Where Have All The Girl Scientists Gone? On Ada Lovelace Day, Let’s Amplify Female Voices In STEM

https://www.forbes.com/sites/drnancydoyle/2020/10/13/where-have-all-the-girl-scientists-gone-on-ada-lovelace-day-lets-amplify-female-voices-in-stem/

Ada Lovelace, for those of you who don’t know, was a Nineteenth Century mathematician who is widely credited with created the very first algorithm, that is a series of mathematical instructions designed to be carried out by a machine. Like many women, her story is minimized in history, and in particular where outdated, sexist theories persist such as “men are better than women at science.” I wanted to understand more about this problem, so I caught up with the fabulous Gina Rippon, Professor of Neuroscience at Aston University in the UK, and author of a wonderful book called “The Gendered Brain.” Professor Rippon has recently produced an extensive essay on this subject, which has been published on the “We Are Tech Women” website, run by Vanessa Vallely, I recommend a follow up read. She explained that playing the gender war in STEM subjects is not only limiting women’s equality, but also limiting our progress in science generally:

“21st century science has a problem. It is short of scientists. Technological innovations mean that the world needs many more specialists in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) subjects than it is currently training. And this problem is compounded by the fact that women, despite clear evidence of aptitude and ability for science subjects, are not choosing to study STEM subjects, are not being recruited into the STEM workforce, are not staying in the STEM workplace.”

Why Don’t Women Do Science?

Professor Rippon walked me through the main “neurotrash” arguments about the female brain and its feebleness.

“There is a long and fairly well-rehearsed ‘blame the brain’ story, with essentialist or biology-is-destiny type arguments historically asserting that women’s brains were basically inferior (thanks, Gustave le Bon and Charles Darwin!) or too vulnerable to withstand the rigours of higher education. A newer spin on this is that female brains do not endow their owners with the appropriate cognitive skills for science. Specifically, they are poor at the kind of spatial thinking that is core to success in science or, more generally, are not ‘hard-wired’ for the necessary understanding of systems fundamental to the theory and practice of science.

The former ‘spatial deficit’ description has been widely touted as one of the most robust of sex differences, quite possibly present from birth. But updated and more nuanced research has not been able to uphold this claim; spatial ability appears to be more a function of spatial experience (think toys, videogames, hobbies, sports, occupations) than sex. And it is very clearly trainable (in both sexes), resulting in clearly measurable brain changes as well as improvements in skill.”

However, despite lack of clear evidence, spatial deficit continues to affect the research designs. Professor Rippon continues:

“The systems explanation, devised by Simon Baron-Cohen from Cambridge, is one ‘half’ of a neurocognitive model, with ‘Systemising’ a preference for rule-based ways of dealing with the world, a “drive to analyse, explore and construct a system”, and  ‘Empathising’ the need (and ability) to recognise and respond to others’ thoughts and emotions. He firmly links the former to a hard-wired male brain and the latter to a hard-wired female brain.  This ‘Man the Systemiser’ story, like the spatially deficient female version above, has not received unequivocal research support. The supporting evidence that does exist may, indeed, be a result of socially reinforced learning, which certainly muddies the water for those seeking a biology-is-destiny type, essentialist explanation for the lack of women in science.”

As a neurodiverse thinker, my ‘genius within’ is visual and spatial reasoning, so it’s never really chimed with me that men are better at map reading. My husband is rubbish! The inventor of GPS technology is a black woman called Dr Gladys West, of whom I could not even find a stock image for this blog. By limiting participation in STEM to our discriminatory stereotypes we are robbing the world of way more than half our potential innovators and inventors.

Is It Because We Don’t “Want” To?

Professor Rippon presented the latest round of reverse-engineered theorizing, where the goal is to create a hypothesis that makes sense of data, rather than check the data for biased, subjective reinforcement of the status quo:

“A paper published in 2018 reported the finding that women are more likely to be under-represented in the sciences in countries that have the highest levels of gender equality (think Scandinavia). This would appear to be at odds with claims that a lack of gender equality had been behind the lack of women in science; reducing the gender equality gaps should, therefore, have resulted in increasing numbers of women in science. This is called the Gender Equality Paradox (GEP).

Performance scores on tests of scientific ability showed no female-male differences, so the dearth of women could not be pinned on some kind of cognitive deficit. Behaviourally, the gender imbalance was explained in terms of economic decision-making. In the least gender equal countries, STEM jobs are better paid and so economic necessity drives the choices of both sexes; you (female or male) chose to do science because you had to. But in more gender equal countries, economic factors could take second place to the choice of a subject which ‘played to your strengths’. As the girls were almost universally better than boys at reading and reading-related skills, the researchers postulated that the girls from the more gender equal countries could get a greater sense of ‘efficacy and joy’[sic] by pursuing  humanities-type subjects, even though they were poorly paid.

There is a familiar whiff of biological determinism in the narrative exploring the findings. Reference is made to “endogenous interests” (undefined) in determining career choice, suggesting that a choice between science and humanities is somehow internally determined: “We hypothesize that men are more likely than women to enter STEM careers because of endogenous [own emphasis] interests……. Societal conditions can change the degree to which exogenous interests influence STEM careers (e.g., the possibilities of STEM careers to satisfy socio-economic needs). But when there is an equal playing field [own emphasis] and studying STEM is just as useful (balancing income and career satisfaction) as a degree in other areas, people are better able to pursue their interests and not simply their future economic needs.” There is an echo here of  the entrenched idea that women innately prefer working with people as opposed to things, and therefore avoid the allegedly thing-like quality of science professions – an echo certainly of Simon Baron Cohen’s Empathising-Systemising dimension.”

So the 21st century explanation of gender gaps in science is still linked to a ‘natural’ expression of some kind of innate differences. But how equal IS the playing field of science?

The Playing Fields Of Science – A Glass Obstacle Course For Women

It is well documented that, in previous centuries, women were proactively excluded from science and scientific institutions, leading inevitably to the stereotype of science being for men and scientists being male. Watch this video of primary school children falling foul of gender stereotypes in 2016 aged between five and seven.

"Having worked around barriers to entry, women may then encounter gender bias on the roads to success. There are many ways in which success is measured in science This can include first-author publications, citations, grant income, prizes. In all of these spheres, the operation of both conscious and unconscious bias against women is demonstrable.

