Team Up! Webinar | Nurse Practitioners: Primary Care Providers
Team Up! Team-Based Primary & Community Care in Action is a webinar and podcast series that aims to connect individuals and teams, identify tools to apply to current work underway and share experiences in team-based care across the province.
We explore the role of Nurse Practitioners as Primary Care Providers. Hear from our expert panel of NP’s practicing in primary care settings
Shared Resources
Kelvin Bei is a seasoned nurse practitioner, doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and healthcare leader. He is a strong advocate for team-based primary care with over a decade of experience working in community health centres in rural and urban settings. His current practice is at RISE Community Health Centre, serving folks in the Joyce-Collingwood neighborhood. Kelvin wears many leadership hats, one of which is as the Vancouver & Coastal Regional Lead with the NP Provincial Initiatives Program. Outside of work, he enjoys forest bathing and savouring a cup of good oolong tea.
Sonja Rietkerk has been a Family Nurse Practitioner (NP) in BC for 15 years. She is deeply committed about providing comprehensive team-based care and about addressing the Social Determinants of Health in primary care practice. Since Sept 2019 Sonja has been working as the Clinical lead and NP at a new Community Health Centre- RISE, which serves the Renfrew- Collingwood neighborhood in Vancouver, BC. As part of the RISE management team she provides clinical leadership, mentorship, consultation, oversight and evaluation for a diverse interdisciplinary team of over thirty health care providers. Throughout her nursing career she’s had the privilege of working in a variety of healthcare settings including St. Paul’s Hospital, BC Children’s Hospital, BC Women’s Hospital, various community clinics and has international experiences in Liberia and Uganda. For the majority of her NP career she provided primary care for refugees and newcomers to Canada, including working at Bridge Clinic in Vancouver and New Canadian Clinics in the Fraser Health Authority. She is also experienced and has a keen interest in women’s health and sexual health, and has worked at the Vancouver Women’s Health Collective in the Downtown Eastside. Outside of work, Sonja loves staying active with her husband and 3 children, sharing meals with friends, and travelling.
Chelsea Bruce completed her nursing degree and critical care specialty at BCIT. She spent nine years working as an RN in nephrology and critical care. She completed her Master of Nursing in Nurse Practitioner through Athabasca University in 2017. She worked with kidney transplant recipients before venturing into primary care in a PCN contract in 2019 in the Fraser Northwest. Chelsea now works part-time in this role and part-time as a regional lead for NNPBC Provincial Initiatives and Programs for the Fraser Region. Outside of work, she enjoys being active and spending time with her two dogs.