Mimi Roots is worried about her ninety year old mother, Maria. Maria lives alone and has multiple health issues: congestive heart failure, asthma, arthritis, gastrointestinal issues, and a thyroid that was surgically removed. She receives care from five specialists and her family doctor – and each prescribes their own set of medications. Maria takes a …
Vaccination programs are based on the old adage that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Since 2007 Canada has had a vaccination program for the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) administered to girls, although the age of vaccination varies by province: Grade 5 in Alberta and Grade 8 (with catch up until Grade …
Herbal marijuana is not an approved drug in Canada, but court rulings have required reasonable access to a legal source of marijuana when authorized by a physician. On April 1st, Canada’s current regulatory system for medical marijuana will be replaced entirely by a new set of rules. These new regulations will have important implications for …
The Personal Health Navigator is available to all Canadian patients. Questions about your doctor, hospital or how to navigate the health care system can be sent to AskLisa@Sunnybrook.ca The Question: My sister was told that she has MSA atypical Parkinson’s at a Toronto hospital. We want to get a second opinion, as she cannot accept her fate. …
The Personal Health Navigator is available to all Canadian patients. Questions about your doctor, hospital or how to navigate the health care system can be sent to AskLisa@Sunnybrook.ca The Question: I am looking for a geriatric psychiatrist. I am 77 years old and I have newly surfaced emotional problems. It started with physical symptoms, which were treated …
In the past six months, the Auditor Generals of both Canada and Ontario have turned their attention to problems with strategies designed to tackle one of Canada’s biggest health threats—the epidemic of diabetes. The government watchdogs have scrutinized the value that Canadians have received from the hundreds of millions of dollars expended on the Canadian …
The Personal Health Navigator is available to all Canadian patients. Questions about your doctor, hospital or how to navigate the health care system can be sent to AskLisa@Sunnybrook.ca The Question: I was diagnosed with an unprovoked saddle pulmonary embolism at the end of January after three months of antibiotics, inhalers, a chest X ray and a CAT …
The Personal Health Navigator is available to all Canadian patients. Questions about your doctor, hospital or how to navigate the health care system can be sent to AskLisa@Sunnybrook.ca The Question: My father has been diagnosed with lymphoma and has begun treatment with one round of chemotherapy so far and several medications. I was wondering if early results …
The Personal Health Navigator is available to all Canadian patients. Questions about your doctor, hospital or how to navigate the health care system can be sent to AskLisa@Sunnybrook.ca The Question: I am a 66-year-old male in good physical condition with great annual check-up results and not on any medication. Yet, 7 months ago, I was hospitalized after …
Chris’ story Chris is a family doctor at a Family Health Team in a Southern Ontario farming community (some details including his name have been changed to protect his and his patients’ identities). He sees many children and youth who have mental illnesses such as depression, anxiety and severe ADHD. While he can care for …
The Personal Health Navigator is available to all Canadian patients. Questions about your doctor, hospital or how to navigate the health care system can be sent to AskLisa@Sunnybrook.ca The Question: What are the best and worst places to have diabetes in Canada, based on the cost of needles and other supplies? The Answer: This question came via twitter …
The Personal Health Navigator is available to all Canadian patients. Questions about your doctor, hospital or how to navigate the health care system can be sent to AskLisa@Sunnybrook.ca The Question: I have a friend who has just had a lumpectomy and sentinel lymph node biopsy for a small invasive lobular breast cancer. She has not yet met …
Ontario’s Health and Long-term Care Minister is calling for a change in how health care costs are scrutinized in light of research showing that a tiny proportion of the Ontario population accounts for a very large proportion of health care expenditures. “We need to shift our focus” away from line-by-line scrutiny of hospital, drug and …
The Personal Health Navigator is available to all Canadian patients. Questions about your doctor, hospital or how to navigate the health care system can be sent to AskLisa@Sunnybrook.ca The Question: I take warfarin for atrial fibrillation. Every three weeks, I go to a clinic to get my blood checked and, if needed, my warfarin dose is adjusted. …
The Personal Health Navigator is available to all Canadian patients. Questions about your doctor, hospital or how to navigate the health care system can be sent to AskLisa@Sunnybrook.ca The Question: I want to do dialysis at home but am worried. Is it safe? Is it possible? The Answer: This is the kind of question Alireza Zahirieh, head of …
Telehomecare programs offer remote monitoring for people living with chronic diseases, linking patients to providers without requiring an in-person visit. Ontario is currently developing a number of large-scale telehomecare programs with the promise that they are patient centred, cost effective approaches to care. While there is great enthusiasm for telehomecare programs from patients, providers and …
Advance care planning is an important process by which people think about how they would like to be cared for if they are seriously ill. While most Canadians agree that having conversations about advance care planning are important, fewer than half actually do. In some jurisdictions, advance care planning is done much better than it …
Three quarters of our daily salt intake comes from prepared and manufactured foods. Experts suggest that the most effective approach to reducing salt consumption in a population is to more actively regulate the amount of salt in prepared foods. However, there is a debate about the best strategy to curb salt intake in Canada. Does …
Salt intake is difficult for individuals to control, because more than three quarter of the salt we consume comes from processed foods, like bread, deli meats and dairy products. Most Canadians are consuming more than double the daily recommended amount of salt. While there is a link between salt consumption and heart disease and stroke, …
Shortened hospital lengths of stay, and a growing number of people living with chronic diseases has meant that more Ontarians than ever are receiving health care services in their homes. In 2010, the Ontario Auditor General raised concerns about the quality and value of home care services, some of which remain outstanding. Resolving these issues …