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

What’s Missing from Ontario’s New In-Vitro Fertilization Funding Policy?

 Children of IVF deserve to know their genetic history After a week of uncertainty and some confusion, the Ontario Ministry of Health finally announced its policy on in-vitro fertilization (IVF) funding – but the details remain minimal.  What we know for certain so far, and what has been met with

Three Things Everyone Should Know About Autism in Canada

 Canadian governments have done little to address the crisis faced by autism families across the country. This sentiment was true in 2007 when it was put forward in the cross-party Senate report on the state of funding for the treatment of autism in Canada, aptly titled, Pay Now or Pay

Is it Finally Time for a Guaranteed Annual Income?

 Could the Guaranteed Annual Income–once considered radical notion–now be an idea whose time has come? The Dutch city of Utrecht recently announced it is starting an experiment to determine whether introducing a basic income produces a more effective society. Closer to home, Joseph Ceci, Alberta’s new Finance Minister proposed a

Is it Fair to Make a Public Appeal for a Live Organ Donor?

 The public response to the appeal on behalf of Eugene Melnyk, owner of the Ottawa Senators hockey team, for a liver donor has been a heart-warming demonstration of the generosity of our community. Fortunately, a donor was found and the transplant was performed in time to save his life. But

Ottawa Art Gallery Launches ArtWise

 Bridging the gap between older adults and younger generations is exactly what the Ottawa Art Gallery hopes to do with ArtWise, its new volunteer programming council. Collaborating with gallery staff, local artists and invited guests, the OAG ArtWise council will aim to provide opportunities for a broad range of ages

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

Is It Time For Canadians to Demand Action on Child Care?

 After years of inaction from Stephen Harper's Conservative government, it is time for Canadian families to join together to demand high quality, affordable child care. As it stands right now, millions of parents lack access to affordable, quality day care in Canada, with one care space available for every five

The IBEW Has Spent 120 Years Building a Better Canada

 Photo courtesy of IBEW Canada  When it comes to unions, there are few who can boast a longer presence in Canada than the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW). The IBEW has been around since 1899. Today, it represents 67,000 members working in construction, utility, manufacturing, government, telecommunications and railroad

Emmy Awards Recap

 Did you watch the 66th annual Emmy Awards on Monday night? We were tuned in from the red carpet to the finale. The fabulous fashion and the hilarious hosting job by SNL-alum Seth Meyers made for a fantastic evening of entertainment. We were ecstatic to see that some of our

Lac-Mégantic

 Everyone knows a Montreal Maine and Atlantic (MMA) train without engineer careened into Lac-Mégantic last July, derailed, exploded, killed 47 people, injured many others, destroyed the town’s centre, polluted lake and soil, and tore out the community’s heart. Blame has since been widely laid, from CEO Edward Burkhardt blaming the