Putting patients first can save our health system

 By: Kapil Khimdas and Danyaal Raza  It’s no secret: Ontario is getting older. The number of seniors in our province has been steadily increasing and over the next twenty years, will double.  Including factors like increased use of health services and evolving technology, this will result in a substantial increase

Reforming Healthcare Funding to Address the Needs of Our Aging Population

 Why we need a publicly funded insurance program for home care and long-term care By Réjean Hébert Funding home care and long-term care is fast becoming the main challenge of our outdated medicare system – a system developed in the mid-twentieth century for a young population that mostly required acute

Health Reform in Ontario Must Include Oral Health

 A healthy mouth is part of a healthy life. The Ontario government’s proposed reform of the provincial health care system is going forward with a glaring omission: primary mouth care. To make this reform truly "Patients First," Dr. Eric Hoskins, Minister of Health and Long Term Care, must include primary

Dear Health Minister Philpott — We Need Leadership In Medicare Restored

 Dear Minister Philpott, It is fantastic news that as a family doctor you are our next federal health minister.  You will know very well that our healthcare system shows its age.  Born in the middle of the 20th century, its primary focus on doctors and hospitals is outmoded as technology

Many Patients with Chronic Health Conditions Also Have Mental Health Issues that Go Undiagnosed and Untreated

 We need to better integrate physical and mental health services Our health system often divides mental health from physical health into distinct silos of care and treatment, yet no such mind-body duality exists in actual patients.  Many individuals with chronic health conditions simultaneously experience mental health issues -- and the

Will climate refugees in Canada finally spur action on climate change?

 Photo Credit: Eric Wüstenhagen Ryan Meili and Mahli Brindamour A young child arrives at the hospital emergency room in respiratory distress, his asthma worsened by smoke exposure. An elder has uncontrolled blood pressure because there wasn't time to get her medications when the evacuation orders came through. Scabies and other illnesses related

Four Things you Should Know About the Pending Charter Challenge Against Medicare

 A long-running dispute between Dr. Brian Day, the co-owner of Cambie Surgeries Corporation and the British Columbia government may finally be resolved in the BC Supreme Court this year – and the ruling could transform the Canadian health system from coast to coast. The case emerged in response to an

Five Things Most People Get Wrong About Canada’s Health-Care System

 By Kathleen O’Grady and Noralou Roos A recent court challenge before the British Columbia Supreme Court threatened to change the rules of the game for the Canadian health-care system—should the challenge have made its way to the Supreme Court of Canada and found success there. Dr. Brian Day of the

Canada Health Infoway: Better Health Through Digital Technology

 Better Health Together through new technology. That’s what it’s all about. An important trend in health care these days is patient-centred care and convenience. The idea is that in a world driven by technological innovation, patients should be able to securely access their full medical records online. Many in the