Health
Community-based health research key to preventing diseases caused by environmental degradation
Canada needs far more research on preventing human diseases caused by environmental degradation. This research must be more community-based. This will lead to preventive measures better adapted to the affected communities. Before becoming deputy leader of the Green Party of Canada, I was an environmentalist working in communities where people are coping with cancers and […]
Licensed marijuana producers say regulations like chasing moving goalposts
Medical marijuana producers have adjusted their advertising practices to comply with new Health Canada rules but say the regulation of the new industry is still like chasing a moving target. The companies were forced to remove descriptions of their products that weren’t medically relevant, including details such as the marijuana’s taste and smell to comply […]
We can’t predict Canada’s aging population trajectory without knowing more basic science
A viager is a type of reverse mortgage that is popular in France. In return for the property title, the buyer offers a down payment (the “bouquet”) and guarantees a monthly payment to the seller for the remainder of his or her life. The seller’s risk is low—if the buyer defaults the title reverts to the […]
Does Canada need new models of physician compensation?
Payments to physicians have emerged as a critical issue in health care in recent years. In Ontario, they have risen by 60 per cent in the last decade, putting additional pressure on a provincial budget that already is under stress, and the story is similar in other provinces. While the aggregate fiscal burden may be […]
We can’t rest on our laurels on mental health strategy
In many discussions on health policy, the subjects of mental health and mental illness quite often take a back seat. This is astounding when you consider that one in five people in Canada will experience a mental health problem or illness in any given year. Since the government in 2007 created us, the Mental Health Commission […]
No magic bullet: caring for seniors requires political will and broad systems change
For the last five years, medical groups such as the Canadian Medical Association (CMA), Canadian Nurses Association (CNA) and national health organisations like the Health Action Lobby (HEAL) and Canadian Health Coalition have sounded the alarm that our health-care system will not be able to cope with the health-care needs of the coming ‘tsunami’ of senior […]
Time to act on a national aging strategy for Canada
It’s time to act on a national aging strategy for Canada. New Democrats are proud of our cherished public health-care system, the legacy of Tommy Douglas and his courageous leadership. It was founded on the principle of universality: that all Canadians have access to health care regardless of income or background or where they live. […]
Canada’s frayed health-care system needs a complete rethink, say experts
A frayed health-care system, which is inconsistent across the country and stuck on serving patients in hospitals, needs a complete rethink in order to address the multiple gaps in funding, including in mental health. Raisa Deber, a professor at the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation in the faculty of medicine at the University of […]
Feds should invest in prevention-based research, say experts
While the federal government has largely shied away from embracing a role in how health care is delivered to Canadians, some experts say there is room for investment in prevention-based research. “We have to embrace that concept,” said Dr. Jeff Turnbull, chief of staff at the Ottawa Hospital, medical director at Ottawa Inner City Health, […]
