After more than two decades, Dr. Mike Copland – the founding chair of the BC Renal Home Hemodialysis (HHD) Committee – is stepping down from this role after the recruitment of a new chair. Through Mike’s committed leadership, significant advancements in provincial home hemodialysis practices and care have been achieved, positively impacting the lives of patients across the province and the sustainability of the health system.
The HHD Committee was originally formed subsequent to a project Mike spearheaded called Innovative Approaches to the Management of Hemodialysis, which aimed to promote independent care in a standardized way across all health authority renal programs. Of note, BC was the first jurisdiction in North America to approach home hemodialysis this way.
While it’s impossible to list all of Mike’s contributions since 2004, some notable achievements include:
- Strategic direction, guidance, and medical expertise to both the committee and oversight to the BC Renal HHD Educators group to enhance and foster excellence in the delivery of independent hemodialysis in home or facility-based settings.
- Establishing a structured HHD training program to equip kidney health professionals with specialized knowledge and ensure high-quality care.
- Contributing his expertise to a broad range of initiatives, including development of HHD quality data indicators and reporting, enhancement of safety and management protocols to improve staff and patient training, and development of HHD best practice guidelines to support excellence and equity of care across the province.
- Leadership in business and vendor relations for HHD equipment and supplies contracts, including maintaining partnerships and networking with external organizations nationally.
- Driving the provincial implementation of a two-machine HHD model to improve access to home hemodialysis across the province.
- Overseeing the creation of provincial protocols and resources to address barriers to independence for home hemodialysis patients.
- Supporting the development of provincial, national and international home hemodialysis leaders as a supervisor for the UBC/BC Renal Home Therapies fellowship training program for nephrologists. Many of the trainees have gone on to hold leadership positions in various jurisdictions, from Quebec to the United Kingdom to Thailand, and continue to collaborate with BC Renal to foster global knowledge exchange and innovation.
Mike’s vision and leadership have been instrumental in advancing home hemodialysis practices, improving patient care, and fostering independence among patients across British Columbia.
We extend our deepest gratitude to Mike for his extensive contributions, which will continue to shape the future of home hemodialysis care in the BC, nationally and worldwide.
Mike will continue to serve as Senior Medical Lead at BC Renal and as the Medical Director for Vancouver Coastal Health/Providence Health Care.
BC Renal is recruiting a new chair for the Home Hemodialysis Committee who will work closely with Mike during the transition.
