In The News is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to kickstart your day. Here is what’s on the radar of our editors for the morning of Jan. 25 …
What we are watching in Canada …
As the Omicron variant continues to strain Canadian hospitals, a vaccine hesitancy expert is voicing concern about the slow vaccination rate of children between the ages of five and 11.
In the two months since the approval of child-sized doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine, only 51 per cent of children in that age group have had at least one dose.
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That’s compared to more than 72 per cent of 12 to 17-year-olds in the two months following approval for that age range.
Kate Allen, a post-doctoral research fellow at Centre for Vaccine Preventable Diseases at the University of Toronto, says while she had predicted parents would be slower to have their younger children vaccinated, the rate is even lower that she expected.
Preliminary data on national life expectancy from Statistics Canada shows the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to an average seven-month decline — the largest decrease recorded since 1921 when the vital statistics registration system was introduced.
COVID-19 was the third leading cause of death in Canada in 2020, though Statistics Canada adds that the pandemic may have also contributed indirectly to a number of other deaths across the country.
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The largest declines in life expectancy were observed in Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia, with the drop greater for men at more than eight months, than for women, at nearly five months.
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Also this …
Groups representing Canada’s paramedics are calling for improved mental health services as staff shortages and unprecedented call volumes take a toll on workers.
Dave Deines, president of the Paramedic Association of Canada, said ambulance-paramedic services across the country are reporting increases in call volumes and decreases in staff because of the pandemic and the overdose crisis.
CUPE in Ontario said it conducted a survey of more than 14-hundred of its unionized paramedics in October that found 92 per cent said they were understaffed and the workload is hurting their mental and physical health.
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The Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals said an internal report obtained by the union shows ambulances were idled for a cumulative 17-thousand hours in October due to limited staff.
Manitoba Shared Health said in a statement that it has made recruitment a significant area of it’s focus.
The latest available data from B-C Emergency Health Services showed mental health was represented in about 46 per cent of all its long-term disability claims in 2020.
Troy Clifford, union president with the Ambulance Paramedics of B-C, said the government can’t recruit and retain enough workers and he’s calling for better wages and benefits to entice people to join and stay in the field.
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And this …
A First Nation in British Columbia is expected to release preliminary results today of a geophysical examination at the site of a former residential school.
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Chief Willie Sellars of the Williams Lake First Nation has said the first phase of the investigation at the former St. Joseph’s Mission Residential School has been challenging for its members and area First Nations.
He said in a written statement in November that the investigation has opened old wounds as people have recounted stories of abuse.
But he said the information has been helpful as part of the first phase of the investigation involving technical experts.
The investigation near Williams Lake comes after the use of ground-penetrating radar led to the discovery last year of what are believed to be hundreds of unmarked graves at a former residential school in Kamloops, B.C.
Following what was found in Kamloops, similar searches were done at former residential schools across the country.
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Last week, the federal government announced it will transfer thousands more documents related to residential schools to the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation in Winnipeg.
Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller said a new agreement with the centre outlines how and when the documents will be sent so the organization can make them available to residential school survivors.
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What we are watching in the U.S. …
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon ordered 8,500 troops on higher alert Monday to potentially deploy to Europe as part of a NATO “response force” amid growing concern that Russia could soon make a military move on Ukraine. U.S. President Joe Biden consulted with key European leaders, underscoring U.S. solidarity with allies there.
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Putting the U.S.-based troops on heightened alert for Europe suggested diminishing hope that Russian President Vladimir Putin will back away from what Biden himself has said looks like a threat to invade neighbouring Ukraine.
At stake, beyond the future of Ukraine, is the credibility of a NATO alliance that is central to U.S. defense strategy but that Putin views as a Cold War relic and a threat to Russian security.
For Biden, the crisis represents a major test of his ability to forge a united allied stance against Putin.
Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said about 8,500 U.S.-based troops are being put on alert for possible deployment — not to Ukraine but to NATO territory in Eastern Europe as part of an alliance force meant to signal a unified commitment to deter any wider Putin aggression.
