The neighbourhoods where we live, work and play strongly influence our health

 Since John Snow mapped out the large cholera outbreak in 1854 to where people lived in London, it has been known that where we live, work and play strongly influences people’s health. The way that our cities and towns have been built plays a large role in many of the

Pokémon Go Shows There is a Better Way to Promote Healthy Behaviours

 By Tanishq Suryavanshi and Steven J. Hoffman The recent release of Pokémon Go, the mobile phone augmented reality game, has taken the world by storm. The game has become a fitness icon, requiring players to walk or run around in the real world to catch Pokémon creatures in their virtual world.

How Doctors Can Tackle the Their Patients’ Poverty Without Leaving the Office

 Can a question asked in a doctor’s office contribute to ending poverty for patients and their families?  This is what we asked ourselves 10 years ago, as we set out to convince health providers to tackle poverty. There were two factors that pushed us into this work: first, the evidence

Pharmacare is Good for Business

 Repeatedly over the past 50 years, national commissions and inquiries have recommended that Canadian medicare include universal, public coverage of prescription drugs. So far, no government has acted on this, creating profound inequities and inefficiencies in our health care system. But more than that: the lack of universal pharmacare is

How Technology is Transforming Health Care – Cheryl-Anne’s Story

 Cheryl-Anne was diagnosed with a very rare form leukemia, a complex disease to understand. She believed part of getting well depended upon understanding her disease, her treatments and their effects. She needed to become a full, participating, engaged patient. She needed to get information. Before digital health tools were available

Why Our Governments Need to Address Poverty Now

 Canadians might be surprised to learn that 86 families now hold more wealth than the poorest 11.4 million Canadians. Is this a Canada to be proud of? Hardly. According to many studies, the Canadian poverty rate remains high. A recent OECD report shows that the very rich are taking an

BC Fails to Improve Primary Health Care After More Than a Billion Dollar Investment

 Increased doctor incentives do not improve access to care Since 2006, British Columbia has spent more than a billion dollars to improve primary health care.  So have BC patients benefited from such a massive investment?  Sadly, it appears not. Primary care -- access to doctors and nurses for general health

The Digital Health Highway

 by Richard Alvarez Q How can I use digital tools to improve my health? A Managing a chronic disease requires a lot of monitoring, as Brian Campkin discovered following surgery to repair three arteries that were clogged at nearly 100 per cent. Brian’s heart disease was discovered following a heart