A recent stem cell transplant has cured a man of sickle cell disease, raising hopes among patient advocates. However, they emphasize that, for now, improving care for most patients requires removing racist barriers in health care.
An epidemiologist breaks down the differences between short-term clinical trials and observational studies, and what each type of inquiry can tell us about how well vaccines work and how long they will last.
Health-care organizations don’t usually have R&D departments; instead, researchers typically apply for grants for one-off studies. That’s a problem—but one that could be changing.
Asking people about their vaccination status may be well-intentioned, but it can violate their privacy and lead to negative consequences for them. It's time to reconsider asking about it during our regular public interactions.
In our hospitals, we have no systems in place to identify people living with dementia, measure how many there are or how their dementia impacts our care. And hospitals are not implementing programs to improve.
Has the pandemic, which showed us the importance of preventive measures like social distancing, taught us a larger lesson about the importance of preventing injuries that cut lives too short and cost us too much?
The siloes in Canadian health systems can decrease the quality of care patients receive. But Ontario Health Teams are trying to address this problem by bringing primary care, hospital and community providers together.
People who take immune-suppressing drugs appear to be less protected by COVID vaccines than others – but ongoing research suggests there may be other ways for this group to stay safe.
The government agency CIHR released two documents meant to address issues important to the health of Canadians and direct research toward them. But both are unforgivably ignorant of the importance of the ecological determinants of health.
Autistic people are leading seminars in medical schools about what it's like to experience the health-care system as an autistic patient. They hope that future doctors will work with these patients more collaboratively.
A resident reflects on volunteering with Médecins du Monde Canada as a medical student—and what that experience taught her about the crucial role that community organizations play in helping the most vulnerable.
It’s clear that when Ontario's ICUs were on the brink of being overwhelmed at the beginning of May, delaying second doses of the vaccines to have more people get one dose almost certainly helped avert catastrophe.
The COVID vaccine rollout is a litmus test for the learning health system. It requires speed, well-working collaborations with community members and the ability to adjust on the fly as supplies and eligibility requirements change.
Gender differences in medical specialty choice persist. Here are the factors that play a role in these imbalances – and how residency programs can attract more female applicants.
Though COVID-19 vaccines are reported to have more intense side effects than a regular flu shot, this is merely a sign that your immune system is doing its job.
Young adults recovering from mental illness and substance use are working in the emergency room of a Toronto hospital to give young patients in psychological distress the support they need.
In our first learning health system case study, we profile an AI program that predicts which patients are at a high risk of going to the ICU. It has been successfully implemented largely because its developers took input from the physicians and nurses who would be using it from the get go.
While virtual care comes with drawbacks that must be carefully managed, it will ultimately be a huge step forward in improving access to palliative care in Ontario and Canada.
Some consider teaching public health in medical school a “waste of time," but better understanding the social determinants of health can help physicians better care for their patients.