health care system Archives - Page 2 of 5

Health Canada gives ‘kiss of death’ to planned policy for rare-disease drugs

October 17, 2017

OTTAWA — Health Canada has quietly deleted from its website all references to a planned framework for rare-disease drugs that dates back to 2012 and was intended to improve the availability of such drugs in Canada.

Canada is one of the only developed countries without a regulatory framework for rare-disease drugs, also known as orphan drugs.

Durhane Wong-Rieger, president and CEO of the Canadian Organization for Rare Disorders, said the decision “certainly seems to be the kiss of death” for the orphan drug framework.

Study questions why thousands with developmental disabilities are prescribed antipsychotics

August 23, 2017

Thousands of people with Down syndrome, autism and other developmental disabilities are being prescribed anti-psychotic medication by Ontario doctors despite a lack of evidence that the drugs actually help them, a new study has found.

Researchers with the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences have called for “guidelines and training around antipsychotic prescribing and monitoring” for doctors, pharmacists and care home staff after finding that nearly 40 per cent of people with developmental disabilities were prescribed antipsychotic drugs at some point over a six-year period.

Toilet paper limited to ‘two per week’ at New Brunswick retirement home

August 8, 2017

MONCTON, N.B. — Residents of a New Brunswick seniors’ home have been informed they will each be limited to two rolls of toilet paper a week.

The Manoir Notre-Dame in Moncton said in a written notice the move is necessary because of an increase in overall costs.

“We will limit the rolls of toilet paper to two per week which will be deposited every Monday in the rooms,” the Aug. 2 notice read.

One way to avoid getting hooked on prescription painkillers

July 20, 2017

Taking prescription painkillers such as Percocet or Vicodin for more than a few days sharply increases your risk of getting hooked on the drugs, according to a new study just out from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Researchers at the University of Arkansas analyzed the health records of about 1.3 million adults who were prescribed opioids between 2006 and 2015.

Results showed that only about one in 20 people who took prescription painkillers for just three days were still on the drugs a year later.

Health care’s sacred cows targeted

July 12, 2017

In the 15 months he has been Manitoba’s health minister, Kelvin Goertzen has demonstrated a clear and profound disdain for sacred cows.

The past 90 days alone, Goertzen unveiled plans to close and repurpose three Winnipeg hospital emergency rooms, shutter two dozen rural Emergency Medical Services stations, and cut tens of millions of dollars in operating funds from regional health authorities.

Provinces struggling to provide proper care for seniors: report

July 11, 2017

Provincial health-care systems are struggling to place Canadians in the appropriate continuing-care settings they need, potentially adding to wait times and barriers to care, according to a new report.

The Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) report found one in five seniors who have lower-priority needs could have delayed or even avoided admission to residential care and instead received care in their own home or in home-like settings.

Ontario doctors plan to appeal court decision to identify top-billers

July 6, 2017

The Ontario Medical Association has announced that it wants to appeal a court ruling that would make the names of the province’s top-billing doctors public.

In an email sent to 29,000 members Thursday, the organization said it wants to ask the Ontario Court of Appeal to overturn a lower court ruling that would allow public disclosure of the names.

The OMA continues to maintain that physicians’ identities should be exempt from disclosure under the personal privacy provisions of Ontario’s Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.

Toronto doctor accused of sexual assault on patient during treatment

June 27, 2017

Police say a Toronto doctor has been charged after an alleged sexual assault on a patient.

They say the complainant alleges she was sexually assaulted by the doctor during treatment.

Investigators say Dr. Stephen Strigler, 57, was arrested on Monday and charged with sexual assault.

Police are asking anyone with information to contact investigators.

Strigler is scheduled to appear in court on Aug. 4.

New Brunswick joins growing list of provinces who reveal how much they pay doctors

June 27, 2017

New Brunswick has made public how much it pays to each of its doctors.

The province released the names of physicians along with the amounts each received in payments for providing medically insured services last year.

In doing so, it has joined a growing list of jurisdictions that is turning to public disclosure of such data.

More Than Half Of Opioid Prescriptions Go To People With Mental Illness

June 27, 2017

A staggering number of people with mental health conditions are prescribed opioids, according to a new study.

Researchers from Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and the University of Michigan found that 51 percent of painkiller prescriptions are distributed to those who have also been diagnosed with depression and anxiety.

The study authors are uncertain why people with these mental health disorders are using these medications more frequently, but they have a few theories: Physician behavior may play a big role, as well as general health issues that are often coupled with mental illness.