With respect to publications, several studies have noted a marked gender imbalance, particularly in more prestigious journals, including those in the Nature portfolio. This does not appear to be related to quality, as there were no differences in rejection rates. A key factor appeared to be seniority, with more senior authors, of whom significantly more were male, having a higher output. Once published, a measure of a publication’s quality is how often it is cited. Again, there is evidence that papers with female key authors are cited less frequently. Two factors identified as relevant are that male scientists have wider and larger networks, where it is not uncommon that members cite each other; also that men are much more likely than women to cite themselves!”

This comment rang out at me loud and clear. Just this week I noted the almost complete absence of outstanding Sociologist Judy Singer’s work from the citation list of the major publications in the autism field. Over and over again her work has been minimized or erased from the narrative. To be clear, Judy Singer is the Grand Dame of the Neurodiversity movement, her rigorous, comprehensive and insightful thesis is published and should have been cited in all major Neurodiversity narratives and works as a matter of respect. This issue is exacerbated intersectionally, where black and brown voices are almost entirely excluded from the Neurodiversity field with a diagnosis deficit let alone professional presence. I recently introduced a podcaster to new names in order to increase representation in the narrative, people whose exceptional work had gone under the radar. I am wondering if Neurodiversity, dominated by technologists, is itself is institutionally racist and sexist.

The Chilly Climate Effect – Reintroducing The Brain

So when so we have to fight so hard for equality, what effect does this have on our work and potential contribution? Professor Rippon’s final comment packs a punch:

“A sense of belonging is a powerful motivational force, with negative social experiences linked to the same brain areas activated by real physical pain. Specialised networks of brain activity have been associated with the maintenance of self-esteem and the consequences of a loss of such esteem. Social rejection, low status, poor self-image and low levels of peer support have been shown to activate powerful inhibitory pathways in the brain associated with anxiety and depression and high levels of self-criticism. Behaviourally, this has been shown to result in a form of academic self-silencing and withdrawal. 

It is possible then, that the absence of women from science is indeed a brain problem, but not one to do with internally determined, individual cognitive capacity but one to do with the externally determined social context of science. Confronted with an institution which views them as probably inferior, possibly incompetent, (and should, ideally, be invisible), brain-driven processes may well determine that women will take their skills elsewhere. So a level (and welcoming) playing field does indeed seem to be important for the engagement and retention of well-qualified female scientists – and science needs to wake up to the fact that its playing fields are neither level nor welcoming.”

Armchair Activism: Hold The Door Open!

Wow. How can we change this? It’s time to start amplifying each other’s work more thoughtfully.

In my own life, I’m trying to make sure that I am referencing women of note in my own published work, informing conference organizers about talented women whose work should be recognized. We can do this for all women, include people from black and brown communities and  colleagues who do not come from privileged backgrounds where the networks to sidestep into a position of influence are lacking. My last piece was about the power of champions, I’ve had a bunch of powerful champions myself, many are female and some were also male. As a beneficiary, I’ve noticed that allyship is about doing things behind the scenes, people who acquire access and then hold the door open for others to follow. If we are to address the STEM talent chasm, and the challenges of the world, we are going to need diverse brains of all varieties working together.

So with that, a final thought: who do you know who could benefit from the access you have? To celebrate Ada Lovelace day, let’s all pick the people whose work we truly value, who are under recognized and take a few moments in our day to cheerlead our peers. We all lose when human potential is squandered. Who do you know who could benefit from the access you have?

Charles Babbage (1792-1871)

According to Swade (2000), “The nineteenth century was not only an age of reason. It was also an age of quantification in which science and engineering set about reducing the world to number” (p. 12). It was thus a time when persons with high-functioning autism could come to the fore, and one such person was the English mathematician Charles Babbage.

Babbage spent most of his life trying to build calculating machines: first a “difference engine” and then a more ambitious “analytical engine.” Astonishingly, the designs for the analytical engine “embody in their mechanical and logical detail just about every major principle of the modern digital computer” (Swade, 2000, p. 94). He is routinely referred to as the father, grandfather, forefather, great ancestor, or progenitor of the modern computer. He probably had autistic features but not the full syndrome of autism (i.e., PDDNOS; pervasive developmental disorder-not otherwise specified).

Life History

Charles Babbage was born in Teignmouth, Devon, in 1792. He was an autodidactic mathematical prodigy — a precociously accomplished mathematician — when he entered Cambridge at the age of 18. There, “disaffected, independent-minded and even rebellious, he pursued a programme of study of his own which favored the works of French mathematicians. Babbage was a radical: He admired Napoleonic France” (Swade, 2000, p. 18). Many geniuses have been autodidacts.

Babbage described his father as “stern, inflexible and reserved, perfectly just ... never generous ... uncultivated except perhaps by an acquaintance with English literature and history,” and said that he had no friend and was tyrannical (Swade, 2000, p. 22). Of note is the fact that the father suffered from extreme temper tantrums.

Babbage wrote first-class mathematical papers and clearly had an excellent mind. The Newtonian mind was an autistic mind. He wanted “the science of number (to) be mastered by mechanism. The ‘unerring certainty’ of mechanism would eliminate the risk of human error to which numerical calculation was so frustratingly prone” (Swade, 2000, p. 1). Infallible machines would compensate for the frailties of the human mind and extend its powers. No wonder persons with autism were attracted to this notion.

Babbage’s attitude toward God was like that of many much later scientists. He was expelled from Cambridge because he proposed a thesis to prove that God was material. This thesis might have shown naivety and a lack of empathy; putting it forward certainly showed a complete disregard for the religious atmosphere of the university. It was self-destructive.

In 1821 Babbage was “happily married and enjoying the life of a gentleman philosopher in Regency London” (Swade, 2000, p. 25). Clearly this is not typically autistic. Only four of his eight children lived, and his wife died in 1827.

He became obsessed with developing a “calculating engine,” about which he was very secretive. According to Swade (2000), he was “a fierce defender of moral probity” (p. 31).

Work

Babbage “was the great pioneer of computing and was equally famous on two counts — for inventing computers and for failing to build them” (Swade, 2000, p. 5). Babbage’s engine stimulated the debate about the relationship between the mind and the physical mechanism of the brain. The notion that the machine was in some sense “thinking” was not lost on Babbage or his contemporaries. Harry Wilmore Buxton (1988), a younger contemporary of Babbage and his posthumous biographer, noted that Babbage had substituted brass and iron for the pulp and fiber of a brain, and had taught wheelwork to think, or at least to do the office of thought.

Babbage advocated for decimal currency, speculated about linking London and Liverpool by speaking-tubes, and foresaw the exhaustion of coal reserves and the role of tidal power as a source of energy. He kept scribbling books — something like Ludwig Wittgenstein’s and the mathematician Paul Erdés’s notebooks — that ran to between 6,000 and 7,000 sheets.

