The election results could mean a national pharmacare program will happen, albeit slowly. Canadians can also expect more safe injection sites and money invested in the opioid crisis.
Alcohol is classified by the World Health Organization as a Class 1 carcinogen. Our next federal government must step up with an Alcohol Act and a strategy to reduce harms from this recreational drug.
In the midst of a public health crisis, with increasing rates of death from opioid overdose, the Ontario government is clawing back life-saving measures.
Cannabis legalization in Canada is a public health strategy. Let’s harness this opportunity to understand how cannabis could fit into a multi-faceted opioid prevention and response strategy.
Catastrophic increases in opioid overdose deaths across Canada require a broad response – tackling housing, food and income insecurity as well as the contaminated drug supply.
Surgeons are big prescribers of opioids. But while guidelines are in place for dentists and for doctors who prescribe opioid-based painkillers for long-term pain, there are none for surgeons.
Opioids kill an average of eight people every day in Canada. The federal government must officially declare this a ‘public welfare emergency’ and invest the funds critical to a humane response.
High fructose corn syrup in food and drinks has long been linked to rising rates of child and teen obesity. New evidence suggests it increases the risks of opioid addiction and overdose too.
As Canada moves towards legalization of cannabis in 2018, there is growing evidence of the drug’s potential to treat opioid addiction itself, as well as the chronic pain that often drives it.
Most physicians are unaware of effective approaches to treat opioid addiction. Addiction medicine fellowships offer a new and effective way to save lives.
One in five Canadians suffers chronic pain and almost 2,500 died last year from opioid overdose. A National Pain Strategy promises to tackle both problems.