Study shows shorter stays in nursing homes in provinces with more community care

 Photo credit: Domink Lange The latest census in 2016 shows that almost 17 per cent of Canadians are now over age 65 – we are an aging populace, there’s no getting around it.  In fact, those older than age 85 increased by almost 20 per cent since 2011, making it the fastest

New online tool gives fitness tracker-style incentive to achieve gender parity

 By: Shari Graydon Could the incentivizing power of a fitness tracker be adapted to help achieve gender equality in the media, enhancing Canadian democracy in the process? After a year of collaboration with a team of big data scientists, we’re about to find out. Despite the increasing attention paid to

Canada needs more Restorative Justice

 By: Art Eggleton and Raymonde Saint-Germain The Department of Justice conducted a survey earlier this year and discovered that over half of Canadians (52 per cent) have little familiarity with what’s known as “Restorative Justice” despite its use in our criminal justice system for over forty years. So what is

Is there a conservative case against the carbon tax? Not really

 By: Jim Farney Conservative politicians across Canada have strongly opposed the Trudeau government’s promise to impose carbon tax since the idea was floated in 2015. Beginning with Premier Wall in Saskatchewan, opposition to the carbon tax is now a central commitment of conservative Premiers Palliser, Moe and Ford, as well

Advice for cold and flu season

 By: Guylène Thériault and Wendy Levinson Cold and flu season for many Canadians means getting ready to have their lives and routines thrown off by painful and annoying symptoms. This can mean days off work or school dealing with sore throats, nasal congestion and fever. For parents, it can be challenging to

Climate change is a global health emergency: Federal pipeline needs independent assessment, global health leaders say

 By: Tim K. Takaro and Jennifer Miller After a summer that saw over 90 heat-related deaths in Quebec, drought-impacted crops across the Prairies, and large swaths of Western Canada and Ontario ravaged by wildfires and shrouded in smoke, many of the world’s leading experts gathered in San Francisco at the

Big change takes big courage: New way to pay hospitals offers lessons on change management

 By: Karen Palmer and Noah Ivers If there’s one thing provincial governments across Canada can agree on, it’s that the status quo in health care is no longer good enough to deliver equitable access to high quality care in a cost-efficient manner. Ontario’s Ministry of Health under the previous government has

Mental health therapies should be fully funded by medicare

 By: Helen-Maria Vasiliadis Media headlines tell us in detail about the mental health struggles of Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain before their deaths by suicide.  But what too often goes untold are the stories of thousands of people who die by suicide every year in Canada – our friends, relatives,

Why it’s Never too Late for Low Income Canadians to File Their Taxes

 Those earning $40,000 a year or less may be eligible for a range of benefits. Most Canadians would like to see an end to poverty.  What if we told you that one organization, using the existing social benefits system, found a way to get $21 million into the pockets of

British Columbia’s Failed Healthcare Experiment

 Paying Doctors More Did Not Improve Primary Care – and Cost the Province Hundreds of Millions of Dollars Our first point of contact with the health system – often referred to as ‘primary care’ – should result in prompt and efficient care for our general health concerns, and coordinate our

Interview: Why do Canada’s Children Lag so Far Behind?

 In a recent UNICEF report, Canada ranked in the bottom half of the world’s richest countries in overall child well-being and child equality. Experts say that a lack of access to healthcare and inadequate supports for parents are reasons why Canada lags behind. In the video below, Dr. Denis Daneman and

What Real Inclusion Looks Like

 How community building to include kids of all abilities is important for everyone. Getting to be a valued member of their community should be the norm for all kids – but for kids with autism, it is too frequently not the case. Media stories are full of parental struggles to

Solving Canada’s Opioid Epidemic Must Include Tackling What Got Us into the Predicament in the First Place

 By all accounts we are in the midst of a deadly drug epidemic so severe and widespread few people in North America will remain untouched by it.  In case you think I’m exaggerating, right now we have probably the highest rates of narcotic abuse and deaths in modern history. Critics

Time to Re-Think Health Care Policy for the Elderly

 As the Canadian population continues to age, there is a need to revisit conventional thinking regarding the provision of health care services for seniors to ensure that the system is sustainable for all Canadians. There are a number of misperceptions in current thinking. First, there is a belief that a

The Last Chapter: Death on Your Own Terms

 A Supreme Court judgment now permits some Canadians to approach death on their own terms. Who should those Canadians be? An essay by Catherine Frazee For some of us, the book of life will close abruptly. A sudden pop or crunch or snap, and we’ll be gone. Perhaps some body

Combating the Over-medication of Seniors

 Time to accelerate the rate of change. The case of ‘too much medication’ in Canadian seniors is finally starting to be recognized for the serious problem it has become.  Seniors are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of too many prescription drugs because aging affects their ability to process medications.

Ending Homelessness Through Housing First Initiatives

 Up to 15 per cent of the homeless population in Canada is struggling with mental illness. Could giving them a permanent home be a way off the streets and into a healthier life? In this interview, Evidence Network's podcast editor Mélanie Meloche-Holubowski speaks with Dr. Jino Distasio, Director of the Institute of Urban Studies

A Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Tax is not the Answer

 There has been increasing interest in the use of a sugar-sweetened beverage tax to curb the burden of obesity in Canada – call it a ‘pop tax’ if you like. A recent Senate report on obesity in Canada recommends assessing the possibility of a sugar-sweetened beverage tax and points to

Why American Doctors Are Calling For Canadian-Style Medicare

 And How Canada Risks Losing the Health Advantage it Has. In a dramatic show of physician support for deep health care reform in the U.S, more than 2,200 physician leaders have signed a “Physician’s Proposal” calling for sweeping change. The proposal, published May 5 2016 in the American Journal of

Safe, Secure and Affordable Housing is a Health Issue: Why Canada Needs a National Housing Strategy Now

 "Social factors, like housing, income and wealth, educational background and race are more powerful determinants of health outcomes than our behaviours, genes or even the healthcare system." When you're feeling unwell, whether from a minor cold or a devastating terminal illness, the feeling of home, the desire for a safe

It’s Time for the Federal Government to Enforce the Canada Health Act

 Extra-billing, user fees for health services on the rise across the country. Extra-billing in Ontario, private MRIs in Saskatchewan and user fees in Quebec: violations of the Canada Health Act are on the rise across the country. Canadian doctors are concerned about the impact of this trend not only on

Advanced Directives for Assisted-Dying a Dangerous Step

 The moment we are born, our lives take flight; and the longer we are airborne, the greater the chance of encountering turbulence along the way. While every flight is destined to land, some landings are harder to contemplate than others. The parliamentary committee tasked with advising the federal government on

Ten Medical Expenses You Didn’t Know Were Eligible for the Medical Tax Credit

 As Canadians we like to take pride in our publicly funded healthcare system, but the truth is many of us – especially those with or caring for someone with disabilities or chronic conditions – pay out of pocket for a wide range of essential health services.  Studies show Canadians pay

It’s High Time We Had Policies Guaranteeing Sick Time for Canadian Workers

 Letting sick workers stay home is good policy and smart business. A food handler going to work with a cough, a parent sending their sick child to school, or an emergency room nurse making snap decisions through the fog of a flu. It doesn’t take a medical degree to appreciate

Assisted Suicide for Those With Mental Illness is a Risky Proposition

 Who but those who have experienced it can appreciate the soul crushing anguish of mental illness? Afflictions of the mind can be paralyzing and fundamentally change the way we perceive ourselves (I am worthless), anticipate the future (my prospects are hopeless), and experience the world (life is unfair and unforgiving).