Why I left #Canada — An open letter to Justin Trudeau

 By Chris Pereira Canada is the destination for hundreds of thousands of hard-working new immigrants every year, seeking to build a better and more dignified life. They view Canada as a land of opportunity — until they actually arrive. I have heard countless friends and colleagues in Canada comment recently

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

Arrested for Sleeping?

 The struggle to occupy public space. As humans, we need to sleep. It is biologically unavoidable. Yet, on both sides of the border, sleeping can be considered a criminal act, especially if you are homeless and have no place to rest your head other than in public spaces such as

Integrative Education: The Ethical Citizen

 The usefulness of a Humanities and Social Sciences education has been questioned by students, the media, and the government. The criticism is the lack of specific, job driven training. In the eyes of some, the purpose of education is to provide a graduate with an advantage with respect to the

Firing MacLean Won’t Solve the Senators’ Problems

 Photo credit: Toronto Star You can’t supply a man with peanuts and expect a full course dinner. That woeful idiom aside, the Ottawa Senators decided it was time to part ways with head coach Paul MacLean on Monday, Dec. 8, in what appears to be a scapegoat move to remove

Naturopathic and Conventional Medicine Team Up to Fight Cancer

 The Ottawa Integrative Cancer Centre (OICC) and the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (OHRI) have been given a $3.85 million research grant to look into the effects of naturopathic medicine combined with conventional medicine. The two Ottawa-based institutions will be researching the effectiveness of different types of medicines used in conjunction with one

Media Coverage of Youth Suicide Linked to Increased Emergency Room Visits for Mental Health Distress

 Outreach efforts following high profile suicides can save lives In the last few years, two high profile youth suicides in the Ottawa region garnered tremendous media attention and, as a new study suggests, resulted in increased emergency room visits by youth for mental health distress. First was the suicide of

Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame: Why Does it Matter?

 You don’t need to be a sports fan to appreciate Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame in Calgary. In fact, in some ways, the less you focus on the statistics and sports trivia, the more you will take away. Take in the spirit of achieving goals, overcoming obstacles and let yourself

A Magnitude of Inspiration: momondays

 If you’ve ever wanted to inspire or be inspired, momondays is the place for you. In short, momondays is real people, with real stories, generating real inspiration. Michel Neray founded momondays in February 2012. He was teaching public speaking and wanted to give his students a platform from which to practice

The Myth About Sick Leave and Public Servants

 Well, here we go again. The summer is on its way out and public servants everywhere are making their way back to their workplaces. They are preparing for a year that, according to many Public Service (PS) unions, promises to be a banner bargaining round—one where some unions say sick

How Lt Gen Currie turned the Canadian Corps into a national army

 Ask the average Canadian student about the origins of our nation and you will likely hear about Confederation and how Canada became a country with the passage of the British North American Act (BNA) in 1867. The fact of the matter is this is not actually the case. The BNA