Dementia patient, 84, spent countless hours in hospital hallways, daughter says

The daughter of an 84-year-old Calgary dementia patient is speaking out about how her mother was “warehoused” in acute care hospitals for almost a year, because she couldn’t get long-term care in a public or private facility. “It’s been horrific

Foothills Medical Centre, Alberta’s largest hospital, a

Reinstating Access to Health Care for Refugee Claimants Ontario Filling Federal Funding Gap with Temporary Health Program December 9, 2013 11:00 a.m. Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care Ontario is joining other provinces by reinstating access to essential and urgent health care for refugee claimants through the new Ontario Temporary Health Program, and will send the federal government the bill to pay for the program.

November 29, 2013 HEU members working for Compass Group at Provincial Health Services Authority sites turned out in force to vote 78 per cent in favour of a new four-year contract.  The agreement came after nearly a year of bargaining and includes modest wage increases, a signing bonus, improved vacation benefits and partial payout of unused sick leave. 

MONDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2013 NEWS RELEASE OTTAWA — Canadians are more likely to want the federal government to invest future budget surpluses in healthcare (45%) compared to reducing the national debt (37%) or tax cuts (16%). This according to the results of a survey conducted on behalf of the Canadian Health Coalition by Nanos Research.

The Globe and Mail Tue Dec 3 2013

The B.C. Coroners office is examining whether a major investigation into violence among residents of care homes is needed after two seniors were assaulted by fellow residents, leading to a murder charge in one case. The service is investigating both incidents as unnatural deaths, which might yield lessons to prevent future occurances, Barb McClintock, a spokesperson for the service, said in an interview on Monday. She added that a larger, more comprehensive probe called a death review panel could also be done.

Publication date:  Tue, 2013-12-03 A lawsuit brought by private, for-profit health centres threatens to erase universal public health care as we know it. Dr. Brian Day, owner of Vancouver’s for-profit Cambie Surgery Centre and leading proponent of privatized health care, has launched a constitutional challenge to break medicare via the courts and establish a US-style health care system in Canada.

December 3, 2013 The multi-union Community Social Services Bargaining Association (CSSBA) has reached a tentative agreement with the Community Social Services Employers’ Association (CSSEA) for the 11,000 union members working in community-based social services across the province. The five-year agreement significantly closes the wage gap between workers in this sector and those with equivalent positions in the community health sector.

December 17, 2013 11:45 am - 1:30 pm One King West Hotel 1 King Street West, Toronto Map Location

The Honourable Jean Charest

December 6, 2013   |   Volume 17 Issue 47 Saskatchewan opens another Collaborative Emergency Centre Saskatchewan has opened its second Collaborative Emergency Centre in the town of Shaunavon west of Regina. The first was opened in September with a nurse and paramedic providing overnight emergency care with back-up from an emergency physician.

December 6, 2013   |   Volume 17 Issue 47 B.C. nurses protesting care redesign plan Outside Royal Jubilee Hospital in Victoria last Friday, members of the B.C. Nurses Union staged a demonstration to protest Island Health’s Care Delivery Model Redesign.

December 6, 2013   |   Volume 17 Issue 47 Poll finds support for more federal health spending As part of its National Medicare Week activities, the Canadian Health Coalition has released the results of a public opinion survey showing Canadians would prefer Ottawa to spend future budget surpluses on health care rather than reducing the national debt or cutting taxes.

The Nanos Research poll also found only about a third of Canadians support the federal government’s intention to link future increases in Canada Health Transfer payments to the rate of economic growth. The majority believe Ottawa should be providing a fixed share to the provinces to meet the needs of their residents.

December 6, 2013   |   Volume 17 Issue 47 Quebec hospital head suspended

Christian Paire has been suspended with pay as director-general of the Centre hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal (CHUM), the largest hospital in Quebec and one of the largest in the country. The board is still determining what it can do with respect to Mr. Paire’s contract which was recently extended for a year.

THORNHILL, Ont.–In an effort to improve their working conditions, the 53 retirement home workers, at Amica Thornhill, voted to join the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), wrapping an early Christmas gift for themselves – a move to help the workers achieve fairness and respect in their workplace.

The Globe and Mail Mon Dec 9 2013

In Canada, the number of older people with HIV has doubled in the past 20 years. Doctors, researchers and community support organizations are turning their sights to this bulging demographic, learning to care for a group that didn't expect to grow old - in a system that isn't ready for them. George's partner has been in and out of intensive-care units about a dozen times this year, for example, but the idea of long-term care doesn't seem like a good fit for a gay couple in their 60s, ju

International Comparisons: A focus on quality of care (January)

Concerns and questions are mounting over the lack of provincial government action and oversight following a serious security breach at an employer-run online registry containing the names, employment and personal information of 25,000 personal support workers (PSWs). Two police forces and fraud investigators are now on the case.

Canada Newswire Fri Nov 29 2013, 1

EDMONTON, Nov. 29, 2013 /CNW/ - The Redford Government is trying to stifle dissent by introducing stringent new anti-wildcat-strike legislation.

The Public Services Sector Continuation Act, or Bill 45