Why We Need More Canadian Health Policy in the Media is a compilation of health policy commentaries published by EvidenceNetwork.ca experts in major newspapers in 2015. These articles highlight the most recent evidence on a wide range of health policy topics, including our aging population, healthcare costs and spending, mental health, pharmaceutical policy, the social determinants of health and distinctions between the Canadian and American healthcare system among other topics. This is the fourth volume in the annual series of eBooks produced by EvidenceNetwork.ca, the first being Canadian Health Policy in the News (2013), followed by Making Evidence Matter in Canadian Health Policy (2014) and Navigating the Evidence: Communicating Canadian Health Policy in the Media (2015). We acknowledge the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, Research Manitoba, the Manitoba Centre for Health Policy, the George and Fay Yee Centre for Healthcare Innovation, CIHR’s Institute of Health Services and Policy Research, and their Institute of Population and Public Health, The Canadian Frailty Network, and the University of Manitoba’s Department of Community Health Sciences and Max Rady College of Medicine whose funding supports EvidenceNetwork.ca.
Why We Need More Canadian Health Policy in the Media is a€compilation of€EvidenceNetwork.ca commentaries published in major newspapers in 2015, written by experts in the health policy field. These articles highlight the most recent evidence on a wide range of topics, including our aging population, healthcare costs and spending, mental health, pharmaceutical policy, the social determinants of health and distinctions between the Canadian and American healthcare system among other topics. This is the fourth volume in the annual series of eBooks produced by€EvidenceNetwork.ca, the first being€Cana.
This book is a snapshot of the complex and controversial issues in Canadian health policy that have been addressed in the mainstream media, including commentaries on our aging population, the sustainability of the healthcare system, the social determinants of health, essays on pharmaceutical policy, obesity, mental health and more. It is a compilation of op-eds published in Canadian newspapers from 2014, authored by experts affiliated with the non-partisan, EvidenceNetwork.ca. It is the third volume in the series of free ebooks, which also includes: Canadian Health Policy in the News (2013) and Making Evidence Matter in Canadian Health Policy (2014) — all made available for free so that they may be read and used widely in educational settings. Essays in the volume are timely, balanced, free from partisan influence and put evidence at the forefront.
Canadian Health Policy in the News is a compendium of the commentaries (or OpEds) published by Evidence Network in major newspapers across the country from April 2011 up to October 2012. It is a timely, balanced and non-partisan snapshot of what’s new and controversial concerning our healthcare system and related social programs that affect health and well-being in our country — with evidence at the forefront. This book is available free-of-charge so that you can share it widely, in your classrooms, amongst your friends and colleagues, on your websites and via social media. Canadian health policy will always be emerging and unfolding, responding to changing environmental and economic factors, new technologies, publicly held values and differing political landscapes. Canadian Health Policy in the News captures a moment in time and presents the issues that concern Canadians most, grounding our national discourse and debate on healthcare in the best evidence. With thanks to the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Manitoba Health Research Council whose funding supports EvidenceNetwork.ca.
Canadian Health Policy in the News is a compendium of the commentaries (or OpEds) published by the Evidence Network of Canadian Health Policy (or EvidenceNetwork.ca) in major newspapers across the country since the birth of EvidenceNetwork.ca in April 2011 up to October 2012. It is a timely, balanced and non-partisan snapshot of what's new and controversial concerning our healthcare system and related social programs that affect health and well-being in our country - with evidence at the forefront. For the first time, we've collected this Creative Commons content together in an e-book format to make the information ever more widely available and accessible. The essays you'll find here, in both English and French, are organized by date published and according to eight loosely overlapping categories: Aging Population and Its Potential Impact addresses concerns over healthcare strains associated with our graying population. Is there a silver tsunami about to bankrupt our healthcare system? Would reforms in chronic healthcare delivery better accommodate this population? Will changes to pension benefits mean more of our seniors will live in poverty? Authors tackle these issues with evidence, and the answers may surprise many readers. Healthcare Costs and Spending addresses the increased costs for both out-of-pocket and public spending on health services in Canada. How are the numbers calculated (and spun by vested interests)? What's going on to cause these increases? And what can we do about it? Authors follow the money and give us the goods in accessible language. Private, For-Profit Solutions to Funding and Delivery deals with the public vs. private debate: loaded words in the Canadian context. There can (and already exists) public and private roles in both the funding and delivery of healthcare. What is the best balance for Canadians? Who pays and who should pay for healthcare? Who should deliver healthcare? Authors explore models and evidence from both inside the country and internationally to help