With monumental effort, he developed a new engine called the analytical engine, which could be programmed by the use of punch cards. According to Swade (2000), the conception and design of the analytical engine ranks as one of the most startling intellectual achievements of the nineteenth century.

In a way this machine describes autistic thinking — the mind of the person with autism is a kind of analytical engine mind. Babbage possibly did not have autism, but he was trying to develop an autistic thinking machine — which really is what a computer is and why persons with autism are so fascinated by computers. Nevertheless, the anthropomorphization of the computer mechanism as an autistic mind is problematical, given the subtlety and irreducibility of every human mind — autistic and nonautistic alike.

Later Ada Augusta Lovelace, the only legitimate daughter of the poet Byron, took an interest in Babbage’s work. Lovelace herself might have had hyperkinetic syndrome; she certainly was quite narcissistic and regarded herself as a genius, which she was not. Nevertheless, she brought Babbage’s analytical engine to the public attention.

Social Behavior

Babbage was “stubborn, determined, and convinced of the justice of [his] own position” (Swade, 2000, p. 61). He was a very sensitive personality. He married quickly without his father’s approval and wrote to his friend John Herschel about the marriage without mentioning his wife’s name. Herschel was shocked by the letter and said to him, “I am married and quarreled with my father — good God Babbage — how is it possible for a man to calmly sit down and pen those two sentences — add a few more which look like self-justification — and pass off to functional equations” (Swade, 2000, p. 21). This is a very autistic behavior.

Babbage was hypersensitive. George Airy, Astronomer Royal, stated that in relation to the calculating machine, “Mr. Babbage made the approval of the machine a personal question. In consequence of this, I, and I believe other persons, have carefully abstained for several years from alluding to it in his presence. I think it is likely that he lives in a sort of dream as to its utility” (Swade, 2000, p. 23).

“Babbage behaved as though being right entitled him to be rude, and the strength of his conviction tended to make him insensitive to the effect of his actions on others. These caustic public attacks were a shocking breach of the conventions of the day” (Swade, 2000, p. 63). He was called the “irascible genius” (see Note 8), was dominating and controlling, and had an “immoderate rage.” His book “alienated the self-same people whose support he needed, and at the same time soured his relationship with the pre-eminent scientific body whose committees had three times recommended government support for his engine” (Swade, 2000, p. 64). He also had major arguments with his engine maker, Joseph Clement, which ended in total breakdown of the relationship, casting him in the role of enfant terrible.

Babbage worked in almost complete isolation. Maurice Wilkes, who studied his unpublished works, concluded, “Ever since going through Babbage’s notebooks, I have been haunted by the thought of the loneliness of his intellectual life during the period when, as he later tells us, he was working 10 or 11 days on the Analytical Engine” (Swade, 2000, p. 226).

There was little doubt that Babbage had serious social relationship difficulties. When his 17-year-old son left for India, Babbage “took his farewell in the library, not troubling to see his son to the waiting cab. His indifference was not lost” on his son (Swade, 2000, p. 172). In some respects he had a fairly similar social life to that of the philosopher Immanuel Kant (Fitzgerald, 2005).

Nevertheless, Babbage became “a sought-after dinner guest. He was a celebrity, an engaging raconteur, full of wit and exuberant invention. To be able to say ‘Mr. Babbage is coming to dinner’ was the pleasure and delight of any hostess” (Swade, 2000, p. 73). Babbage was seen as a bon vivant with a love of dining out and socializing, and a good host and raconteur. With his brightly colored waistcoats, he was also something of a dandy. This is not typically autistic.

According to Swade (2000), Babbage at the age of 60 was “completely left out. Not just ignored, but actively excluded. His reputation for confrontation and protest as well as his earlier radicalism made him ‘unclubbable” ” (p. 185). This is quite autistic. Babbage tended to make himself an object of ridicule. In later life he “wrote pitifully of solitude and loneliness, and revealed the despair to which his efforts, personal sacrifices and lack of recognition had at times reduced him” (Swade, 2000, p. 190).

At his funeral there was only one carriage — that of the Duchess of Somerset — and few mourners. It would appear that both Babbage’s genius and his failure might have been due to his high-functioning autism (if indeed he had this condition — the evidence is inconclusive). He failed in most professional relationships.

Narrow Interests/Obsessiveness

Swade (2000) noted, “The scope of his work was broad even by the generous standards of Victorian polymathy — mathematics, chess, lockpicking, taxation, life assurance, geology, politics, philosophy, electricity and magnetism” (p. 215). This is not typically autistic (although Thomas Jefferson also showed a wide range of interests and was almost certainly autistic). Nonetheless, Babbage became totally absorbed with his computing project by 1826, writing, “I did not pledge myself to devote my whole time exclusively to this project, yet I feel that the liberal and very handsome manner in which I was received at the Treasury would be but ill returned if 1 were to allow any other agreements to impede its progress. I have hitherto given up everything up for this object, situations far more lucrative ... have been sacrificed, and I should not wish to change these sentiments now that it is approaching, I hope, to a successful termination” (Swade, 2000, p. 47). The machine was clearly an obsession for him.

According to Swade (2000), Babbage was “entirely seduced by the intellectual quest and propelled by an unremitting fascination with its mechanical realization” (p. 114). He “was driven by the exploration of the possible. He had glimpsed some profound vision, and he beckons to us over the heads of his contemporaries” (Swade, 2000, p. 117). He felt enormous satisfaction from the process of invention, which kept him so narrowly focused, stating, “I have given up all other pursuits for the sake of this” (Swade, 2000, p. 118). Swade also pointed out, “His pursuit of practical detail came not from any clear ambition to build the machine, but rather from his drive for the mastery of technique and the relish of the intellectual exploration of an extraordinary new world in which he was the first inhabitant” (p. 122).

According to Swade (2000), “Babbage was an inveterate inventor, and delighted in instruments, contrivances and mechanical novelties of all kinds” (p. 177). He was also interested in breaking ciphers and did succeed in breaking one. He had a great capacity to focus and to work — so great that, like Ludwig Wittgenstein and Isaac Newton, people worried about his sanity.

Routines/Control

Babbage was “a stickler for propriety and a fierce defender of moral probity”; he was always expressing “righteous indignation about issues that offended his sense of fairness” (Swade, 2000, p. 31).

