Primary care

Virtual reality for wound care patients a Canadian first

Virtual reality is being used to help patients undergoing wound care at Rockyview General Hospital to help ease pain and anxiety during treatment — a first of it’s kind in Canada. Patient Graydon Cuthbertson wears a Samsung Gear … READ MORE

Saudi Arabia allows medical trainees to stay in Canada

More than 1,000 Saudi Arabian medical graduates will be allowed to stay in Canada to complete their training, a much-needed reprieve for teaching hospitals that were unsure how they would handle the sudden and significant loss of … READ MORE

Saudi medical residents at Dalhousie University get to stay a bit longer

Residents can now stay in Canada until Sept. 22, the university confirmed Tuesday. Medical residents from Saudi Arabia completing their training through Dalhousie University will be allowed to remain in Canada until Sept. 22. Jean … READ MORE

Hospital quality improves over time with EHRs

Close analysis shows technology yields benefits, but not all at once. UCSF study shows EHRs eventually improve hospital care. Susan Merrell By Pete Farley, University of California San Francisco July 10, 2018 An examination of how the … READ MORE

More health-care spending an expensive way to buy health

It’s budget season and provincial governments are continuing to spend more on healthcare than any other portfolio. For example, Alberta spends almost half its budget on health — an estimated $22 billion this year — which is more … READ MORE

Leaked report reveals lax cybersecurity over Alberta patient health records

Leaked report reveals lax cybersecurity over Alberta patient health records. A leaked report obtained by CBC News suggests Alberta Health Services needs to improve its cybersecurity in regards to patient records. CBC Jennie Russell, … READ MORE

In Ontario, new project will give providers and patients more access to health records

SPARK is designed to support innovators with market-ready or in-market digital health solutions. Currently, the SPARK pathway is for digital health innovators working with one or more Health Information Custodians (HICs). Innovators … READ MORE

Uninsured patients in Ontario: People get sicker, the system pays more

Patricia, left, a native of Guyana, says she feels “in control” since she started taking part in the Health With Dignity Program. She is speaking here with health coach Candace Crawford. Carlos Osorio, Toronto Star Dafna Izenberg, … READ MORE

Provincial health ministers support idea of national pharmacare

Goertzen says Manitoba wants plan to be defined, adequate, secure, and able to deal with inflation. Federal Health Minister Ginette Petitpas Taylor speaks to reporters after meeting with provincial and territorial health ministers in … READ MORE

Premiers call for ‘voluntary’ pharmacare program funded by Ottawa

Quebec confirms it will opt out of federal drug plan, Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Dwight Ball, left, made it clear at the premiers’ closing news conference Friday that if the federal government wants a national drug … READ MORE

The smartphone feature that could potentially save your life

PEI paramedic says information is crucial in a crisis, but many people don’t know about or use apps. Island EMS advanced care paramedic Holly Noel says any clue is useful when paramedics are dealing with a medical emergency. … READ MORE

Physicians urge Ottawa to pay another $21B over decade for seniors health care

Report comes ahead of the annual premiers’ Council of the Federation meeting. Northumberland Hills Hospital in Cobourg, Ont., is shown on Saturday, Oct. 28, 2017. Physicians are calling on the federal government to shell out … READ MORE

Pharmacare may appeal to premiers seeking consensus this week in NB

‘I’m confident that we’ll create a model that suits Canada,’ advisory council chair Eric Hoskins says. Former Ontario health minister Eric Hoskins was asked by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to head a federal … READ MORE

Federal home visiting program can be improved to better meet needs of families

Compared with other countries, the United States often falls short on many maternal and child health outcomes. A federal program known as Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) is designed to give pregnant women … READ MORE

Paramedics’ visits to 911 ‘hotspots’ reduce ambulance calls, study suggests

As our population ages, more and more seniors call 911 to get help, increasing demand on the system. Jessie Lee, left, a paramedic with Toronto Paramedic Services, developed the computer algorithm that enables paramedics to discover … READ MORE

Caution needed with artificial intelligence in medicine, experts warn

Current hype surrounding machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) in medicine is enormous, with seemingly daily headlines declaring that some new model will change how a disease is diagnosed or treated. Experts are more … READ MORE

The digital doctor’s visit: Enormous potential benefits with equally big risk

One out of at least 10 patients records doctors’ visits, usually on a cell phone; Apple recently released a new Health Records feature built into the Health app as part of iOS 11.3. No longer a wave of the future, researchers … READ MORE

Getting health data sharing off the ground

To make progress in personalised medicine, researchers and doctors need access to health data. However, as a study by ETH researchers shows, comprehensive guidelines for the exchange of such data are lacking, being one of the primary … READ MORE

Streamlining the EHR: Interview with Mihai Fonoage at Modernizing Medicine

Modernizing Medicine, a medtech company based in Florida, has developed the Electronic Medical Assistant (EMA), an EHR system which the company claims can significantly streamline clinician workflow. Cloud-based and developed by … READ MORE

Apple’s next move in healthcare is breaking down health record silos

New capabilities in Health Records help patients see medical records from multiple providers. In an important step forward in the consumerization of healthcare, this week Apple introduced an update to its Health app, in iOS 11.3 … READ MORE

Electronic health records fail because they are merely digital remakes of paper charts

Penn researchers ask, ‘What if doctors could just subscribe to news feeds about their patients?’ Once hailed as essential to advance health care into the 21st Century, electronic health record (EHR) systems have increased … READ MORE

Early physical therapy benefits low-back pain patients

Patients with low-back pain are better off seeing a physical therapist first, according to a study of 150,000 insurance claims. Analysis of 150K insurance claims shows health, cost upsides of starting care with a PT. About 80 percent … READ MORE

Alberta health union launches campaign against ‘threats’ posed by UCP

One of the province’s largest health care unions is wading into the political arena by launching a media campaign to counter “threats” to public health care posed by the potential election of the United Conservative Party next … READ MORE

No rational person would design a healthcare system this way

Justin Trudeau was a hard act to follow, but the next speaker defined the most important issue of the 2019 election. At the Liberal convention, Dr. Danielle Martin argued a national pharmacare program is long overdue: ‘No rational … READ MORE

A plan to overhaul Canadian health care systems

What has gotten Canadian health systems to their present state will not be sufficient to get them where they need to go for the future. Making our pan-Canadian health organizations ‘Fit for Purpose.’ Health Minister Ginette … READ MORE

Paramedics road-testing portable health records system

Quebec-based company Prehos supplying digital system used in pilot project. Chief Michael Nolan demonstrates how paramedics will now be able to access patients’ medical information on an iPad. CBC CBC News Ottawa April 06, 2018 … READ MORE

Electrical brain stimulation could benefit children with cerebral palsy

First-of-its-kind study using electrical currents to boost motor skills shows promise. Testing the technology: Hadley Lucca, making slime with her mom, Sarah, took part in a groundbreaking study at the University of Minnesota that … READ MORE

Alberta spends $2.4M an hour on health care — how do we reduce spending?

In the coming year, the Alberta government will spend about $22 billion on health care. That’s almost 40 per cent of the provincial government’s total budget. Foothills Medical Centre, Alberta Health Services By Brooks … READ MORE

Australians say no thanks to electronic health records

A wave of opt-outs highlights distrust in the government’s security and privacy promises. A political firestorm erupted last week over the Australian government’s move to create a shareable national electronic health record for … READ MORE

The secret to a high tech concierge medical office? Data

The exam room is where the real magic happens. The first thing members see when they walk in is a massive touch screen display on the wall. Quartz By design, the downtown San Francisco storefront offices of Forward feel more like a … READ MORE

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