Lived Experience

Ethical recruitment of internationally educated health professionals: From principles to action

With one of the highest volumes of migrant intake in the world, Canada has both a responsibility and an opportunity to demonstrate leadership in ethical recruitment and for policymakers to support implementation of WHO code-aligned policies and practices.

I am a new doctor; Ford is wrong about ‘basketweaving majors’

The Ontario Student Assistance Program is more than just taxpayer money. It is the people’s belief in the immense potential of every student to rise above their station and be of service to the public.

Sharing the waterfront with e-scooters and e-bikes

If we listen to the people who use the roads, including walkers, bicyclists as well as riders of e-bikes and e-scooters, we can design roads so that getting around feels safer and more pleasant.

Adherence starts with understanding: Why health literacy is a system responsibility

On World Adherence Day, the message should be simple but transformative: before we ask patients to follow treatment, we must ensure they truly understand it.

Co-payments ‘a step backward’ for refugees and the health-care system

It’s imperative we protect access to health care for refugees and asylum claimants. There is no compromise when it comes to equitable health care.

Reclaiming the joy of cooking for people living with chronic conditions

The millions of Canadians living with diabetes deserve better than a lifetime of restriction and shame.

Bill to criminalize forced sterilization sparks debate over reproductive justice and medical practice

Bill S-228, which would criminalize forced and coerced sterilization with an up to 14-year prison sentence, is on its way to becoming law. But is it a step in the right direction? Experts weigh in.

The hidden cost of dismissal: How we amplify chronic pain in clinical settings

Chronic pain affects more than one in five Canadians. But not all pain is shaped by our bones, muscles and systems. It also is shaped by context.

The issue no one wants to address about blood donation and Black Canadians

The issue is not whether Black communities care enough to donate. The issue is whether Canada’s blood system is structured in a way that makes equitable participation possible.

Cognitive Stimulation Therapy: A human-centred, cost-effective approach to dementia care

Health systems across Canada need to devote more time and resources to implementing non-pharmacological programs such as CST to provide comprehensive dementia care in an equitable way.

Schooling or suicide: The ethical responsibility of educational institutions

Students are dying silently in the places meant to shape their futures. Schools cannot prevent every tragedy, but they also cannot ignore the role they play.

The cost of caring: Social worker well-being and fair compensation

As social workers we are often expected to put our needs last, while accepting an income that fails to reflect the true value of our work. We need to change the social work discourse and change the landscape in which we are expected to work.

Kevin’s story: My journey with my brother, dementia and Down Syndrome

Across the country, we talk about dementia more than we used to, but too often, conversations remain fragmented - and people with disabilities are rarely at the centre of planning.

Why the debate over physician involvement in pre-hospital care in B.C. needs a reset

"I work as an advanced care paramedic in British Columbia. I’m proud of our work, but I’m increasingly concerned that debate over physician involvement in pre-hospital care has lost sight of its primary goal: improving patient outcomes."

Sick notes are slowly being banned but much more is needed to reduce administrative burden

Doctors across Canada agree: the crushing paperwork in medicine is unsustainable. Together, we can create a better system that truly supports both patients and the physicians who serve them.

‘Dangerous outcomes’: The limitations of BMI as a diagnostic tool

Researchers, clinicians and advocates have been raising concerns about the BMI, saying it is not a comprehensive indicator of health and using it can have disastrous results, especially for racialized populations.

Don’t give up on your health. Give up on the old playbook

As January recedes in the rearview mirror, so have most New Year’s resolutions to lose weight, eat better or get fit. But when success is only defined by a number on the scale, disappointment is almost inevitable.

The euphemism economy: How Ontario health care learned to stop worrying and love the hallway

There’s a difference between softening language to ease emotional pain and softening language to hide systemic failure. One is compassion. The other is camouflage.

The deafening silence: A diaspora’s grief in the age of internet blackouts

For the Iranian diaspora, this is not a debate about policy reform; it's about survival. We need our governments and institutions to do more.

The quiet commercialization of primary care records

An emerging model is quietly turning Canadian patient medical records, and patients themselves, into lucrative commercial assets – often without patients' explicit knowledge or consent.