Language/Humor

Babbage was a great storyteller, like Hans Christian Andersen and Arthur Conan Doyle (both of whom may have been autistic — see Fitzgerald, 2005). The geologist Charles Lyell stated in 1832, “We have had great fun in laughing at Babbage, who unconsciously jokes and reasons in high mathematics, talks of ‘algebraic equatior’ of such a one’s character in regard to the truth of his stories ... I remarked that the paint on Fitton’s house would not stand, on which Babbage said ‘no, painting a house outside is calculating by the index of minus one,’ or some such phrase, which made us stare; so that he said gravely by way of explanation, “That is to say, | am assuming revenue to be a function.’ All this without pedantry ...” (Swade, 2000, p. 77). This type of thinking would typically reflect high-functioning autism.

Naivety/Childishness

Babbage set himself up as the “self-elected defender of the unwary by exposing scam, craft or infelicitous misrepresentation” (Swade, 2000, p. 50). When government funds ran out, he invested his own money in the project, which was naive.

He wrote a very naive book violently attacking the Royal Society, the premier scientific society of the day in England. He named people and made many accusations against them. This act seems hyperkinetic and impulsive.

He also mishandled his intervention with the Duke of Wellington, then foreign secretary. He was an extraordinarily poor communicator with politicians and frequently made major enemies. The fact that he talked to so few people about his engine probably interfered with its progress. The only place he presented it with great detail was at a meeting he held in Italy. He lacked diplomatic skills.

Anxiety/Depression

Babbage suffered from considerable depression at times, and tried to allay it with work. For example, he wrote Passages from the Life of a Philosopher while in a most distressed state. It reveals “practically nothing of his emotions or of the state of mind he was in when he set off from England” on a continental tour (Swade, 2000, p. 54). This is a kind of autistic style of autobiography. He was quite depressed in 1829, and wrote that he had suffered so severely in health that all his friends, especially the medical ones, were urging him to put his work to one side (Swade, 2000).

Mode of Thought

A scientist and administrator, Lyon Playfair stated, “Babbage was full of information” (Swade, 2000, p. 81). Swade pointed out that it was perhaps no accident that “Pascal and Leibniz in the seventeenth century, Babbage and George Boole in the nineteenth, and Alan Turing and John von Neumann in the twentieth — seminal figures in the history of computing — were all, among their other accomplishments, mathematicians, possessing a natural affinity for symbol, representation, abstraction and logic” (2000, p. 84). The relationship between the rules of logic and “laws of thought” tantalized the thinkers of Babbage’s generation.

Idiosyncrasies

Eccentricity/esotericism. He was very sensitive to noise and organ grinders. He was an eccentric and comic figure. At the end of his life he “spoke as if he hated mankind in general, Englishmen in particular, and the English Government most of all” (Swade, 2000, p. 216).

Lack of common sense. Babbage had a great capacity for self-destruction and was headstrong. His lack of empathy and common sense was shown by the thesis he attempted to defend in the university (i.e., that God was a material agent). It was hardly surprising that he failed in this thesis, which was seen as blasphemous. This rebelliousness and lack of savoir-faire were to seriously impair his career.

Narcissism. Babbage was quite narcissistic and, according to Swade, “ached for recognition, titles and civil honors and growled at their lack.” He was hardly likely to get these with the way that he criticized people (2000, p. 138).

Conclusion

It is possible that in Babbage we have a mathematician of genius who was not autistic, as there are signs both for and against. Against the notion of Asperger Syndrome was the fact that “at Cambridge he enjoyed student life to the full. He formed an enduring friendship with John Herschel ... He played chess, took part in all-night sixpenny whist sessions, and bunked lectures and chapel to go sailing on the river with his chums” (Swade, 2000, p. 18). This does not sound like Asperger Syndrome. Some of Babbage’s characteristics, such as his dandyism and love of socializing, would be more suggestive of hyperkinetic syndrome.

- Michael Fitzgerald, Former Professor of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry

Just finished watching Touched (1983) and Heaven's Prisoners (1996)...

Just finished watching The Grass Is Greener (1960) and The Dark Crystal (1982)...

Now listening to You Can't Stop Rock 'n' Roll by Twisted Sister and The Right Stuff by Bill Conti...

On Dunsmuir Street in Downtown Vancouver. Summer of 2018.

Dunsmuir Street is a major east-west street in downtown Vancouver, British Columbia, running through the heart of the city’s central business district. It stretches from Burrard Street in the west to Cambie Street in the east, where it transitions into Dunsmuir Viaduct, connecting to Prior Street and the Georgia Viaduct. Dunsmuir Street is a key arterial route, parallel to other prominent downtown streets like Georgia Street to the north and Robson Street to the south.

Dunsmuir Street is named after Robert Dunsmuir, a prominent 19th-century Scottish-Canadian coal magnate and politician who played a significant role in British Columbia’s industrial history, particularly through his development of coal mines on Vancouver Island and his involvement in the construction of the Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway.

Dunsmuir Street was established as part of Vancouver’s early grid system in the late 19th century, a period when the city was rapidly growing due to the arrival of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) in 1887. The street’s naming reflects the influence of figures like Robert Dunsmuir, whose wealth and political clout shaped much of BC’s early economic landscape.

Over the decades, Dunsmuir Street evolved from a relatively modest thoroughfare into a central artery in Vancouver’s downtown core. By the mid-20th century, it was surrounded by commercial buildings, and by the late 20th century, it became a hub for office towers, cultural institutions, and transit connections, reflecting Vancouver’s growth into a major metropolitan center.

The City of Vancouver has been working on a project to improve Dunsmuir and Melville Streets, focusing on the stretch between Hornby Street and the Coal Harbour Seawall. This initiative, part of the Downtown Bike Network Expansion, aims to make the area safer and more accessible for walking, biking, and rolling (e.g., using wheelchairs or scooters). Public engagement for this project concluded on October 6, 2024, with the city collecting feedback through surveys and in-person events. An engagement summary was expected to be released in late 2024 or early 2025, which should now be available as of May 2025. Construction is slated to begin in 2026, indicating that preparatory work, such as final design approvals, might be underway now. The upgrades will enhance connectivity between key routes, improving access to the Coal Harbour Seawall, a popular recreational area along the waterfront.

