Health care

Ok, Let’s Talk.

Jan 29, 2015
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Yesterday was Bell Let’s Talk Day 2015.  You might have heard about it.  According to Bell, a record 122,150,772 Bell Let’s Talk tweets, texts, calls, and shares on January 28, 2015 translated into a new donation of $6,107,538 to mental health initiatives. Let’s Talk is a multi-year campaign focused on four “action pillars” related to… View Article

The BC Human Rights Commission and Mental Health

Dec 10, 2014
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In BC the human rights of people experiencing mental illness are routinely violated through the use of Section 28 under the BC Mental Health Act which is implemented when a person is thought to be a danger to themselves or others. A recent Globe and Mail article indicated that these apprehensions in BC (frequently initiated… View Article

How Doctors are Paid in BC

Feb 22, 2014
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  [A version of this piece was posted on the Tyee] Health care is the biggest, most expensive and most important thing that government does. Hospital care swallows up a large proportion of the health care budget, but primary care in the community takes care of most patient needs and keeps people out of hospital…. View Article

What you need to know about BC Budget 2014

Feb 18, 2014
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Today’s 2014 BC budget contained very little news, as expected. Despite a significantly weaker economic picture for BC than what was projected in the June 2013 Budget Update, there are no new measures to help British Columbian families struggling with economic insecurity in the weak job market. Five years after the recession officially ended, BC… View Article

Anti-poverty movement, meet the culture of medicine.

Jan 23, 2014
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The evidence for the burden of income inequality on health is plentiful and convincing, with inequity and its health impact both increasing in British Columbia in recent years. Many voices are calling for attention to poverty reduction and a living wage. But what happens when you add doctors into this conversation? Progress and challenges both. Some physicians are at the… View Article

BC hospital P3 ownership moves to tax haven

Nov 6, 2013
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One more of British Columbia’s public private partnerships (P3s) has headed on down the road to ownership in a European tax haven.  Bilfinger Berger Global Infrastructure completed deals last summer to acquire equity and loans for the Kelowna Vernon Hospital.  It is also buying out equity and loans on Alberta’s North East Stoney Trail highway… View Article

BC doctors need unbiased info on prescription drugs

Jul 25, 2013
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As a family physician, I need to be sure that each medication I prescribe has good evidence behind its use for my patient’s diagnosis, concurrent medical conditions, and demographic. This isn’t as straightforward as it sounds, because good evidence isn’t always easy to find. In an often polarized culture of illness and suffering in which… View Article