Chronic Illness

Rising HIV cases in Canada: Putting the numbers in perspective

The rise in HIV infections over the last several years might indicate that the public health system has failed in containing the virus. But the raw numbers don’t tell the full story.

Barriers to Paxlovid are exacerbating our health inequities

Access to Paxlovid has become increasingly challenging. Canada needs to do a better job at making it more accessible to those who would benefit most.

MAiD’s vanishing slippery slope

New data on MAiD sheds much needed light on a topic so broiled in hysteria and unforced errors to seem like some sort of deranged game of political and health-care tennis.

AI offers hope to those suffering from MCAS

The question isn’t whether AI can play a role, it’s whether the global health-care community is willing to invest the necessary resources to unlock its potential.

Dementia patients deserve more than coloured balls and matching games

If that’s the best we can do, we haven’t learned anything about dignity, respect, and authentic life enrichment

A plea to maskless health-care workers from vulnerable patients

Health-care workers have a responsibility to protect their vulnerable patients. Our lives are in your hands.

Move fast and fix things: Canada can’t afford pharmacare delays

A limited national pharmacare plan passed into law recently, but so far it is only a small step toward universal, comprehensive, public drug coverage.

Mpox misinformation is costing lives

Without action, too many lives will be needlessly at risk. We must stand together, spread the truth and protect one another from this preventable disease.

Turning 18 is not so sweet for young adults with disabilities

Reaching adulthood should be a celebratory milestone, filled with greater independence and possibilities for the future. But for the estimated 200,000 young Canadians with disabilities, turning 18 often feels like falling off a cliff.

Are Canada’s clinical trials in need of reform? Experts weigh in.

Private companies in Canada are recruiting thousands of often financially desperate test subjects each year to participate in clinical trials. If we want to ensure safer studies for participants and improve critical research, what is the best way forward?

‘I would still receive another rather than no vaccine at all’: Chronically ill people left with little choice

Canada will not be procuring the Novavax vaccine for the 2024/25 season, leaving those who would have preferred an alternative to the mRNA vaccine without another option.

Where are the patient voices in Canada’s pharmaceutical system?

While federal health priorities focus on areas such as pharmaceutical use, data infrastructure and connected care, the central priority – patients’ experiences and needs – remains neglected.

From hospitals to encampments – the devolution of mental illness care in Canada

Solutions to the mental health and homelessness crises are not easy. It will take years to improve it. But if we want to call ourselves a civilized compassionate country, we have to do it.

‘A plan to make a plan’: Experts speak out on B.C.’s involuntary care proposal

As B.C.'s provincial election looms near, Premier David Eby floats plans to expand involuntary care. Experts weigh in on the announcement.

CMA’s apology to Indigenous Peoples rings hollow

Sept. 30 marks our National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. The CMA can only play a role in healing wounds if it openly reflects on what continuously harms Indigenous people so specifically and systemically in this country.

Safe consumption sites and HART should go hand in hand

As health-care providers for people who use drugs in Ontario, we know that the decision to close safe consumption sites goes against current research and knowledge of best clinical practice.

Tackling the sepsis ‘beast’: New treatment aims to save lives

Researchers have developed a new treatment to block inflammation, supercharge the white blood cells’ ability to kill bacteria, and protect against heart and lung failure.

Out of sight, out of mind? What the experts say we need to know about COVID-19 as we head indoors

Though we are not “post-COVID,” some say we are “post-crisis.” But the question remains: “What should we be doing about COVID now?”

Fossil fuels make us sick: Let’s ban ads that greenwash the issue

The passage of Bill C-372 is not merely a matter of legislative reform; it is a moral imperative in the face of escalating climate catastrophe. We must dismantle fossil fuel green washing and disinformation.

We have lost our way in Ontario

Ontario's government has pursued a "populist" agenda, focusing on privatization, deregulation and profit-driven models. These have had devastating effects on health care and public safety.