Dunsmuir Street is home to several notable buildings, including Bentall Centre (near Burrard Street). It's a complex of office towers that houses major corporations and is a focal point for business activity. 500 Dunsmuir Street is associated with the Holborn Group of Companies, a real estate firm. The building itself is likely a commercial property, reflecting the street’s role in Vancouver’s business district. Dunsmuir Street is close to cultural landmarks like the Vancouver Art Gallery (on Georgia Street, just north of Dunsmuir) and public spaces like Robson Square, accessible via nearby streets. The Hyatt Regency Hotel is located near Burrard and Dunsmuir, making the area a hub for tourists as well as locals. Retail options, such as those at The Bay store on Granville Street (accessible via Dunsmuir), also contribute to the street’s vibrancy.

Dunsmuir Street is a busy route for vehicular traffic, particularly during rush hours, as it serves as a primary east-west corridor for commuters heading to or from the central business district. The ongoing Dunsmuir/Melville Street upgrades highlight the city’s focus on improving cycling infrastructure. Dunsmuir Street already has a protected bike lane for much of its length, a feature introduced in 2010 as part of Vancouver’s push to become a bike-friendly city. The 2026 upgrades will likely enhance these facilities further. In addition to SkyTrain stations, Dunsmuir Street is served by multiple bus routes, and its proximity to the Granville transit mall (on Granville Street) makes it a key node for public transit users.

The planned upgrades starting in 2026 will likely cause temporary disruptions on Dunsmuir Street, such as lane closures or detours, but the long-term benefits include improved safety and accessibility for all users. Vancouver’s focus on sustainable transit and walkable streets suggests that Dunsmuir Street will continue to evolve into a more eco-friendly corridor, potentially with features like expanded bike lanes, more greenery, and better integration with public transit. As downtown Vancouver grows, Dunsmuir Street may see increased development, such as new high-rises or mixed-use projects, though the city’s emphasis on preserving views and public spaces will likely temper this growth.

Dunsmuir Street’s viaduct section, the Dunsmuir Viaduct, has been a point of contention in Vancouver’s urban planning debates. Some city planners and residents have advocated for its removal (along with the Georgia Viaduct) to reclaim land for parks or housing, a proposal that gained traction in the 2010s and 2020s. As of May 2025, no final decision has been widely publicized, but this could be a future change to watch for.

Dunsmuir Street is a vital part of Vancouver’s downtown core, blending historical significance with modern urban functionality. It’s a hub for business, transit, and cultural activity, and the ongoing upgrades (set to begin in 2026) will enhance its role as a pedestrian- and cyclist-friendly corridor. Its proximity to landmarks like the Bentall Centre, SkyTrain stations, and the Coal Harbour Seawall makes it a central artery in the city’s daily life.

 

Emil Bach House | Chicago Beautiful

 

https://chicago-beautiful.com/emil-bach-house/

The Emil Bach House, located in the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago, is an architectural gem designed by the legendary architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Built in 1915, this Prairie style house is a testament to Wright’s genius and innovation. In this article, we will delve into the history, architecture, and significance of the Emil Bach House, exploring its unique features and its impact on the world of design.

The story of the Emil Bach House begins in 1914 when Emil Bach and his wife Anna purchased the site from Amelia Ludwick. Emil Bach, co-owner of the Bach Brick Company, was an avid admirer of Frank Lloyd Wright’s work. He commissioned Wright to design a house that would reflect his appreciation for Wright’s architectural style. Construction of the house began in 1915, and it quickly became a symbol of Wright’s late Prairie style.

Over the years, the house changed hands several times. In 1934, Joseph Peacock purchased the house from the Bachs and owned it until 1947. The property was then sold twice in 1951 before Manuel Weiss became the owner. In 2003, the house was put up for sale and later listed at a reduced price. After a period of stagnation in the real estate market, the house was finally sold at an auction to Jennifer Pritzker in 2009.

The architecture of the Emil Bach House is a testament to Frank Lloyd Wright’s innovative approach to design. It is part of a series of geometric, cubic homes with overhanging, flat roofs that Wright designed in the early 20th century. Of the houses of this type in Chicago, the Bach House is the only one that remains standing today.

The house features a two-story design with a basement, encompassing approximately 2,700 square feet. Upon its construction, the house boasted a clear view of Lake Michigan from its rear facade. This proximity to the lake was significant for Emil Bach, who suffered from breathing problems and found solace in swimming in the lake every day. The house’s design allowed Bach and his family easy access to the lake, promoting a close connection to nature.

The Emil Bach House holds immense historical and cultural significance. It was declared a Chicago Landmark on September 28, 1977, recognizing its architectural and historical value. Moreover, in 1979, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, solidifying its place as a treasured piece of American architectural heritage.

The house is a shining example of Frank Lloyd Wright’s late Prairie style. Its unique design, with its cubic masses and slab roof, sets it apart from other structures in the area. The Bach House stands as a testament to Wright’s artistic vision and his ability to create harmonious spaces that seamlessly blend with their natural surroundings.

In 2009, after Jennifer Pritzker acquired the house, an extensive restoration took place to preserve its original charm and architectural integrity. The restoration included the creation of a Japanese Tea Garden on the property, paying homage to Wright’s experiences in Japan and their influence on his later works.

The completion of the restoration marked a new chapter in the life of the Emil Bach House. It now serves as a vacation home and event rental space, allowing visitors to experience firsthand the beauty and brilliance of Frank Lloyd Wright’s design.

Today, the House is open to the public for group tours by appointment. It also offers the opportunity for event rentals, allowing guests to immerse themselves in the unique atmosphere of this architectural masterpiece. Whether you are a design enthusiast, an admirer of Frank Lloyd Wright, or simply curious about the history of Chicago’s architectural heritage, a visit to the Emil Bach House is an experience not to be missed.

The Emil Bach House stands as a testament to Frank Lloyd Wright’s genius and innovation. Its unique design, blending seamlessly with its natural surroundings, showcases Wright’s ability to create spaces that inspire and captivate. As you step into the Emil Bach House, you are transported to a world where architecture and nature harmoniously coexist. It is a true masterpiece that continues to inspire and awe visitors from around the world.

Ophelia (1894) and St. Joan (1902) by John William Waterhouse.

Now reading Bridge Of Birds by Barry Hughart...

RPGamer | Feature | RPGs of the Decade – 2000 to 2009 – #1 Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3

 

https://web.archive.org/web/20141110111957/http://www.rpgamer.com/features/decade/decade-1.html

While many other RPGs had bigger budgets and others have had shinier presentations, Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 shows that it's not all glitz and glamour that makes a great RPG. Persona 3 is an experience like no other before it. It blends a dark, edgy story with dungeon crawling, monster collecting, and social interaction in a way that is addictively unique and memorable.