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Russia denies it is planning an invasion. It says Western accusations are merely a cover for NATO’s own planned provocations. Recent days have seen high-stakes diplomacy that has failed to reach any breakthrough, and key players in the drama are making moves that suggest fear of imminent war. Biden has sought to strike a balance between actions meant to deter Putin and those that might provide the Russian leader with an opening to use the huge force he has assembled at Ukraine’s border.
The Pentagon’s move, which was done at Biden’s direction and on Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s recommendation, is being made in tandem with actions by other NATO member governments to bolster a defensive presence in Eastern European nations. Denmark, for example, is sending a frigate and F-16 warplanes to Lithuania; Spain is sending four fighter jets to Bulgaria and three ships to the Black Sea to join NATO naval forces, and France stands ready to send troops to Romania.
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NATO has not made a decision to activate the Response Force, which consists of about 40,000 troops from multiple nations. That force was enhanced in 2014 — the year Russia seized Ukraine’s Crimea Peninsula and intervened in support of pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine — by creating a “spearhead force” of about 20,000 troops on extra-high alert within the larger Response Force.
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What we are watching in the rest of the world …
ISLAMABAD — Pakistan has a woman on its highest court for the first time.
Ayesha Malik’s swearing-in on Monday as a justice on Pakistan’s Supreme Court was a landmark moment for the Islamic nation where women often struggle to get justice — especially in cases involving sexual assault.
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Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmad administered Malik’s oath-taking in Islamabad. The event had been a controversial development for Pakistan’s male-dominated judicial system. Malik’s appointment, confirmed last week by Pakistani President Arif Alvi, silenced some of her critics who opposed her promotion on technical grounds.
Congratulations flowed from the top, with Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeting of Malik, 55, “I wish her all the best.”
Pakistani Sen. Sherry Rehman shared a photo of Malik’s oath-taking on Twitter. Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi also tweeted, saying Malik’s swearing in was “a great day for Pakistan.”
The process to elevate Malik from the Punjab provincial high court, which she joined in 2012, had been unusually contentious. A nine-member judicial commission recommends judges for promotion.
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Five members of the commission supported Malik’s appointment, while the other four opposed it.
Malik’s allies hope her appointment clears the way for more promotions of women in Pakistan’s courts.
Women in Pakistan struggle to get justice – especially in cases involving sexual assault. Authorities and society cast doubt on the victims in many cases.
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On this day in 1997 …
In his first major international speech since becoming Quebec’s premier late the previous year, Rene Levesque told the Economic Club of New York that Quebec independence was inevitable.
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In entertainment …
Comic Samantha Bee says she believes humour is always the cure, particularly at a time when the world has never been more fraught.
It’s the lens through which her TBS late-night series “Full Frontal” has operated for seven seasons, along with Bee’s weekly interview podcast, “Full Release.”
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Reached by phone in New York, the Toronto-native says she’s looking forward to joining this week’s Hot Docs Podcast Festival with a remote, live edition of “Full Release” on Friday.
The podcast premiered in July 2020, and while it proved to be the perfect pandemic vocation as a solely audio format, Bee had been plotting one for several years.
With guests ranging from Canadian gynecologist Jen Gunter to writer Roxane Gay and U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, “Full Release” offers a space for Bee to focus on a single subject, for up to an hour.
“The show itself is editorial and the podcast is a conversation,” says Bee. “It’s me being led by my own curiosity and getting a full portrait of a person, hearing their story and understanding where they’re coming from.”
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It also means she’s finally getting to spend time with people she actually likes. Because if you know “Full Frontal,” then you’re well aware that Bee is often speaking to or taking down controversial politicians and policies, from Ted Cruz to Jeb Bush, through a distinctly feminist position.
As Bee describes it, her objective on “Full Frontal” has always been “to press the gas pedal and go,” knowing time is limited and there are “boxes to be checked” It has made her a polarizing figure on the left and the right, earning her a label she says she personally enjoys: “the queen of confrontation.”
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ICYMI …
WASHINGTON — U.S. President Joe Biden responded to a question about inflation on Monday by calling a Fox News reporter a vulgarity.
