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Showing posts from February, 2023

Canadians divided on privatizing health care, survey finds

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A new Angus Reid poll shows 39 per cent of respondents still staunchly oppose paying for medical care while the rest either support privatization or are cautious but curious about the idea.

Frontrunners in RSV vaccine race will face scrutiny from U.S. officials this week

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The frontrunners in a crowded race to develop the first vaccine for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) — pharmaceutical giants Pfizer and GSK — will face scrutiny from a panel of U.S. experts this week.

How U.S. officials solved the mystery of eyedrops infecting dozens with drug-resistant bacteria

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The patients' eyes were painfully inflamed. They could sense light but could see almost nothing else. A doctor called one case the worst eye infection he'd ever seen. Here's how U.S. officials cracked the case of eyedrops infecting dozens of Americans with drug-resistant bacteria.

This Sask. man had a stroke in Arizona. His family awaits massive bill after insurance claim denied

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After a man from Halbrite, Sask,, had a stroke while vacationing in Arizona, his family learned they were on the hook for a $56,000 flight home — and other medicals bills yet to come in — as their health insurance was cancelled.

How Thunder Bay, Ont.'s increasingly toxic street drugs are driving overdose and death rates

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Workers on the front lines of the opioid crisis in Thunder Bay, Ont., are responding to more overdoses than ever before, linked to increasingly toxic and unpredictable street drugs. Here's what health-care workers at the only safe consumption site in northwestern Ontario want people to know.

Alberta, Ottawa sign health-care funding deal worth $24B over 10 years

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The $24-billion total includes $2.9 billion for a new bilateral agreement focused on shared health priorities and $233 million in an immediate, one-time top up to the Canada Health Transfer to address urgent needs.

Oregon decriminalized drugs 2 years ago. What can B.C. learn from its rocky start?

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Oregon become the first jurisdiction in North America to decriminalize drugs in 2021. It hasn't been smooth sailing, but there are some lessons in the challenges for British Columbia.

Canadian teens still struggling with mental health even as pandemic wanes

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Three years into the pandemic, many Canadian teens are still struggling with their mental health, and pediatric centres are reporting increases in hospitalizations and emergency room visits for conditions such as eating disorders, anxiety and suicide attempts.

Spain says patient tests negative for deadly Marburg disease

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A man in Spain who was initially suspected of having the deadly Marburg disease tested negative on Saturday and does not have the virus, the Health Ministry said.

'They don't care about me, mom': Teen's scoliosis surgery delayed five times

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It took over a year, and five delayed surgeries, before 16-year-old Nathan Gilson finally got the scoliosis surgery he needed. But not before it took a toll on him and his family.

World 'not yet prepared enough' as H5N1 avian flu strain keeps spreading, WHO official warns

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The world's leading experts on influenza met this week to discuss the threat posed to humans by a strain of H5N1 avian flu that has caused record numbers of bird deaths around the world in recent months.

Why researchers say close friendships are key to good health

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Reaching out to a friend you haven’t seen that much over the past three years may actually be beneficial to your health, according to Canadian researchers.

Nurse practitioners in B.C. can now assess crisis patients for involuntary admissions

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Jennifer Whiteside, B.C.'s mental health and addictions minister, says giving nurse practitioners authority to approve involuntary admission for a patient will reduce pressures on emergency departments and help people get faster treatment.

Ontario Liberal MPP introduces bill to address 'price gouging' by temporary nursing agencies

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A new private member's bill tabled at Queen's Park Thursday would impose strict rules on staffing agencies that recruit and employ nurses for temporary work.

Federal, Ontario, P.E.I. governments reach agreement in principle on health-care funding

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Ontario and Prince Edward Island have reached agreements in principle on the health-care funding offer made by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the first ministers' meeting in Ottawa earlier this month.

Volunteers say they won't be silenced after 'abortion is healthcare' banner vandalized in Regina

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A pro-abortion-rights banner has been temporarily taken down in Regina after it was vandalized. The group that put it up says this only reinforces the need to educate the public and end the stigma around the procedure.