One aspect that sums up the RPGamer love for Persona 3 is the unique feeling that you had never played anything like it before. Shoji Meguro's soundtrack is one of the catchiest collections of tunes in some time and his techno style fit the game's diversity to a tee. One minute the game has you fighting your way through dungeons, battling powerful demons known as shadows, and the next you're in school taking quizzes, doing homework, and making friends. There is no one defining facet of Persona 3, but the blending of all of them is what makes this game an experience you have to play to understand. So whether you are wooing the sexy Mitsuru or just making friends with an elderly couple at a bookstore, Persona 3 is an RPG you just don't want to stop.

Whether you picked up the initial release or waited for FES, Persona 3 is an endearing experience. While Persona 4 no doubt made some major improvements to the system, Persona 3 is where it all originated from. For its story, characters, music, gameplay, and overall originality, Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 is not only our pick for RPG of the Decade, it's easily one of the top RPGs of all time.

Now listening to Go West by Go West and Open Up And Say... Ahh! by Poison...

On Lonsdale Avenue in North Vancouver. Summer of 2018.

Lonsdale Avenue has been a cornerstone of North Vancouver since the city’s early days. When North Vancouver was first established, Lonsdale was planned as a prominent thoroughfare, running right down the middle of the city’s layout. Its strategic importance was tied to its role in transportation—originally, the ferry at the foot of Lonsdale (in Lower Lonsdale) was a key connection point. These ferries, initially privately owned, were later managed by the government as the city grew, ensuring steady access to resources and workforce mobility. This made Lonsdale a vital lifeline for the burgeoning community, connecting it to downtown Vancouver and beyond.

As of 2019, Lonsdale has become a desirable area for young professional families, business owners, and investors. With the cost of living in downtown Vancouver skyrocketing, many are drawn to North Vancouver for a high quality of life while still being close to the city. The avenue features art installations, new parklet outdoor spaces, and some of the North Shore’s best restaurants, shops, cafes, and parks.

Lower Lonsdale, closer to the waterfront, is known for its real estate market, with a mix of houses, apartments, condos, and vacant lots for sale. It’s also home to the Lonsdale Quay Market and the Shipyards, a popular spot for dining, events, and waterfront views.

Further up the avenue, Central Lonsdale is more residential but still vibrant with charming coffee shops, restaurants, and boutique stores. It’s a walkable area with a community feel, often highlighted for its rows of shops and eateries.

Lonsdale Avenue encapsulates the evolution of North Vancouver—from a ferry-dependent settlement to a modern, thriving community. It’s a place where history meets contemporary living, offering a balance of cultural richness, accessibility, and community spirit.

 

The 11 year old who fooled us all| A Lindsay Lohan Retrospective

Blush Bunny gives an analysis of Lindsay Lohan's masterful performance in the 1998 film "The Parent Trap". One girl, two roles. Lindsay Lohan is forever an icon.

Ghost Sweeper Mikami reminded me that anime was exciting and great for a few decades

 

