Health

Avery Brohman, Executive Director of the Victoria Hospitals Foundation. Lia Crowe photograph

Tea with Avery Brohman

Executive Director of the Victoria Hospitals Foundation talks about healthcare and philanthropy

  • Jan 8, 2021

 

Aging gracefully. Lia Crowe photograph

Aging Gracefully

Be Proactive In Preparing Your Mind and Body

  • Jan 1, 2021

 

People walk through the snow in the village of Blue Mountain Ski Resort in The Blue Mountains, Ont., on the first day of a provincial lockdown amid a 12-day trend of over 2,000 daily COVID-19 cases, Saturday, Dec. 26, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Cole Burston

Ontario confirms two cases of COVID-19 variant first discovered in UK

First time the more contagious strain detected in Canada

 

Ten-month-old Aidan Deschamps poses for a photo with his parents Amanda Sully and Adam Deschamps in this undated handout photo. Ten-month-old Aidan Deschamps was the first baby in Canada to be diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy through Ontario’s newborn screening program. The test was added to the program six days before he was born. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, Children’s Hospital Eastern Ontario *MANDATORY CREDIT*

First newborn tested for spinal muscular atrophy in Canada hits new milestones

‘If Aidan had been born any earlier or anywhere else our story would be quite different’

Ten-month-old Aidan Deschamps poses for a photo with his parents Amanda Sully and Adam Deschamps in this undated handout photo. Ten-month-old Aidan Deschamps was the first baby in Canada to be diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy through Ontario’s newborn screening program. The test was added to the program six days before he was born. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, Children’s Hospital Eastern Ontario *MANDATORY CREDIT*
A Loblaws store is seen Monday, March 9, 2015 in Montreal.Loblaw Companies Ltd. is expanding the launch of its mobile health and wellness app, a digital tool the company says will provide free access to health-care resources and support. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz

Loblaw expands launch of PC Health app, offering access to nurses, dietitians

The app comes amid an expansion of digital health technologies

A Loblaws store is seen Monday, March 9, 2015 in Montreal.Loblaw Companies Ltd. is expanding the launch of its mobile health and wellness app, a digital tool the company says will provide free access to health-care resources and support. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz
(Pxfuel)

46% of Canadians’ daily calories come from ‘ultra-processed’ food: Stats Can

Ultra-processed refers to foods that are ‘mainly formulations of industrial ingredients’

(Pxfuel)
A monument was unveiled during a ceremony in Tofino last week honouring Jo-Ann Fuller and Ivan Polivka. The monument will be placed on Hwy. 4 near Kennedy Lake. (Photo courtesy of Ambulance Paramedics and Emergency Dispatchers of BC)

Somber ceremony held in Tofino to mark 10th anniversary of fatal ambulance crash

Beloved paramedics Jo-Ann Fuller and Ivan Polivka died in a tragic ambulance crash on Hwy. 4.

A monument was unveiled during a ceremony in Tofino last week honouring Jo-Ann Fuller and Ivan Polivka. The monument will be placed on Hwy. 4 near Kennedy Lake. (Photo courtesy of Ambulance Paramedics and Emergency Dispatchers of BC)
Island Heath has issued an overdose advisory for the Cowichan Valley. If someone has overdosed, administering naloxone can help. (Jenna Hauck/The Progress file photo)

Overdose advisory issued for Cowichan Valley

Drug users are warned to take steps to protect themselves

Island Heath has issued an overdose advisory for the Cowichan Valley. If someone has overdosed, administering naloxone can help. (Jenna Hauck/The Progress file photo)
Edmonton Oilers’ Connor McDavid skates during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Calgary Flames in Edmonton, Alta., on Friday December 27, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid tests positive for COVID-19

Superstar self-quarantining at home, experiencing mild symptoms

Edmonton Oilers’ Connor McDavid skates during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Calgary Flames in Edmonton, Alta., on Friday December 27, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Judie Shape, right, who has tested positive for the new coronavirus, but isn’t showing symptoms, smiles as she visits through the window and on the phone with her daughter Lori Spencer, left, Tuesday, March 17, 2020, at the Life Care Center in Kirkland, Wash., near Seattle. In-person visits are not allowed at the nursing home, which is at the center of the outbreak of the new coronavirus in the United States. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

Lessons from a pandemic: How to design a nursing home that’s safe and love-filled

A look at how one care home is battling the pandemic with the social needs of the elderly in their care

Judie Shape, right, who has tested positive for the new coronavirus, but isn’t showing symptoms, smiles as she visits through the window and on the phone with her daughter Lori Spencer, left, Tuesday, March 17, 2020, at the Life Care Center in Kirkland, Wash., near Seattle. In-person visits are not allowed at the nursing home, which is at the center of the outbreak of the new coronavirus in the United States. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Keyboard on computer (Pixabay.com)

