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The following is a review of developments affecting health care in Canada

The information is updated the first week of every month - so ... make this a regular stop in your information gathering activities.

The following information has been compiled from publicly available sources, StratCom does not assume any responsibility for the accuracy or the authenticity of the information and StratCom cannot be held liable for errors.

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Healthcare in Canada - August 1999

New Alberta Health regulation that took effect August 1 requires all Alberta doctors are now required to notify a chief medical officer of health about new cases of invasive group A streptococcal disease. Dr. Karen Grimsrud, Alberta's deputy provincial health officer, indicated that the decision to add invasive group A streptococcal disease to a list that includes anthrax, rabies and hantavirus was driven by its seriousness and by doctors saying they didn't have an accurate picture of its prevalence.

The new Canadian Science Centre for Human and Animal Health opened June 1999 in Winnipeg. The centre is expected to identify infected blood or contaminated food that are dangerous to human health. The new facility houses Canada's first Level 4 laboratory and brings experts in human and animal disease together under one roof to deal with emerging zoonotic pathogens. The centre houses both Agriculture Canada's Canadian Food Inspection Agency and Health Canada's Laboratory Centre for Disease Control/Bureau of Microbiology. The Winnipeg facility is divided into areas such as food-borne diseases and enteric organisms, sexually transmitted diseases, viral diagnostics (including influenza and measles), bacteriology (including tuberculosis and biological warfare agents such as anthrax) and prion diseases. The centre is also a patent depository for DNA material and new genetic technologies under the auspices of the World Intellectual Property Organization, and it will store Level 3 zoonotic viruses such as Hantavirus and Level 4 hemorrhagic fever viruses such as Ebola, Marburg and Lassa fever.

Vancouver's Fraser Institute has released a report "The Availability of Medical Technology in Canada: An International Comparative Study", that shows that Canadians are being deprived of access to vital high-technology medical equipment and procedures. In terms of technology per capita, Canada is clearly not a world leader. Canada is generally ranked among the bottom third of countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in availability of medical technology. The technology deficit is not due to low spending on health as Canada is the fifth highest among OECD countries in terms of total spending on health (as a percentage of GDP). According to the report, "The failure of the medical technology infrastructure means that surgery and diagnostic procedures are delayed and this results in declining patient health."

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* Healthcare in Canada - July 1999
* Healthcare in Canada - June 1999
* Healthcare in Canada - May 1999
* Healthcare in Canada - April 1999
* Healthcare in Canada - March 1999
* Healthcare in Canada - Febuary 1999
* Healthcare in Canada - January 1999
* Healthcare in Canada - December 1998
* Healthcare in Canada - November 1998
* Healthcare in Canada - October 1998
* Healthcare in Canada - September 1998
* Healthcare in Canada - August 1998
* Healthcare in Canada - July 1998
* Healthcare in Canada - June 1998
* Healthcare in Canada - May 1998
* Healthcare in Canada - April 1998
* Healthcare in Canada - March 1998
* Healthcare in Canada - February 1998
* Healthcare in Canada - January 1998
* Healthcare in Canada - July 1997
* Healthcare in Canada - June 1997
* Healthcare in Canada - May 1997
* Healthcare in Canada - April 1997
* Healthcare in Canada - March 1997
* Healthcare in Canada - February 1997
* Healthcare in Canada - January 1997
* Healthcare in Canada - December 1996
* Healthcare in Canada - November 1996
* Healthcare in Canada - October 1996
* Healthcare in Canada - September 1996
* Healthcare in Canada - August 1996
* Healthcare in Canada - July 1996
* Healthcare in Canada - June 1996

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Last modified: August 31, 1999