A still from Ghost Sweeper Mikami (1993), directed by Atsutoshi Umezawa

I am now done playing Persona 4 Golden again on my laptop. As I pointed out in an earlier post, this was my second time playing Persona 4 Golden because I played it for the first time on my PlayStation Vita. I'm glad that I'm now done with this video game because I consider it to be a disappointing remaster and port of the original Persona 4, which was released in 2008. It's very unlikely that I will pick up and play Persona 4 Golden again because I will only be playing the original Persona 4 again. I consider the original to be a considerably superior game. I went over some of the disappointing changes in Persona 4 Golden in an earlier post, and, the more I think about these changes, the less I like Persona 4 Golden. I can even say that the changes made in Persona 4 Golden make it a somewhat different game from Persona 4. The team that worked on Persona 4 Golden, which was different from the one that created Persona 4, turned the game into a modern generic, cute, upbeat, cluttered, and easy video game. This team took Persona 4, which is considered by many people to be one of the greatest video games of all time and which is one of my favorite video games, and turned it into a mediocre game that was supposed to be more in line with other popular video games of its time, especially ones for handheld game consoles. They took someone else's vision and added a bunch of nonsense that clashes with this vision. For example, compare the atmosphere in Persona 4 Golden when the weather is rainy with the atmosphere in Persona 4 when the weather is rainy. Because of the changes to the graphics and the designs, the gloomy and calming atmosphere in the original game became an unaffecting atmosphere in Persona 4 Golden. When it rains in the original game, you can see the water on the ground flowing in whichever direction the ground slopes. In Pesona 4 Golden, this effect doesn't exist because the new team didn't want to put in the effort in order to make the game stand out and look like a quality work. Almost all of the changes in Persona 4 Golden are bland and poorly designed. If the original Persona 4 had still been readily available for purchase, I wouldn't have given Persona 4 Golden another thought and would have simply forgotten about this poor remaster. But, unfortunately, it's this poor remaster that is readily available for purchase and not the original, which is now stuck on the PlayStation 2. As I pointed out in an earlier post, I consider almost all video game remakes and remasters to be inferior to the originals. Almost all of the games that get remade or remastered are great video games and not bad or forgotten video games. These video games are great because they got made by certain people at a certain time. They almost always get remade or remastered decades later by less talented or less inspired people that are "just doing their job". Such people don't make great or original video games themselves, but they are given the task of remaking great video games by the companies that they work for in order to make a quick and easy profit, since they don't really have to come up with anything new themselves and since remakes, and especially remasters, don't take a long time to make. It's almost like seeing some bad art student in the 21st century trying to make a copy of Michelangelo's Pieta and making changes to the sculpture that he considers to be better than the master sculptor's ideas. What makes the matter worse is that Atlus is actively trying to remove PS2 Persona 4 ROM files on the internet by using copyright claims. So, not only is this company pushing a corrupted and poor remaster onto the consumer, it's also trying to deny people from accessing the superior original game for the PS2. Therefore, I won't be buying anything that's made by this company anymore. Even if this company manages to release an amazing Persona 6 game some time in the future, which I very much doubt that it will be able to do, I won't be buying another one of its new games. It's clear that this company isn't in the business of making great video games anymore and that it's only in the business of providing projects for its new untalented employees and of obliterating any alternatives to its new video games on the internet. The dastardly practices of companies like Nintendo and Atlus make me glad that I own older consoles like the Xbox 360 (the original white model) and the PlayStation 3 (the original black model). The rather high launch price of the Nintendo Switch 2 has finally caused many gamers to become angry with Nintendo. I have been angry with Nintendo for a long time already, and I won't be buying the Switch 2 in 2025, just like I didn't buy the Nintendo Switch in 2017. The Switch is an expensive and poorly designed console that can do almost nothing except play Switch games. Sure, it has been commercially successful but that's mostly due to the fact that Nintendo has done a good job of marketing this console and to the fact that the other console manufacturers haven't been able to release successful alternatives to the Switch in the eighth generation of video game consoles. The release of the popular and critically acclaimed games The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild and Super Mario Odyssey also helped to boost sales of the Switch right after its launch and to build momentum in 2017 and into 2018. But it seems that now Nintendo has even managed to anger some of the tourists with the high prices of the Switch 2 and its video games. The tourists are those gamers that buy any new console that's being advertised or any new console that they see on store shelves or in online marketplaces. They don't care about the history of video games, they rarely care about the quality of video games, and they don't care about video game preservation. They just buy whatever it is that's readily available. Now that playing video games has become a very popular hobby, and not just a hobby for certain children or nerds, there are many, many tourists out there. Well, although some of the tourists may be angry at Nintendo now, I'm sure that almost all of them will still buy the Switch 2 and Nintendo's bad new video games sooner or later after they get released. It's because these people just go with the flow and they don't stay angry for long. While some of the tourists were fuming from seeing the price of Nintendo's lame new console, I was finishing to play Gears Of War 3 on my beautiful Xbox 360. I have owned my Xbox 360 for a few years already, and it hasn't failed me yet. I take good care of my electronic devices and of my other possessions. If I don't need something, I sell it on eBay, even at a small monetary loss if that's necessary. If an electronic device fails, the cause is usually overheating. There's a reason why many electronic devices have cooling fans. Motherboards and circuit boards in video game consoles or in computers get damaged by heat. Therefore, it's important not to keep electronic devices turned on in tight or small spaces where they can easily overheat. It's a good idea to get rid of the dust that builds up on electronic devices so that heat can continue to escape from them through slots. It's also a good idea not to keep electronic devices with batteries plugged in and charging for a long time because batteries fail and become useless because of long charging periods. It's best to disconnect a charging cable from an electronic device with a battery from time to time, even for a few minutes, if you don't want to buy a new battery. The first two Gears Of War games are dominated by the colors grey, black, and brown, with the action usually taking place at night or during cloudy or rainy weather. Gears Of War 3, on the other hand, has a multicolor palette, with the action taking place at daytime and during sunny weather. Gears Of War 3 doesn't seem to me to be quite as epic as Gears Of War 2, which is probably the best Gears game. In the first few chapters of Gears Of War 3, the player has to fight off Lambent creatures and a Lambent Leviathan. Although the visuals and the designs in the first few chapters are impressive, they are not quite on par with the grandiose visuals of Gears Of War 2, where you have to fight off a giant riftworm and where you get to see the sunken and burning ruins of a big city. The palace of the Locust queen Myrrah in Gears Of War 2 seems to me to be the most impressive sight in all of the Gears games, but the hotel in Azura in Gears Of War 3 does come close, I suppose. The impressive visuals of Azura and the excellent designs of the hotel contribute to making the last two chapters of Gears Of War 3 seem like an epic finale. Overall, I very much enjoyed playing Gears Of War 3 because it's very similar to Gears Of War 2 when it comes to visuals and gameplay and because I have become very familiar with the gameplay of the Gears games by now. Playing the third installment was like riding a bicycle again after a short break since I finished playing Gears Of War 2 not long before that. There's really nothing to complain about. Gears Of War 3 is one of the best and most memorable video games for the Xbox 360.

Watching the fifth episode of Ghost Sweeper Mikami recently reminded me of why I like to watch anime. Of course, this doesn't mean that I like to watch all anime. Much of the anime that has come out after the mid-2000s is bland and unwatchable for me. And I'm not just saying this for no reason. I really have seen a number of modern anime films and series that are considered to be good by modern anime fans. Doing this was mostly disappointing and a waste of my time because modern anime generally isn't that good. But the anime from the 1980s and the 1990s, the golden age in my opinion, is often irresistible for me. Anyway, I didn't think that I'd be making a post about anime again, at least not for a long while, because I'm not an avid anime viewer. But watching Ghost Sweeper Mikami and also films like Vampire Wars (1991), Vampire Hunter D (1985), Princess Mononoke (1997), Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation (2000), and Bye Bye, Lady Liberty (1989) recently reminded me that anime from the golden age is truly exciting and great. The fifth episode of Ghost Sweeper Mikami, titled The Howling Of The Haunted Mansion!, is a surprisingly moving episode about a boy and his dog. Moreover, the animation in some scenes is just so striking and lovely, especially for an episode from a long TV series. I began watching the TV series after I watched the hour-long 1994 film, which was released by Manga Entertainment in North America. I found out a little later that Ghost Sweeper Mikami was created by Toei Animation, which is a studio that made many other great anime series, such as Dragon Ball, Sailor Moon, Digimon, and Fist Of The North Star. Dragon Ball Z and Fist Of The North Star are another two anime series that I am slowly watching now. I have already seen Sailor Moon, about a decade ago, because a sort of friend of mine recommended it when I was going to high school. Sailor Moon is actually another great anime series that features lovely animation, memorable music, and openings and endings (such as Moonlight Densetsu and Heart Moving) that are bursting with creativity and originality. Watching Dragon Ball Z with the original Japanese openings and endings also makes the viewing experience so much better. Back in the day, some anime viewers and critics didn't appreciate Sailor Moon because they thought of it as just a show for girls and a monster-of-the-week show. Of course, that was when anime wasn't as bland and unoriginal as it is now, and those people didn't care and didn't know about things like creativity, film history, originality, and craftsmanship. Many people weren't like that. Sailor Moon was a very popular show. But there were some insecure and badly-informed viewers that mocked shows like Sailor Moon only to look cool. And let's not forget that anime wasn't as popular back then as it is now. Sailor Moon is one of the shows that contributed to making anime popular in North America. Anyway, there is a video creator on YouTube who described the situation somewhat better than me. His username is Super Eyepatch Wolf, and he had the following to say in his video about the film Akira. "After all, Akira doesn't look like modern anime. It doesn't move like modern anime. Hell, it doesn't feel like modern anime. Nothing about Akira is even remotely reminiscent of what anime has become, and that's a big part of what makes it special, as Akira was the culmination of one of the most exciting times in anime's history, the mid to late 80s, an era that many have dubbed the golden age of anime. This title is more than just a rose-hewed tinting of the past, however. There were very specific factors that made anime of this era special. Japan of the 1980s was for the first time since World War II starting to see a major economic upturn. This brought the Tokyo stock market index to an all time high and surged Japan's economy to heights it had never seen, which meant that a comfortable middle class lifestyle was now available to anyone willing to don a shirt and tie and embrace the life of a salaryman. This excess in disposable income meant that there was now a massive influx of money to both consume and create film and animation, with anime films in particular seeing an unprecedented growth. In the 1970s, 49 animated feature films were produced in Japan. But, in the 1980s, that number more than quadrupled to 220. The golden age of anime was more than just a fiscal boom, however. At this point, anime had been a commodified industry in Japan for more than two decades, which meant that by the mid-80s there were professional animators in Japan who had been honing their skills for nearly 30 years, while the generation that had grown up with the works of these masters were now just entering the animation industry for the first time and together the two groups were beginning to realize the potential these films could unleash. Just as critically though the anime industry was still relatively new. This was a time before anime had really become anime, before otaku culture had really galvanized and fans started looking to anime for hyperspecific things, and before studios started to pander to them. And so, what you had was a flourishing industry awash with cash, filled with skilled and passionate animators, who were for the first time realizing the full potential of animation and who weren't trying to adhere to an abstract concept of what anime should be. And the results were projects that were aimed at no one and therefore could be appreciated by everyone. Beautiful expressions of mood and tone like Angel's Egg. Thoughtful and harrowing depictions of the chaos brought about by war like Grave of the Fireflies. Joyous flights of imagination like My Neighbor Totoro. Or insanely polished OVAs like Gunbuster. Anime from this period is often seen as hyperviolent and grotesque and sexualized, and, while it certainly is in a lot of cases, to me this adult content was also a sign that Japan's animators were realizing that animation didn't need to adhere to any one audience, that it could depict literally anything and this was them slamming up against the boundaries of those preconceptions. And so, the 80s became awash with anime that was experimental and adult and gorgeous. And the precipice of this came in 1988 in the form of Akira."

