VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation is proud to announce stroke neurologist and clinician-researcher Dr. Thalia Field has been nominated for a 2020 YWCA Women of Distinction Award.

Recognized nationally, Dr. Field is nominated in the Health & Wellness category, which honours extraordinary women leaders who have shown an unwavering commitment to delivering, promoting and advocating for healthy lives and communities.

“It’s a terrific award and I am very grateful to the Foundation for nominating me,” says Dr. Field. “The award supports a wonderful cause in the YWCA, which is helping women who are marginalized and need extra support during difficult situations in their lives. It’s a wonderful opportunity and I very much appreciate the recognition.”

Dr. Field’s nomination is in celebration of the years of astounding work she has accomplished in her multifaceted medical career which has directly impacted the quality of care available to patients across British Columbia.

Since she first began working in medicine, Dr. Field has had a passion for seeking new and improved ways to enhance stroke care and treatments. This includes research on improving recruitment and retention in clinical trials, and putting a significant focus on outcomes that can be immediately beneficial to participants.

Dr. Field’s work also expands into the study of neurodegenerative diseases, and she is currently leading a study to improve early detection of Alzheimer’s disease to accelerate the development of disease-modifying treatments for dementia.

In 2016, she founded the Downtown Eastside Outreach clinic in partnership with the Portland Hotel Society. Here, Dr. Field is caring for Downtown Eastside residents with neurological issues who would have difficulty attending appointments in an office environment, as well as attending home visits as needed to ensure that every patient who needs it can access quality neurological care.

“Working with those residents has been a really wonderful experience,” says Dr. Field. “They’ve got an incredibly supportive community there, despite the struggles that they are facing, and effective care for many of those patients will need to incorporate approaches that emphasize those social supports and other considerations like housing security above and beyond their immediate neurological issues.”

These activities are in addition to her day-to-day role as the Fellowship Program Director of the Vancouver Stroke Program (VSP), and an acting clinician helping stroke patients survive and thrive at VGH and UBC Hospital.

Dr. Field’s career development and much of her research has been supported by donors to VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation. “The support of our donors has been critical in building our best possible Stroke program,” she says, “emphasizing excellence in quality care, research and education.”

Join us in wishing Dr. Field the best of luck in her nomination! The winners will be announced on May 11, 2020.