The shocking murders of eight elderly nursing home residents, allegedly by a nurse, shows serious shortcomings in the system designed to safeguard patients, including professional oversight by Ontario’s College of Nurses. October 27, 2016 There are many issues arising from the shocking news this week that saw Elizabeth Wettlaufer, a registered nurse, charged with first-degree murder […]
(Published in The Huffington Post) On a late Sunday night one recent long weekend, I was contacted by a family who was distressed over the treatment their elderly father was receiving in the hospital. I operate an online outreach clinic for patients and families through The Center for Patient Protection. It has helped thousands over […]
(Published in The Huffington Post) International Suicide Prevention Day came and went last week. But it’s hard to know whether most hospitals noticed it, or how well they are doing in combating self-harm by their patients. How hospitals handle mental health issues can have serious consequences. One winter night in 2004, Cynthia Oster, 44, slammed her rented […]
(Published in The Huffington Post) Research shows age often a decisive factor in care decisions A new Canadian study shows that age is a critical factor in the kind of treatment patients receive. According to the research, which involved patients with traumatic spinal cord injuries, “patients over 70 years of age experienced considerable delays between admission […]
(Published in The Huffington Post) The 50th anniversary this year of the Medicare and Medicaid systems in the United States has predictably prompted a good deal of reflection and even some celebration. They were milestones of healthcare advancement in that country to be sure. But much less reflection seems to happen with the Canadian system, […]
(Published in The Huffington Post) Canadians and Americans buy and drive similar cars and trucks. They also suffer heart attacks and strokes. Sometimes, they need surgery. But while Canadians, like their American cousins, can read reviews on the safety, reliability and quality of a Ford or Jeep before they invest their hard-earned dollars, the same […]
(Published in The Huffington Post) A government agency in Ontario has called for nursing homes in that province to re-evaluate their use of antipsychotic medications like quetiapine (marketed under the brand name Seroquel). Health Quality Ontario says more than 60 percent of residents in some nursing homes are receiving Seroquel and other drugs like it. […]
More and more families are giving voice to hospital horror stories so that what happened to their loved ones, and mine, does not happen again. Standing up for safer care after a hospital has inflicted harm is never easy for a family. In many cases, the patient does not get to be part of that […]
It’s time for a top-to-bottom review of just how user-friendly and fair our healthcare complaint bodies really are. You expect that casinos are going to be slanted in favor of the house. But you don’t imagine those kind of odds when it comes to complaints about hospitals and healthcare providers that may have caused […]
Deaths from medical mistakes occur one patient at a time. Yet, taken together in Canada, they are the equivalent of a large city bus full of passengers crashing and killing everyone on board every day of the year. So why is there so little focus on this epidemic of harm? (Published in The Huffington Post) […]