2 Telus Health medical service providers pay ransom after 60K client files accessed

Test results, consultation reports and prescription information was recovered after a ransom was paid

Keyboard on computer (Pixabay.com)
Health care workers watch a procession of first responders drive past Royal Columbian Hospital with lights and sirens activated in a show of support for staff treating those affected by COVID-19, in New Westminster, B.C., on Thursday, April 16, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

B.C. nurses report rise in depression, anxiety, exhaustion due to pandemic

A new UBC study looks into how the COVID-19 response has impacted frontline nurses

Health care workers watch a procession of first responders drive past Royal Columbian Hospital with lights and sirens activated in a show of support for staff treating those affected by COVID-19, in New Westminster, B.C., on Thursday, April 16, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Dr. Mike Benusic, medical health officer for central Vancouver Island. (Photo submitted)

Island Health’s Dr. Mike Benusic details challenges presented by COVID-19 pandemic, opioid crisis

Podcast: Medical health officer embraces new role

Dr. Mike Benusic, medical health officer for central Vancouver Island. (Photo submitted)
In this April 23, 2014 file photo, a man smokes an electronic cigarette in Chicago. A new Canadian survey finds that young people have been vaping less frequently since learning about the COVID-19 pandemic. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP/Nam Y. Huh

Young Canadians have curtailed vaping during pandemic, survey finds

The survey funded by Heart & Stroke also found the decrease in vaping frequency is most notable in British Columbia and Ontario

In this April 23, 2014 file photo, a man smokes an electronic cigarette in Chicago. A new Canadian survey finds that young people have been vaping less frequently since learning about the COVID-19 pandemic. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP/Nam Y. Huh
The Mowachaht/Muchalaht Boat ramp near Muchalat Inlet, British Columbia. (Wikimedia commons)

Vancouver Island First Nations council calls on B.C. to act after first COVID-19 case on reserve

Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council representing 14 Nations calls the first case on Mowachaht/Muchalaht reserve a ‘critical situation’

The Mowachaht/Muchalaht Boat ramp near Muchalat Inlet, British Columbia. (Wikimedia commons)
The Mowachaht/Muchalaht Boat ramp near Muchalat Inlet, British Columbia. (Wikimedia commons)

Vancouver Island First Nations council calls on B.C. to act after first COVID-19 case on reserve

Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council representing 14 Nations calls the first case on Mowachaht/Muchalaht reserve a ‘critical situation’

The Mowachaht/Muchalaht Boat ramp near Muchalat Inlet, British Columbia. (Wikimedia commons)
Mid-island communities are the most dominant call areas for air ambulance transports this year. (BC Emergency Health Services/Twitter)

Air ambulance calls on Vancouver Island way down so far in 2020

Only 519 transports from Vancouver Island so far, compared to 1,107 total calls in 2019

Mid-island communities are the most dominant call areas for air ambulance transports this year. (BC Emergency Health Services/Twitter)
Audrey Vanderhoek, an RN who lives in Chilliwack pictured here on Aug. 22, 2020, wants people to know that COVID-19 doesn’t stop affecting people after the acute phase of the illness. (Submitted photo)

B.C. nurse one of countless COVID-19 survivors looking for answers

‘I would be considered one of the completely healed cases in terms of statistics’

Audrey Vanderhoek, an RN who lives in Chilliwack pictured here on Aug. 22, 2020, wants people to know that COVID-19 doesn’t stop affecting people after the acute phase of the illness. (Submitted photo)
A woman sleeps as another sits on her cot in a homeless shelter inside the San Diego Convention Center Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2020, in San Diego. When the coronavirus emerged in the United States this year, public health officials and advocates for the homeless feared the virus would rip through shelters and tent encampments, ravaging vulnerable people who often have chronic health issues. Yet, the virus so far does not appear to have brought devastation to the homeless population as many feared. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Coronavirus hasn’t devastated the homeless in U.S., as many feared

‘I don’t know what we’re going to see in an aftermath’

A woman sleeps as another sits on her cot in a homeless shelter inside the San Diego Convention Center Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2020, in San Diego. When the coronavirus emerged in the United States this year, public health officials and advocates for the homeless feared the virus would rip through shelters and tent encampments, ravaging vulnerable people who often have chronic health issues. Yet, the virus so far does not appear to have brought devastation to the homeless population as many feared. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Laurie Brooks says her experience with psilocybin has helped her with her anxiety and depression after she was diagnosed with cancer for the second time. (Provided by Laurie Brooks)

‘I’ve been able to be happy and anxiety-free’: B.C. woman pilots ‘magic mushroom’ therapy

North Saanich psychotherapist pushes for alternative treatment

Laurie Brooks says her experience with psilocybin has helped her with her anxiety and depression after she was diagnosed with cancer for the second time. (Provided by Laurie Brooks)