Use of private agency nurses at Vitalité spiked in 2022, documents reveal

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Vitalité Health Network spent nearly $6 million last year to hire nurses from private agencies, according to documents obtained under the Right to Information Act.

15 per cent death rate, severe lesions reported in patients with mpox alongside advanced HIV: study

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New research on mpox in individuals with advanced HIV infection details an aggressive and serious form of the illness — at times involving skin cell death within lesions, nodules in the lungs, sepsis, and a 15 per cent mortality rate.

For $30/month, Ontario doctors offer rapid access to nurse practitioners

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Some doctors in Ontario are offering their patients the option of extra health care, at a price: seven-day-a-week rapid access to appointments with a nurse practitioner, for a fee of around $30 a month.

Some parents are leaving Ontario because of frustrations with its autism program

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Marie Lee uprooted her family to Alberta after the Ontario government told her three-year-old daughter wouldn't be eligible for core autism services until at least 2027.

Long distance labour pains: In rural Alberta, giving birth can mean a road trip

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The Lac La Biche hospital hasn't been able to support high-risk deliveries since last May, forcing some pregnant women to travel hours in an ambulance while in labour.

She lost both parents to glioblastoma. Now she's helping other stricken families 'slay their dragons'

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Laura Dill lost both parents in 2020 to glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer that typically claims its victims within 12 to 18 months of diagnosis. Now she's determined to help other families make the most of the time they have left together.

Doctors in Atlantic Canada will soon be able to work in any of the 4 provinces

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Doctors living and working within the four Atlantic provinces will soon be able to work within the region without additional licensing — thanks to a new Atlantic Physicians Register.

I was wide awake during my brain surgery for Parkinson's. Here's how it changed my life

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CBC journalist Harry Forestell applied his journalistic expertise to learn more about the highly specialized treatment he received to treat Parkinson's disease.

Internationally trained nurses who came to Canada feel forgotten as provinces recruit abroad

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Nurses already in Canada who completed their training abroad but are finding it difficult to become accredited here worry that their skills and abilities are being wasted and question why provincial health officials are going on recruitment trips overseas.

Despite soaring death rate from opioids, Alberta steers away from harm-reduction approach

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The United Conservative Party government has steered policy away from harm reduction and towards a model of recovery, abstinence and criminalization.

After years of waiting, this woman says Canada's delay to expand MAID is 'beyond hurtful'

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Agata Gawron says she felt empowered when she thought she could access MAID this year. Now, she says the proposed delay is “beyond hurtful” news to her because it means at least one more year of suffering.

Why don't we call more abortion clinics 'abortion clinics'? Language matters, advocates say

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There's a movement within abortion care to be more mindful of the language they use — whether that's to be more inclusive, drop the euphemisms or be more forthright about the services they offer.

Mpox remains a global emergency — and cluster of cases in Canada offers reminder it's still circulating

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The World Health Organization made the call this week to maintain mpox as a public health emergency — and later noted the number of new cases reported globally increased by 70 per cent from the week before. A cluster of cases in Toronto, too, offers a reminder that transmission is still simmering.

Alberta government commits $158M in upcoming budget to address health care worker shortage

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Health Minister Jason Copping announced Thursday that the province is promising $158 million in the upcoming budget to address Alberta’s health care worker shortage, as part of the government’s new Health Workforce Strategy.

Doctors brace for a nationwide shortage of abortion pills

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The manufacturer of Mifegymiso is blaming supply chain issues for a pending shortage of the product — just months after another shortage of the drug forced some patients to get surgical abortions instead.

Fired Horizon CEO awarded record-breaking $2M in unjust dismissal case against province

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The former head of Horizon Health Network has been awarded more than $2 million in his unjust dismissal case against the province after he was publicly fired by the premier last summer following the death of a patient in a Fredericton emergency department waiting room.

In Texas, where abortion is already a crime, more roadblocks to access could be coming

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CBC News travelled to the Rio Grande Valley in southern Texas, which already has some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the U.S. While advocates struggle to help pregnant people, anti-abortion lawmakers are looking to close down any remaining paths to abortion access.

