our results in Singapore.

New blog post on Bioethics Today by Hana Abbasian and Perisa Ashar responds to our recent LOVOT reflection paper, raising ethical questions about #AlgorithmicIntimacy and #EmotionalAccountability when using social robots in dementia care.

Featured in Canadian Healthcare Technology, a new study by VCHRI researcher Dr. Lillian Hung reveals how accessible, AI-enabled robot companions foster emotional engagement & social connection for residents of long-term care homes: ow.ly/gHZ850XnXP5

New #nursesky pub alert! Our research team at @idea.nursing.ubc.ca (led by @nurselillian.bsky.social) captured perspectives of people living with dementia and family partners on the potential, limitations, and ethics of implementing #LOVOT in long-term care homes:

There are higher priorities for 50$million Vancouver tax dollars. Like, housing. And schools. And parks.

Vancouver has a councillor who can’t even vote in Vancouver—but that’s fine with Ken Sim’s ABC majority. If you don’t live with the consequences, you shouldn’t write the rules.

Great week of learning and connecting at #CAG_2025 in Montréal with @nurselillian.bsky.social and the @idea.nursing.ubc.ca team. Presented posters on a seated dance pilot in LTC and a scoping review on social support for 2S/LGBTQ+ older adults in Canada :)

Great discussion (and pizza) at @agingsmart.bsky.social’s Lunch & Learn on #SocialPrescribing and social supports for older adults in rural Canada with Prof. Maureen Ashe.

Pop-up roller skating rink near the Chelsea section of the High Line celebrating LGBTQ+ activists like Marsha P. Johnson

Proud moment today! Our research assistant @jeffrey.cspsc.ca and patient partner Lynn Jackson presented our poster “Co-Designing Immersive Virtual Reality With Indigenous Communities” at the TWU CREATE Conference 2025.

Whether they're blaming vaccines and Tylenol, or selling dubious "remedies," what they're really doing is promoting the perception that families (and especially mothers) can prevent and treat Autism. And thus also the perception that people with Autism and their families don't need social support.

Thanks for raising this important point, @evafain.bsky.social. Our study at @idea.nursing.ubc.ca explored older adults’ experiences w/ social robots, co-created with people with lived experience, to understand how they may support emotional and social wellbeing (commenting in a personal capacity):

Today is #WorldAlzheimersDay. At the UBC IDEA Lab, we believe our work matters because people living with dementia matter. Through co-created research, we’re working toward a kinder, more compassionate future for dementia care 💜

🤖 A new study led by VCHRI researcher Dr. Lillian Hung reveals how accessible, AI-enabled robot companions foster emotional engagement & social connection for residents of long-term care homes:

Researchers quantified what people with lived experience have been saying for years: street sweeps harm people, increasing their risk of violence and overdose. My latest for @thetyee.ca thetyee.ca/News/2025/09...

@cisp-icps.bsky.social hosted a series of webinars exploring evidence, policy, priority population perspectives, and co-design approaches with leading researchers in the field of social prescribing. Check out the series here: www.socialprescribing.ca/webinar-seri...

Our new scoping review in Digital Health (@journals.sagepub.com), led by @nurselillian.bsky.social, explores what helps and hinders co-designing #SocialRobots with older adults living with #Dementia. Read here:

Healthcare decision-making requires diverse evidence beyond studies of effectiveness. #EvidenceSynthesis #EBHC www.youtube.com/shorts/1aFMy...

@nurselillian.bsky.social #nursesky and UBC IDEA Lab patient partner Mario Gregorio recently joined Mark Niu @beingpatient.bsky.social to chat about how #SocialRobots like PARO and LOVOT are transforming #DementiaCare. Check it out:

Today is #EmancipationDay, marking the beginnings of the abolition of slavery in “Canada” in 1833. This history is not well known—I learned all about slavery in the US but didn’t even know that there’s similar history here until today. Hope you’ve learned something new too.

Our July 2025 newsletter is out now! If you haven’t already, subscribe to stay in the loop with UBC IDEA Lab team spotlights, project updates, upcoming events, and more: eepurl.com/ilKMy6

“If Medicare was about guaranteeing access, then the next legacy must be about building health differently: through prevention, through connection, and through community.” —Dr. J.R. Baker, via @croakeynews.bsky.social

Troubling to see federal cuts targeting Indigenous Services and scientific research under PM @mark-carney.bsky.social. Share your voice and push for a budget that reflects our values: canada.ca/yourbudget

Join @cisp-icps.bsky.social on August 6th to learn how Social Prescribing Connectors are bridging health and social care to: ✅ Address social determinants of health ✅ Improve equity and access ✅ Strengthen relationships between people and their communities 🔗 Register now: lnkd.in/gcXvRFsH

Just registered for the @jbiebhc.bsky.social Comprehensive #SystematicReview Training this October through @uvic.ca. Excited to strengthen my evidence synthesis skills as I dig deeper into #SocialPrescribing and #SeniorCare research to help build the evidence base!

Had a great time learning from #SocialPrescribing community connectors and evaluators at @cisp-icps.bsky.social’s Canadian Social Prescribing Exchange this morning. Can’t wait for the next one in November!

I work in a large organization (UBC), so from time to time, people trying to reach another Jeffrey Wong accidentally email me. So far, I’ve been an OB/GYN and a tech manager… who knows how many more Jeffrey Wongs are out there lol

Came across this opinion piece on patient engagement in research in @bmj.com just now—thank you so much for sharing your perspective, @dawnrichards.bsky.social.

Excited to be presenting at our @idea.nursing.ubc.ca Research Day 2025! If you’re in Vancouver on August 13, make sure to swing by and check out our work :)

Fresh off the press—new paper led by PhD candidate Karen Wong and @nurselillian.bsky.social explored how dementia-friendly videos can support the psychosocial needs of people with moderate to severe dementia in care settings. Check it out: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...