forge the path forward. In More Care Is Not Always Better, authors tackle the question: 'What is the right amount of healthcare?' It's easy to assume that the real problem with the healthcare system is 'not enough,' but what does the evidence say? A growing number of studies show that more healthcare is not always better and the more expensive solutions are not always the best. In Health is More Than Healthcare, the authors sketch the relationship between various 'social determinants' of health, such as education, poverty and homelessness, and indicate that some of the most fruitful policy levers for improving public health lie outside of the domain of health services. In Patient Financing of Healthcare, the essays address direct patient financing of healthcare delivery. Would this result in a more efficient and cost-effective healthcare system? Would user fees, for example, prevent overuse and bring in needed revenue? Or would they negatively impact those who may need the health system the most? Sustainability includes OpEds which address whether Canadians can afford the level of healthcare we expect at a cost which is acceptable to the public; and whether we are at risk of losing our publicly funded health system from a financial perspective. Finally, in Waiting for Care, the authors assess wait times and access to care. How bad are wait times, really? And what will it cost to improve the situation? This book is available free-of-charge so that you can share it widely, in your classrooms, amongst your friends and colleagues, on your websites and via social media. Canadian health policy will always be emerging and unfolding, responding to changing environmental and economic factors, new technologies, publicly held values and differing political landscapes. Canadian Health Policy in the News captures a moment in time and presents the issues that concern Canadians most, grounding our national discourse and debate on healthcare in the best evidence.
Making Evidence Matter in Canadian Health Policy is a compendium of Op-Eds published in the media in 2012-2013 by some of Canada’s leading experts in the field, offering a snapshot of the evidence on the issues of the day. It is the second in a series of eBooks produced by EvidenceNetwork.ca, the first being Canadian Health Policy in the News.. This second volume addresses a range of controversial topics, such as whether or not our health system is sustainable and how our health care dollars are spent. Other sections address pharmaceutical policy, private-for-profit delivery of care, social determinants of health, aging, mental health and obesity.
The primary factors that shape the health of Canadians are not medical treatments or lifestyle choices but rather the living conditions they experience. These conditions have come to be known as the social determinants of health. This information - based on decades of research and hundreds of studies in Canada and elsewhere - is unfamiliar to most Canadians. Canadians are largely unaware that our health is shaped by how income and wealth is distributed, whether or not we are employed and if so, the working conditions we experience. Our health is also determined by the health and social services we receive, and our ability to obtain quality education, food and housing, among other factors. And contrary to the assumption that Canadians have personal control over these factors, in most cases these living conditions are - for better or worse - imposed upon us by the quality of the communities, housing situations, work settings, health and social service agencies, and educational institutions with which we interact. Improving the health of Canadians requires we think about health and its determinants in a more sophisticated manner than has been the case to date. Social Determinants of Health: The Canadian Facts considers 17 social determinants of health: 1. Income and Income Distribution 2. Education 3. Unemployment and Job Security 4. Employment and Working Conditions 5. Early Child Development 6. Food Insecurity 7. Housing 8. Social Exclusion 9. Social Safety Net 10. Health Services 11. Geography 12. Disability 13. Indigenous Ancestry 14. Gender 15. Immigration 16. Race 17. Globalization The publication outlines why they are important; how Canada is doing in addressing them; and what can be done to improve their quality. The purpose of the document is to provide promote greater awareness of the social determinants of health and the development and implementation of public policies that improve their quality.
Second in a series of publications from the Institute of Medicine's Quality of Health Care in America project Today's health care providers have more research findings and more technology available to them than ever before. Yet recent reports have raised serious doubts about the quality of health care in America. Crossing the Quality Chasm makes an urgent call for fundamental change to close the quality gap. This book recommends a sweeping redesign of the American health care system and provides overarching principles for specific direction for policymakers, health care leaders, clinicians, regulators, purchasers, and others. In this comprehensive volume the committee offers: A set of performance expectations for the 21st century health care system. A set of 10 new rules to guide patient-clinician relationships. A suggested organizing framework to better align the incentives inherent in payment and accountability with improvements in quality. Key steps to promote evidence-based practice and strengthen clinical information systems. Analyzing health care organizations as complex systems, Crossing the Quality Chasm also documents the causes of the quality gap, identifies current practices that impede quality care, and explores how systems approaches can be used to implement change.