Nova Scotia says it won't meet pledge to reduce surgical backlog by February

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The government of Nova Scotia says it will not meet its promise of cutting the province's surgical backlog to 12,000 patients by February 2023.

Quebec tables bill to limit the use of private health agencies

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Minister of Health, Christian Dubé, announced Wednesday it has given itself three years to eliminate the systematic use of private agencies and independent workers in the health care network throughout Quebec.

Manitoba nurses quitting amidst mandated overtime, high vacancy rates, no home-life balance

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Nurse vacancy rates throughout the province remain high with some areas seeing more than a third of positions open. It comes as the nurses union says mandated overtime is skyrocketing.

These Canadians passed on alcohol long before going 'dry' became trendy

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Many Canadian drinkers say they are reassessing their wine and whisky consumption in the wake of revamped safe-drinking guidelines released in January. But there is a cohort of people who passed on alcohol long before it was a wider concern.

Stop polarizing the debate. It took both harm reduction and drug treatment to save me

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A fierce debate rages between drug treatment and harm reduction advocates in Alberta. But that misses the point, argues Chris McBain, a former injection drug user. He needed both to get his life back.

Norovirus, the culprit behind a nasty stomach bug, is rising again in Canada

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Highly contagious norovirus, known for causing a nasty, days-long stomach illness, is on the rise in Canada after a pandemic lull, federal health officials say.

Northern, Indigenous communities need better access to organ transplants, say Sask. advocates

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Advocates say residents in northern Saskatchewan don't have the same access to organ donations and transplants — or procedures like dialysis while awaiting a transplant — and say there need to be changes to allow for equitable access.

Will Canada follow the U.S.'s aggressive new approach to treat childhood obesity?

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A shift in treating childhood obesity in the U.S. focuses on early interventions and can involve weight-loss drugs or surgery. Some Canadian experts say it's an effective approach, but others worry it could turn attention away from prevention.

Premiers accept federal health-care funding proposal

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Canada’s premiers have accepted Ottawa’s proposal to inject billions of dollars into provincial health-care systems.

Demand for cosmetic surgeries is changing conversations around it

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Some of the shame around cosmetic procedures may be lifting, thanks to more people accessing them and more willingness to talk openly about them.

'Somebody has to help': Family of N.S. senior says she's being evicted due to age, injuries

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A Halifax senior has been told she wouldn't be kept on as a tenant when her fixed-term lease expires after she had two medical emergencies in her unit. Her family believes it's because the emergencies disrupted the building's superintendent.

A test of dark chocolate found traces of lead and cadmium. Do you need to give it up?

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A Consumer Reports test of 28 dark chocolate bars found most had high levels of lead, cadmium or sometimes both. But experts say no need to panic.

Sharp drop in new helicopter pilot licences raises concerns about country's air ambulance service

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Many parts of rural Canada rely on air ambulances flown by licensed helicopter pilots. But the number of licences issued by Transport Canada has declined dramatically over the past decade — prompting concerns for the health of the service and for people who need to get to a hospital.

Premiers will answer to voters if cash injection doesn't improve the health system: LeBlanc

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As the federal government prepares to drop billions of dollars in new funding on Canada’s health-care system, the minister responsible for federal-provincial relations warns that premiers will be held accountable by voters if that money doesn’t lead to results.

Her daughter couldn't access the park in a wheelchair, so a Quebec mom proposed a solution

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After a car crash left her daughter with limited mobility, Nathalie Thibeault called up her local park in Coaticook, Que., with what she calls a “crazy idea.”

'These are real people': With COVID deaths well above the norm, N.S. seniors share concerns

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Almost three years into the COVID-19 pandemic, the vast majority of Nova Scotia's 753 COVID-19 deaths have been seniors. Some seniors are concerned not enough awareness is being brought to the state of the pandemic.

Gym and Peloton selfies dominate social media, but fitness may be less accessible than ever

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Despite a societal obsession with being in shape, fitness is less accessible than ever, given expensive gym memberships, pricey equipment and costly clothing, says the author of a book on fitness culture.