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The president was in the East Room of the White House for a meeting of his Competition Council, which is focused on changing regulations and enforcing laws to help consumers deal with high prices. Reporters in the room shouted a number of questions after Biden’s remarks.
Fox News’ Peter Doocy asked Biden about inflation, which is at a nearly 40-year high and has hurt the president’s public approval. Doocy’s network has been relentlessly critical of Biden.
Doocy called out, “Do you think inflation is a political liability ahead of the midterms?”
Biden responded with sarcasm, “It’s a great asset — more inflation.” Then he shook his head and added, “What a stupid son of a bitch.”
The president’s comments were captured on video and by the microphone in front of him. Doocy laughed it off in a subsequent appearance on his network, joking, “Nobody has fact-checked him yet and said it’s not true.”
Doocy told Fox News’ Sean Hannity that Biden called him later to the clear the air. Doocy said Biden told him, “It’s nothing personal, pal.”
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 25, 2022
Patients who are older, don’t speak English, and don’t have a high school education are more likely to experience harm during a hospital stay in Canada, according to new research.
The Canadian Institute for Health Information measured preventableharmful events from 2023 to 2024, such as bed sores and medication errors,experienced by patients who received acute care in hospital.
The research published Thursday shows patients who don’t speak English or French are 30 per cent more likely to experience harm. Patients without a high school education are 20 per cent more likely to endure harm compared to those with higher education levels.
The report also found that patients 85 and older are five times more likely to experience harm during a hospital stay compared to those under 20.
“The goal of this report is to get folks thinking about equity as being a key dimension of the patient safety effort within a hospital,” says Dana Riley, an author of the report and a program lead on CIHI’s population health team.
When a health-care provider and a patient don’t speak the same language, that can result in the administration of a wrong test or procedure, research shows. Similarly, Riley says a lower level of education is associated with a lower level of health literacy, which can result in increased vulnerability to communication errors.
“It’s fairly costly to the patient and it’s costly to the system,” says Riley, noting the average hospital stay for a patient who experiences harm is four times more expensive than the cost of a hospital stay without a harmful event – $42,558 compared to $9,072.
“I think there are a variety of different reasons why we might start to think about patient safety, think about equity, as key interconnected dimensions of health-care quality,” says Riley.
The analysis doesn’t include data on racialized patients because Riley says pan-Canadian data was not available for their research. Data from Quebec and some mental health patients was also excluded due to differences in data collection.
Efforts to reduce patient injuries at one Ontario hospital network appears to have resulted in less harm. Patient falls at Mackenzie Health causing injury are down 40 per cent, pressure injuries have decreased 51 per cent, and central line-associated bloodstream infections, such as IV therapy, have been reduced 34 per cent.
The hospital created a “zero harm” plan in 2019 to reduce errors after a hospital survey revealed low safety scores. They integrated principles used in aviation and nuclear industries, which prioritize safety in complex high-risk environments.
“The premise is first driven by a cultural shift where people feel comfortable actually calling out these events,” says Mackenzie Health President and Chief Executive Officer Altaf Stationwala.
They introduced harm reduction training and daily meetings to discuss risks in the hospital. Mackenzie partnered with virtual interpreters that speak 240 languages and understand medical jargon. Geriatric care nurses serve the nearly 70 per cent of patients over the age of 75, and staff are encouraged to communicate as frequently as possible, and in plain language, says Stationwala.
“What we do in health care is we take control away from patients and families, and what we know is we need to empower patients and families and that ultimately results in better health care.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
CALGARY – Alberta’s health minister says a new agency responsible for primary health care should be up and running by next month.
Adriana LaGrange says Primary Care Alberta will work to improve Albertans’ access to primary care providers like family doctors or nurse practitioners, create new models of primary care and increase access to after-hours care through virtual means.
Her announcement comes as the provincial government continues to divide Alberta Health Services into four new agencies.
LaGrange says Alberta Health Services hasn’t been able to focus on primary health care, and has been missing system oversight.
The Alberta government’s dismantling of the health agency is expected to include two more organizations responsible for hospital care and continuing care.
