Meet Wen Nie, MD, CCFP
Wen was born in Urumqi, China, and moved to Regina in her teens. She joined the Canadian Armed Forces as a diesel technician at 17 and was later commissioned as a medical officer. She deployed with NATO, supporting missions such as fire, flood, humanitarian efforts, and Arctic sovereignty patrols.
Wen is keenly aware of the challenges and rewards of being a visible minority female immigrant, having survived her own PTSD stemming from service. After leaving the uniform, she participated in the 2025 Invictus Games and volunteered on the Women Veterans Council convened by the Minister of Veteran Affairs. She currently advises the CAF's Directorate of Force Health Protection, advocating for women and diverse members in uniform.
With 15 years of experience in Family Medicine and two years as a PFSP Assessment Physician, Wen's practice has transitioned to a combination of occupational medicine, medical leadership, and exploring the medical potential of AI.
What inspired you to become a PFSP Assessment Physician?
It was during COVID that I began to experience symptoms of burnout. I called the PFSP for help and was connected to an amazing therapist. It has been tough work, but over time, I made incremental changes to my practice and relationship with work. Once I found my footing and was well on my way, I sought out this opportunity to join the PFSP team, hoping to be there for other physicians/learners when things get a bit rough.
What expectations did you have going into this role, and which of those expectations have been realized?
I expected to hear about burnout, systemic structural changes in the healthcare landscape, and especially the political directions with primary care. I hear about these in abundance.
What has surprised you most about the role when providing peer support?
What surprised me the most about peer support during these calls is the diversity of callers, in terms of specialties, cultures, and families of origin. Myself, being a visible minority female immigrant who started my career in the military, I found common ground quite easily with many of our callers.
I found myself being able to empathize particularly well with those who shared my lived experiences, such as being an immigrant, and working in a very male dominated landscape. I think it resonated within my callers too, particularly younger female learners/physicians with family of origin expectations that differed from Canadian norms. Growing up, I often found myself at odds between what was expected of me to excel in Canada, vs what my family expected. And these expectations often were conflicting.
There are also a lot of interpersonal situations, workplace relationships, and especially relationships in the personal spheres, which cause stress and friction in our caller population. One great trend I am seeing is the destigmatization of asking for help, and especially in the learner population! Learning and earning the mental health tool belt earlier in career, is a great trend to see!
I feel a big boost in fulfillment after each of my call weeks, knowing my life journeys helped me to help others.
What is the most satisfying aspect of your role as an Assessment Physician?
I really enjoy working with this caller group, because I get them, and they get me! It is so nice to commiserate over the same system barriers, and chat with acronyms (R1, M4, CARMS, LMCC...) without having to clarify ourselves. Being at the same level is very important when it comes to peer support and counselling. I also love the fact that this caller group tends to be active participants in their own wellness journey.
There has never been a call week when I didn't learn something new about myself, the system and the world of peer support. I also love the new group of coworkers I am part of now in the PFSP. It is a trauma-informed, positively cultured, and safe space to learn and grow.
What do you find to be the most challenging aspect of being an Assessment Physician?
As Assessment Physicians we are on call one week at a time and support many of our colleagues during that week. Our role is to provide peer support and offer external resources for ongoing care but not to act in a treatment capacity, so there is no opportunity for ongoing relationships with callers. I find this challenging because with each conversation you develop a rapport with the caller and have an emotional investment in their outcomes, similar to a patient encounter.
I also find it challenging that sometimes, I get a call, where I do not feel I have established a connection/rapport with my caller. I wonder afterwards if they gained any benefit. Over time, just like with my patient population, sometimes there is just no click. And it is ok. I try to reflect on the interaction and figure out how I can improve it next time. Perfection is the enemy of progress!
What are some key lessons you have learned when providing peer support as a PFSP Assessment Physician?
For me, I think being clear is being kind. PFPS callers sometimes find themselves in a tricky, escalated situation, where insight may be clouded. Over time, I found that it is kinder to be clear, instead of dancing around the issues, trying to be nice about it. This allows us to get the facts out of the way and come from the same perspective when we explore next steps.
It is never my goal to advise the caller of what to do next. I hope to be a mirror of reflection, rendering multiple perspectives on the situation, so the caller can reflect and determine the course of action that is right for them in that moment. Ultimately, they are in the driver’s seat, and I am lending them a settled nervous system to hold space.
What peer support advice would you share with AB physicians about caring for their wellness?
Build the mental health tool belt early. Create familiarity with it and revisit often. Reframe adverse situations as opportunities to work on the mental health tool belt.
Date yourself! Get curious about yourself, your reactions, and feelings, and try to find patterns in these. The more you know about yourself, the more you can work on negative patterns that do not facilitate growth.
Let go of the stigma of mental health and seek help early. These stigmas are often reinforced by our past experiences and hinder the present.
Please share a quote/statement that best describes your experience when providing peer support as a PFSP Assessment Physician.
“The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails.”
William Arthur Ward
What interesting/fun fact would you like to share about yourself?
I love scuba diving!
There is nothing quite like it, floating weightless in the blue, yoga breathing hyperbaric air, without distractions from screens, and watching creatures big and small unencumbered by cages!