'Very much in a free fall': B.C. doctors sound the alarm as drop-in medical clinics disappear

 

https://vancouversun.com/news/bc-doctors-sound-alarm-drop-in-medical-clinics-disappear

Shortage of doctors and incentives to work in family practice has cut walk-in clinics by a third to a half in B.C.

The NDP’s efforts to improve health care through a new payment model for family physicians and the establishment of urgent and primary care centres has had the unintended consequence of cutting the ranks of walk-in clinics across the province.

According to the medical mapping service MediMap, the number of walk-in clinics across B.C. has dropped between 30 to 50 per cent in recent years as clinics move to an appointment-only model or close their doors.

This has led some doctors to warn that there are fewer and fewer options for immediate care in the province as urgent-care-clinic appointments remain hard to book in certain communities and emergency room waiting times continue to skyrocket.

Dr. Rita McCracken, a family physician and UBC assistant professor in the family practice department, said part of the problem is the new payment model introduced by then-health minister Adrian Dix in 2023 that aims to retain family physicians through better compensation. The model encourages doctors to work in family practice instead of putting in hours at a walk-in clinic, she said.

She likened health care to the education system and wants the province to increase the capacity of primary care, arguing that neither walk-in clinics nor urgent and primary care centres are an ideal model.

“If we want people to have better access to primary care when they need it, we need to have clinics that have the capacity to be able to provide care to the people that live close by, just like we do for elementary schools,” McCracken said.

“I’m not saying that there aren’t many, many problems with education right now, but if we just kind of take a look at that model of access to public education, we’ve completely thrown that out the window when it comes to primary care.”

She said there needs to be a wholesale rethinking of how primary care is provided to people without a family doctor and that interested parties such as municipalities and community groups need to come together to figure out a solution.

Some physicians say they have seen first-hand the effects of the decline of walk-in clinics.

Dr. Kevin Mcleod, a North Vancouver-based internal medicine specialist, says people now come to see him for basic ailments, such as a bladder infection, that would be better dealt with by a general physician.

“They don’t need to see me as a specialist, but they have nowhere else to go.”

Mcleod said a walk-in clinic across the street from his office has papered over a sign saying “no appointment necessary,” indicating it has moved to an appointment-only model.

The company that owns the clinic, Well Health Technologies Corp., did not respond to a request for comment, but a representative of the North Vancouver clinic said it does still accept non-registered patients, those patients now need to make an appointment.

“I know the government gives their statistics that thousands of people are getting attached to a family doctor, but there’s still 800,000 people who aren’t and where do they go?” asked McLeod. “A lot of people don’t realize (that) if your family doctor retires or deactivates their college number, any outstanding refills or renewals of medications that you might have at your pharmacy are all automatically cancelled.”

Angie Gaddy, a spokesperson for the B.C. Pharmacy Association, said in an email this was not accurate, pointing out that in June the College of Pharmacists of B.C. adopted new protocols allowing pharmacists to take on and renew prescriptions from retired practitioners. The new protocols came into effect in August.

Josie Osborne, B.C.’s new health minister, said she is aware of the challenges in getting primary care.

Osborne says the main challenge is the shortage of health-care professionals in B.C. and believes the province’s efforts to recruit more physicians, nurse practitioners and other health workers fields will help.

As for treading the line between encouraging doctors to go into family practice and working at a walk-in clinic, the minister said it will be a matter of working with family doctors and health-care professionals in each community.

“The nature of the way primary care is being delivered is changing, and we’re seeing that in what physicians want, in terms of their work life, their work style, but also in needing to stand up clinics that work for communities and being able to tailor them well for what a community’s needs are,” said Osborne.

MediMap CEO Thomas Jankowski said solutions are needed in short order as the closures of clinics has made waiting times at remaining walk-in clinics rise by 60 per cent. Meanwhile, emergency room waiting times continue to worsen as more people lose access to other options for primary care.

According to the provincial government’s website, all or most of the walk-in clinics in communities like Victoria, Surrey, Langley and Maple Ridge are by appointment only. Nanaimo only has one walk-in clinic.

“Wait times at ERs are getting horrific right now, and this might be actually the first year that we’ll talk about ER waiting times more openly as we’re starting to monitor those across the country as well. We’re seeing now the first year in which it’s quite regular to see entire ERs close because of staffing issues because of doctor burnout,” said Jankowski.

“I just feel that health care is very much in a free fall right now, and we’re not really thinking of systemic solutions in a way that truly address this, as opposed to moving the puck from one place to another, which isn’t working.”