Manitoba creates seniors advocate office
This week’s edition of who is saying what about public health care is compiled by Pat Van Horne.
Manitoba names first seniors advocate
“The (Progressive Conservatives) blocked the introduction of the independent office of the seniors advocate (last year) and (we) have an opportunity to right that wrong and support the ratification for this appointment so the office can be successfully established and get to work . . . We look forward to the office being established and for the recommendations that will come from this seniors advocate office doing the work of hearing the concerns of Manitobans, being a strong voice Manitobans can count on bringing concerns forward, and acting as an entity which will complement existing services by identifying gaps and pushing for improvements by way of recommendations to government,” said Manitoba Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara, who is also responsible for seniors and long-term care, to the Winnipeg Free Press, October 7, 2025
Millions of Canadian taxpayer dollars spent on U.S. medical treatments
“We tend to look south as opposed to looking east and west, and if the provinces knew what each other were doing, then we might be able to cooperate more than we do,” said Prof. Arthur Sweetman, co-director of the Centre for Health Economics and Policy Analysis at McMaster University to CBC, September 26, 2025
Indigenous team operating mobile addictions-treatment clinic
”Sometimes coming to the city is very triggering for people, and people should be able to access all services, no matter where they live. . .Being able to provide services in community for this population is extremely important to us, so that’s why we’re going to them, instead of them having to come to us. . . We’re easy to access for people that are flying in or flying out, so if they need to access services before they go home, or when they come down. . . (treatment began with flying out after people from remote communities displaced by wildfires returned home and there was a need for continued treatment).—said nurse Kirsty Muller, Anisininew Mobile Addiction Network clinic’s addiction services manager, to the Winnipeg Free Press, October 6, 2025
Wait time saga at Montreal ER
“When I arrived in Montreal on the evening of Sept. 24 at 7 p.m. I immediately went to the McGill University Hospital Centre (MUHC) emergency. There were about 60 people in the waiting rooms; I was rapidly triaged, with a note that I was “ambulatory”. Within half an hour, I saw a nurse who took my blood pressure and asked for a urine sample. There were people on stretchers being brought in, and I watched and waited. . . A June study by the Montreal Economic Institute (MEI) revealed wait times across Canada have increased in the past five years, and that Quebec has the worst wait times in the country with a median time of five hours and 23 minutes. The MUHC emergency average wait is almost eight hours. A September MEI report showed more than a million would-be ER patients across Canada left in frustration without receiving care,” said journalist Andrew Caddell, to The Hill Times, October 1, 2025
Mental health challenges require more funding
“I would say that even though we are investing quite a lot of money in addressing health or the mental health of Canadians, it’s still not enough . . . Relative to other high-income countries, we should be doubling our investments in resources that are dedicated to the treatment and prevention of mental health and substance use disorders in order to be able to deliver better health to Canadians.”—said Patricia Conrod, Canada Research Chair in Preventive Mental Health and Addiction and scientific director of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Institute of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Addiction, to The Hill Times, October 6, 2025
Burnout crisis among long-term care staff: Is there a solution?
“While Long-Term Care (LTC) is primarily the responsibility of the provinces and territories, there is an important role for the federal government. Just as it is working with provincial and territorial governments to address problems in primary care, its leadership is also essential in finding solutions to the LTC workforce crisis. . .One important strategy to improve care aides’ mental health is for governments to adopt and fund policies that support trauma-informed workplaces in LTC. . . A recent study comparing burnout levels for care aides between 2014 and 2024 found that the levels—which were high prior to the pandemic—have not returned to pre-pandemic levels. Care aides’ emotional exhaustion levels increased, and their professional efficacy levels decreased. . .Burnout is a psychological condition marked by cynicism, emotional exhaustion, and decreased professional efficacy (confidence in the ability to do the job),” said Carole A. Estabrooks, scientific director of the pan-Canadian Translating Research in Elder Care, and Canada Research Chair, faculty of nursing at the University of Alberta,and Janice Keefe, professor and chair of the Department of Family Studies and Gerontology at Mount Saint Vincent University, to The Hill Times, October 3, 2025
Black women dismissed when they ask about menopause symptoms
“The dismissal of symptoms is not uncommon, unfortunately. I think things are changing, but we hear this all the time in the menopause space. People will write me and say, ‘I went and spoke to my family doctor and clearly state that I’m suffering with these symptoms and they told me they can’t help me because this is in my head or I just need to have a glass of wine,” she said. “Those sorts of things that are really shocking to hear, but that do happen still. . . Black women are less likely to be heard, less likely to be believed and less likely to be offered the same options as others in our healthcare system,” she said. “So, you have a double side there, which widens the gap in a more extreme way.”—said Dr. Sheila Wijayasinghe, menopause-certified family doctor and Medical Director of Primary Care Outreach at Women’s College Hospital (WCH) in Toronto, to Healthing.ca, October 6, 2025
Nova Scotia hospice bed shortage leaves dozens waiting for dignity
“For every one person we can take in, two are turned away,” said Claire Prashad, nurse manager at Hospice Halifax, to CBC, October 5, 2025. Prashad added that more specialized end-of-life care is needed.
