On average, women with endometriosis wait more than five years to get a diagnosis in Canada, and women with heart disease are still more likely to be misdiagnosed or dismissed compared to men.
Access to crucial viral Ebola data has been denied for more than 12 years.
With all of the challenges and crises we face, eliminating PFASforever chemicals one thing we can do to stand up for our health and our heroes. Let’s not let another season go by without taking this important next step to protect ourselves and our communities.
The federal Liberal government ordered an external review about the use of science advice during the pandemic but there is little awareness of this report. ‘No one said a peep about this report, like it was done and moved along,’ says infectious disease specialist Dr. Isaac Bogoch.
A broader and more comprehensive review in which professionals from different sectors are interviewed can only do good. Will there be a financial cost? But would the cost reach as high as the financial and human toll of fighting COVID-19? Absolutely not.
Proposed reforms to pesticide regulations place immediate economic considerations above health costs that are harder to measure in quarterly budgets, but are very real in people’s lives.
The next step for Ottawa is clear. The Canada Health Act provides that the government ‘shall’ reduce transfer payments to provinces for extra-billing or user charges. If there are no financial consequences to Alberta, the financial pressures on other governments to follow suit will be hard to resist.
Nobody in Ottawa wants to guarantee records would be released in a timely fashion, let alone that historic records will be quickly declassified.
Canada already lacks adequate safeguards and oversight for medical assistance in dying. Pausing the practice for mental illness should only be the start.
Renewing the ban on MAID for mental illness would create additional injustices for the disabled community.
Unpaid caregivers contribute an estimated $97-billion in unpaid labour each year. We have been quietly offloading the cost of care onto families. The bill is coming due.
Dr. Richard Hatchett was recently in Ottawa seeking support for the project. His trip’s timing—amid news of the spread of hantavirus on a cruise ship—was a coincidence, but has reinforced ‘that these kinds of threats are continually and unpredictably emerging,’ he says.
Health Canada has six sets of funding deals with provinces and territories—some of which expire next March. Marjorie Michel will only confirm she’s in talks to renew the ‘Working Together’ deals.
After my suicide attempt, I encountered a system that was difficult to navigate. There was uncertainty about where to turn and long waits for care. In some cases, people are waiting up to 710 days for access to professional support. No one should have to rely on luck to get help.
Through my smoking and vaping cessation clinic, I see the impact of federal inaction. Youth who succumbed to the allure of flavoured vapes have become frustrated young adults dealing with the consequences of nicotine dependence. A strong federal ban now would help ensure fewer young people ever have to come through our doors.
Canada is drawing on the human capital of countries with fragile health systems while stepping back from investing in those same systems.
The Liberal caucus includes seven physicians. It’s difficult to imagine they are blind to efforts that appear to embrace building the nation while somehow ignoring building a healthy Canada.
Midwifery care improves patient experiences, delivers safe, high-quality outcomes, and reduces pressure on hospitals by providing the right care, in the right place, at the right time.
A committee of 15 MPs and Senators is considering whether eligibility for medical assistance in dying should be expanded. Their work has been subject to criticism from some—including Senators—that most of the testimony has come from those opposed to the move.
We have always known that vaccines are cost-effective. In an unpredictable world, they are also strategic. Canada is rightly investing in the capacity to build its immune arsenal. The harder question—and the more urgent one—is whether we are ready to use it.
Health Minister Marjorie Michel’s office says it is ‘committed to preventing vaping,’ but does not promise to ban flavours.
‘Where is R&D flourishing right now? It’s not in the U.S. It’s not in Europe. It’s in China,’ says IMC’s Bettina Hamelin at Canada’s Drug Agency’s annual symposium.
Accepting the truth of health inequity requires us to be honest about the fact that not everyone starts from the same place.
Finding solutions to improve mental health in LTC workers requires the federal and provincial governments to work together.
