Scratching the Surface of CIU

 Luke is a young man living in Ottawa. He is married with a baby, has a great new job and, on the exterior, seems to live a pretty normal life. He has always been an athletic person, frequently playing soccer and going to the gym. But what people don’t know

Becoming an Aging Society: Opportunities and Challenges

 Saint Paul University is interested in issues and conditions that affect the way humans live, relate and make meaning. As a centre of higher learning, it promotes excellence in teaching, research, and professional formation as part of the local, national and international academic community. It also collaborates with diverse faith

Moving Forward on Health Care Reform

 Why more money for health care is not the answer In the Speech from the Throne and since, the new Liberal government has clearly said it is ready to re-engage with the provinces and territories on health care. This is a welcome development. For most of the past decade, the

Canadians Should Modernize not Privatize Medicare

 National Medicare Week has just passed, buoyed with optimism as a fresh-faced government takes the reins in Ottawa – elected partly on a promise of renewed federal leadership on health care.  Yet these “sunny ways” are overcast by recent developments at the provincial level that entrench and legitimize two-tier care. Saskatchewan

Why the Federal Government Needs to Keep its Promise to End Income-Splitting

 Children’s Health More About Good Social Policy than Medicine Alone. More of Canada’s children are living in poverty than ever before. A new report reveals that child poverty rates in Canada remain unconscionably high. Almost one-third of children in Toronto live in low-income households. Population measures of child health in Canada are also troubling,

Are we finally in a health election campaign?

 Why more affordable medications for Canadians should be an all-party priority in this federal election. It's become almost a matter of faith: health and health care are perennially among the top priorities for Canadians, but are nearly invisible in election platforms and debates. This observation has led health care providers, health care

The Politics of Love Thy Neighbour

 When did Christianity in Canada become so linked to political and social conservatism? When did so many Christians, especially the loudest and most organized, embrace censorship, resistance to gay equality, denial of climate change, opposition to vaccinations and an angry obsession with abortion? There are, of course, myriad believers in Christ who do not think and act thus but ask

Algonquin College is making waves and winning awards

 Cheryl Jensen is making an impact. Jensen became Algonquin College’s eighth President just over one year ago in August, 2014. She brought 31 years of experience as a professor, dean and vice president and a reputation for  creating strategies that responded to both industry trends and to the needs of students, employees,

It Shouldn’t Matter Where You Go To School, But For Kids With Diabetes, It Does

 Provinces, school districts need to adopt comprehensive diabetes policies now Summer is a time to put thoughts of school aside, but some families are already worrying about September.  For parents of kids with diabetes, the beginning of each new school year brings not only the usual preparations, but also fears

What You Need to Know About the Election

 On your marks, get set, go! The race is on. The federal election to determine Canada’s 42nd parliament and leader has begun. Set to end with the October 19 election, this campaign will be the longest in over a century (since 1872), running for a full 78 days. In Canada,

Is Waiting Longer for New Prescription Drug Approvals Necessarily a Bad Thing?

 Why Canada’s ‘slow and low’ approach to new pharmaceuticals may be the prudent approach. The newest report from Canada’s brand name drug makers on access to new drugs has one key message: compared to other countries, Canada goes slow and low.  New drugs are slower to be covered by our

Working Together Towards Equality

 The Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) comprises working men and women from a variety of fields. From education to health care to social services, OPSEU represents about 130,000 workers across Ontario. One of the many causes OPSEU fights for is gender equality, an important issue for so many of

Canadians Care About Healthcare—So Why Don’t We See More Health Policy Coverage in the News?

 For the last 30 years or so, Canadians have repeatedly flagged healthcare as the most important national concern and the issue they want their political leaders to prioritize. Surveys and studies and polls and panels—there have been plenty—all come up with the same finding: Canadians care about healthcare. That doesn’t mean

Why this U.S. Doctor is Moving to Canada

 I’m a U.S. family physician who has decided to relocate to Canada. The hassles of working in the dysfunctional health care “system” in the U.S. have simply become too intense. I’m not alone. According to a physician recruiter in Windsor, Ont., over the past decade more than 100 U.S. doctors

‘GumDocs’ Keeping Your Mouth Healthy and Happy

 Gum disease is one of the most common dental problems Canadian adults face. Often developing slowly with no symptoms, this silent predator attacks the bone and gum tissue surrounding teeth. If not dealt with properly, teeth are at risk of becoming loose or even falling out. Local specialists in periodontal

Five Things Everyone Should Know about the Relationship Between Poverty and Health in Canada

 With a federal election on the horizon, certain high level policy topics are bound to make the headlines beyond the personalities of the political leaders: the economy, energy prices, jobs prospects even climate change. But what seems surprisingly absent from the political hustings so far has been a fulsome discussion

How to Make the Social Determinants of Health Matter

 An Interview with Sir Michael Marmot Recently, I was fortunate to attend the Global Symposium on the Role of Physicians and National Medical Associations in Addressing Health Equity and the Social Determinants of Health held in London, England. The meeting was organized by the Canadian, British and World Medical Associations

Putting Healthcare on the Federal Election Agenda

 A federal election could be called any time in the next few months, judging by the media coverage and the ramping up of political activity. Many issues have been crowding into the media headlines in anticipation of the election -- but with a notable absence of any consideration of healthcare

Time for Improved Transparency and Openness in Pharmaceutical Drug Regulation

 Prescription pharmaceuticals have saved and improved many lives, but they can also be deadly. How can we make sure Canadians get the prescription drugs they need without causing unnecessary harm? The federal government plays a vital role in pharmaceutical drug regulation. We have many reasons to be proud of the

Getting a Grip on the Risks of Vaccination

 Every day when I see patients in my surgical clinic, some are offered a procedure to help them feel better. Whether it is a minor surgery like a tonsillectomy, or something larger scale such as tumor resection, I have a full discussion with the patient regarding the benefits and risks

Double-Failing on Health

 Why it is critical we learn from past healthcare mistakes Forty is the new thirty. Orange is the new black. And Failure is the new success. It seems these days that no success story is complete without a failure (or two) along the way: the bankruptcy that gave birth to

Are We Medicalizing Healthy People?

 Why the over-treatment of risk factors for heart attacks and strokes may do more harm than good Modern medical practice is engaged in a battle, not for hearts and minds, but for the conversion of perfectly healthy people into patients, labelled “at high risk” of various diseases in the name

How to Eliminate MRI Wait Lists in the Public Health System

 How to do all this and save Alberta millions of dollars a year in the process Value for money appears to be finally getting the attention it merits as Alberta’s new health minister, Stephen Mandel, takes the reins of the portfolio that is close to consuming 50% of the province’s

Five things every Canadian should know about obesity

 By Carolyn Shimmin There has been a dramatic increase in the number of Canadians living with obesity over the past few decades and it is often cited as a risk factor for other chronic health conditions including type 2 diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease and some forms of cancer. This means

Canada eyes Kazakhstan as a top priority market

 On December 16, folk festivals, parades, displays of traditional food and fireworks took over many cities across Kazakhstan. Cheering crowds flooded main streets to celebrate the country’s 23rd birthday. In connection with Kazakhstan's Independence Day, prominent Canadian politicians and members of the business community shared their experiences of working with