Another new agency, Recovery Alberta, recently took over the mental health and addictions portfolio of Alberta Health Services.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 15, 2024.
Rana Van Tuyl was about 12 weeks pregnant when she got devastating news at her ultrasound appointment in December 2020.
Her fetus’s heartbeat had stopped.
“We were both shattered,” says Van Tuyl, who lives in Nanaimo, B.C., with her partner. Her doctor said she could surgically or medically pass the pregnancy and she chose the medical option, a combination of two drugs taken at home.
“That was the last I heard from our maternity physician, with no further followup,” she says.
But complications followed. She bled for a month and required a surgical procedure to remove pregnancy tissue her body had retained.
Looking back, Van Tuyl says she wishes she had followup care and mental health support as the couple grieved.
Her story is not an anomaly. Miscarriages affect one in five pregnancies in Canada, yet there is often a disconnect between the medical view of early pregnancy loss as something that is easily managed and the reality of the patients’ own traumatizing experiences, according to a paper published Tuesday in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.
An accompanying editorial says it’s time to invest in early pregnancy assessment clinics that can provide proper care during and after a miscarriage, which can have devastating effects.
The editorial and a review of medical literature on early pregnancy loss say patients seeking help in emergency departments often receive “suboptimal” care. Non-critical miscarriage cases drop to the bottom of the triage list, resulting in longer wait times that make patients feel like they are “wasting” health-care providers’ time. Many of those patients are discharged without a followup plan, the editorial says.
But not all miscarriages need to be treated in the emergency room, says Dr. Modupe Tunde-Byass, one of the authors of the literature review and an obstetrician/gynecologist at Toronto’s North York General Hospital.
She says patients should be referred to early pregnancy assessment clinics, which provide compassionate care that accounts for the psychological impact of pregnancy loss – including grief, guilt, anxiety and post-traumatic stress.
But while North York General Hospital and a patchwork of other health-care providers in the country have clinics dedicated to miscarriage care, Tunde-Byass says that’s not widely adopted – and it should be.
She’s been thinking about this gap in the Canadian health-care system for a long time, ever since her medical training almost four decades ago in the United Kingdom, where she says early pregnancy assessment centres are common.
“One of the things that we did at North York was to have a clinic to provide care for our patients, and also to try to bridge that gap,” says Tunde-Byass.
Provincial agency Health Quality Ontario acknowledged in 2019 the need for these services in a list of ways to better manage early pregnancy complications and loss.
“Five years on, little if any progress has been made toward achieving this goal,” Dr. Catherine Varner, an emergency physician, wrote in the CMAJ editorial. “Early pregnancy assessment services remain a pipe dream for many, especially in rural Canada.”
The quality standard released in Ontario did, however, prompt a registered nurse to apply for funding to open an early pregnancy assessment clinic at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton in 2021.
Jessica Desjardins says that after taking patient referrals from the hospital’s emergency room, the team quickly realized that they would need a bigger space and more people to provide care. The clinic now operates five days a week.
“We’ve been often hearing from our patients that early pregnancy loss and experiencing early pregnancy complications is a really confusing, overwhelming, isolating time for them, and (it) often felt really difficult to know where to go for care and where to get comprehensive, well-rounded care,” she says.
At the Hamilton clinic, Desjardins says patients are brought into a quiet area to talk and make decisions with providers – “not only (from) a physical perspective, but also keeping in mind the psychosocial piece that comes along with loss and the grief that’s a piece of that.”
Ashley Hilliard says attending an early pregnancy assessment clinic at The Ottawa Hospital was the “best case scenario” after the worst case scenario.
In 2020, she was about eight weeks pregnant when her fetus died and she hemorrhaged after taking medication to pass the pregnancy at home.
Shortly after Hilliard was rushed to the emergency room, she was assigned an OB-GYN at an early pregnancy assessment clinic who directed and monitored her care, calling her with blood test results and sending her for ultrasounds when bleeding and cramping persisted.
“That was super helpful to have somebody to go through just that, somebody who does this all the time,” says Hilliard.
“It was really validating.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 15, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
