Eldercare in Canada: Dignity Denied

From the report:

"Older Canadians are not and must never be seen as a burden.
They worked hard to build Canada into the modern and compas-
sionate country that it is today. They survived the Great Depression
and many wore our country’s uniform during a world war. They
paid their fair share of taxes and they continue to do so. They are a
continuing source of wisdom, experience and talent.
In this paper we discuss the issues confronting (Long Term Care) in Canada,
including the lack of access to adequate and affordable care. We
speak to the stress endured by families that have to make diffi-
cult choices regarding their parents and grandparents. We also
consider the circumstances of the women and men who work in
LTC facilities, providing care to our nation’s seniors. Too often
those workers are undervalued, underpaid and burned out."


PDF

One result of lack of long term care for seniors can be dangerous - sometimes fatal: overmedication.
Toronto STAR: "Drugged-out seniors a prescription for disaster"
Link

Much of what is diagnosed as dementia may be the result of poor nutrition. This little guide to helping
dementia patients with some nutritional support is from the State of Wisconsin.

However, we would like to go further. We think that much dementia has roots in deficiencies in B12 and zinc, and that to restore and maintain neurological health over a lifetime, these and other nutrients - in the proper amounts and proper balance - need to be supplied.

More in-depth information on better lifelong brain health through nutrition can be seen at this PDF -
Harold Foster's writing on Alzheimer's
and at the Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine here.

Even if you don't have an elderly relative or friend, please consider this information for your own sake - and keep the Reaper at bay.

Need, not Greed: Canadian Federation of Nurses Calls for Pharmacare

From the Canadian Federation of Nurses' Statement:

Drugs now rank second after hospitals in terms of share of total health care spending,
having overtaken spending on physicians in 1997. The share of total spending going to
drugs rose from 9.5 percent in 1985 to 16.2 percent in 2002. Spending on drugs is expected
to hit 16.7 percent of total health care spending in 2004, while spending on physicians will
be just 12.9 percent.3

The rapid rise in drug costs is primarily due to the ongoing substitution of newer, more
expensive drugs in place of existing, less expensive products. The newer drugs, in the
majority of cases, have no added benefit. Of the 117 drugs with new ingredients introduced
in Canada between 1998 and 2002, only 15 provided a substantial improvement over
existing drugs.4 The rest are “me-too” drugs that offer little or no therapeutic advances over
existing therapies but are responsible for 80 percent of the increased expenditure on drugs.5

Aggressive advertising by drug companies drives consumption of these me-too drugs.6
Apart from advertising directly to consumers, drug companies spend approximately
$30,000 per year for every doctor in Canada on drug samples, sales rep contact,
conferences, trips and giveaways.7 The influence of pharmaceutical companies on research,
education and clinical practice has also been widely documented.8 Both patients and
doctors are influenced by the onslaught,9 with the result that drug costs are skyrocketing
but health outcomes are not necessarily improving.

Pdf here