Posts Tagged ‘mental Health’

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The perverse logic of social assistance

Monday, March 4th, 2024

In Ontario, single adults who are unhoused… receive $343 per month for basic needs, and $0 for shelter. That works out to about $11 per day. No one can say with a straight face that $11 per day is a program designed to help people. How is it possible for someone to get by, let alone to get back on their feet, with so little? … It doesn’t function to bolster their well-being, or stop them from falling further into poverty. Instead, it responds to a person who has lost their home by making their life even harder.

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I had to turn another patient away: It doesn’t have to be that way

Thursday, February 29th, 2024

It’s actually physically impossible for a solo family doctor to keep up with all the needed acute, chronic and preventive care, let alone look after their many results and consult notes while running what amounts to a small business… Primary care teams are urgently needed to share these responsibilities and make the most of family doctors’ skills… also needed is a clear vision and a steadfast commitment to reconstructing primary care.

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Can Ontario Fix the Shortage of Personal Support Workers?

Wednesday, February 28th, 2024

The Ontario government earmarked almost $5 billion in funding over four years to help long-term care homes hire and retain care staff. It’s since added additional millions in incentives to attract thousands to become personal support workers over the next few years… Podcast video Episode: Can New Incentives Help Attract PSWs in Ontario?

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The crisis hitting small-town Ontario

Saturday, February 24th, 2024

Communities across the province are grappling with overdoses and appealing for more resources to deal with the crisis… According to the Ontario Drug Policy Research Network, the opioid death rate is three times higher in northern than southern Ontario… While we often hear complaints about the lack of sufficient treatment and harm reduction facilities in large cities like Toronto, smaller communities are lucky if they have any at all.

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Why the surge in medically assisted deaths?

Tuesday, February 6th, 2024

… assisted deaths in Canada grew by an average of 31.1 per cent each year between 2019 and 2022… of those who received MAID in 2022, 17 per cent cited loneliness or isolation as one cause of their suffering… Since people with mental illness are at high risk of homelessness, this could exacerbate the difficulty they have in accessing critical health services, including those of a palliative nature.

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The risks of ending safer supply drugs programs

Sunday, January 28th, 2024

21 of 24 federally funded safer supply programs are in jeopardy, as their contracts will expire in March. And with just two months until then, the feds have given no indication that they’ll renew their commitment to any of them. Ottawa’s silence on the matter is all the more disturbing given the recent, dramatic increase in overdose deaths — and the mounting evidence in support of safer supply.

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Critical nursing shortage puts patients at risk

Saturday, December 30th, 2023

As the health care crisis rages unabated across the country, it is nurses who are holding our health systems together through grit, determination and a shocking amount of overtime… Fixing the nursing shortage is not just about adding more nurses to the system; it’s about addressing the conditions that have created this dire crisis… Relying on excessive overtime or costly private nurse agencies as short-term fixes only exacerbates the systemic challenges facing health care.

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The Government of Canada announces the creation of the Canadian Drug Agency

Wednesday, December 20th, 2023

The CDA will build on CADTH’s existing mandate… to include new work streams including: Improving the appropriate prescribing and use of medications… Increasing pan-Canadian data collection and expanding access to drug and treatment data… and, Reducing drug system duplication and lack of coordination that causes expensive inefficiencies and pressures… Once the CDA is operational, it will take on a greater role in the drug system to ensure Canadians can have better health outcomes and access the medications…

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Program at Hamilton Public Library shows how libraries can expand the social services they provide

Wednesday, December 13th, 2023

Library social workers aim to remove systemic barriers… by offering preventative support… and by helping people access services that offer longer-term solutions to their problems… they are trained and able to support trauma, mental-health issues, challenges and complex needs in a way that meets the person where they are at emotionally, physically and/or cognitively.

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Learn these three simple numbers to help prevent suicide

Friday, December 1st, 2023

Responders at 9-8-8 are trained in suicide prevention and are based at existing helplines across the country. They will listen with compassion and empathy and give callers and texters space to share without being judged. Responders will work with callers and texters to explore ways to cope and pathways to safety when things are overwhelming… It is important to note that while 9-8-8 will help keep people safe in the moment, it is not a replacement for mental health care provided in primary care, in communities and in hospitals.

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