Innovation in medical imaging can keep health care affordable
As we age, the likelihood of acquiring chronic or potentially life-threatening conditions such as Alzheimer’s and heart disease or breast and prostate cancer increases, as does the chance that we will need access to specialized technology to detect, properly diagnose and treat our ailments. The number of seniors in Canada is increasing steadily. By […]
Big data has potential to be a health systems innovator
MONTREAL—It took a year for Canada’s public health officials to understand the full extent of the 2009 H1N1 outbreak. The principal problem, then and now, is lack of information. “Big Data” can answer a lot of health questions and can, moving forward, enable Canada’s public health-care system to mount an appropriate response to any […]
We’re marking an important milestone in Canadian digital health delivery
Leading Canadian health-care organizations marked the first-ever Digital Health Week in this country last week. The goal for the week was two-fold: First, to recognize how digital health is transforming care, and second, to inspire further progress in improving delivery of that care to all Canadians. Much progress has been made by our […]
Five things most people get wrong about Canada’s health-care system
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 Cambie Surgeries Corporation is contesting the ban against ‘extra billing’ for […]
How to fight ‘Fearbola’ in Canada
‘Fearbola’ is the recent term being used to describe widespread public fears of an Ebola outbreak in the United States. ‘Fearbola’ is said to spread easily through conversation or even from simply seeing images and videos about Ebola. While we in Canada might feel immune to Fearbola, sadly, we are not. The only way […]
Is it time to allow assisted suicide?
The Supreme Court of Canada has been hearing an appeal by the B.C. Civil Liberties Association that could grant terminally ill Canadians the right to assisted suicide. With this impending ruling and the passing of Bill 52 in Quebec (Medical Aid in Dying) and rumblings from Parliament of another private member’s bill on assisted […]
Politics and health care: who’s in charge?
With a 2015 federal election on the horizon, many political strategists are wondering if there is a way they can leverage Canadians’ concern for their health care system into more votes. But these strategists and their parties should be wary of the pitfalls when trying to score points with federal health policy initiatives. Their […]
We need to hear more from stakeholders, public
More than 40 years ago, two GPs in Burlington had an innovative idea. Why not expand the traditional role of the primary care office nurse? Researchers at McMaster’s then-new medical school agreed to test the concept. Families were randomized to receive usual care, or care by a nurse practitioner (NP) in partnership with the […]
Investing in Canadian health care
When you ask Canadians what they are most proud of about our country, you’ll often hear the same answer: universal health care. We see it as a fundamental Canadian value. Canadians voted Tommy Douglas, the driving force behind our universal health-care system, as the greatest Canadian. Health care is required to be universally available […]
Health care does not need more money; it needs a systems change to give better value for money
If a nation’s spending per capita was the sole determinant of health the United States of America, at $8,805 per person, would have the best health care system in the world. Instead, the United Kingdom, with the lowest ($3,405) per capita spending of 11 OECD countries, consistently ranks in the top three, finishing first […]
