After many years of success, EvidenceNetwork.ca is no longer in operation. We would like to thank everyone who has contributed to the organization over the past decade including our dedicated researchers, newspaper editors, readers and funders. However, now it is time to move onto new ways of looking at knowledge mobilization and policy. Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact Shannon Sampert at s.sampert@uwinnipeg.ca.

Pharmacists, doctors warning seniors about risk of long-term use of sleeping pills

A version of this commentary appeared in the National Post, Montreal Gazette and Vancouver Sun  Sleep doesn’t come easy as we age. Take Ilsa; she is a 78-year-old recent widow. Since her husband passed away, she has slept poorly. A recent hospitalization and the disorienting bright lights and noises of the inpatient ward made her […]

Les obstétriciens et les gynécologues visent l’élimination des soins inutiles susceptibles de nuire aux patientes et d’imposer des coûts au système de santé

Une version de ce commentaire est parue dans Le Soleil Voici un des faits sans doute des plus surprenants : l’accouchement est la principale cause d’hospitalisation chez les Canadiennes année après année. Plus de 350 000 bébés sont nés dans les hôpitaux canadiens l’an dernier, et l’intervention chirurgicale la plus fréquente dans les hôpitaux est l’accouchement par césarienne : on en […]

Obstetricians and gynecologists target reductions in unnecessary care that may harm patients and cost the health system

A version of this commentary appeared in the Toronto Star, Canadian Healthcare Network and the Winnipeg Free Press Here is, perhaps, a surprising fact: Birth is the most common reason that Canadian women are hospitalized each year. There were over 350,000 babies born in hospitals across the country last year. And the most common in-hospital […]

Canadians have more than one million unnecessary medical tests, treatments and procedures every year

How we can improve patient outcomes and stop wasting health care resources in the process A version of this commentary appeared in the CBC News, the Huffington Post and the Victoria Times Colonist Each year, there are at least one million unnecessary tests, treatments and procedures done in Canadian health care settings. This means that […]

The Canadian public needs to know more is not always better when it comes to healthcare

If you knew that virtually the entire medical community was talking about an issue causing risk and harm to patients across the country, wouldn’t you want to know what it is and take part in the conversation?

What should be covered by our publicly funded healthcare system?

I am privileged to help patients deal with a variety of common disorders such as ear infections, pharyngitis and sinus inflammation. People suffer a great deal from these problems, especially when they are in the acute phase.

Antibiotics — overprescribed and under-effective

I am privileged to help patients deal with a variety of common disorders such as ear infections, pharyngitis and sinus inflammation. People suffer a great deal from these problems, especially when they are in the acute phase.

Are we medicalizing healthy people?

Modern medical practice is engaged in a battle, not for hearts and minds, but for the conversion of perfectly healthy people into patients, labelled “at high risk” of various diseases in the name of prevention.

Getting a grip on the risks of vaccination

Every day when I see patients in my surgical clinic, some are offered a procedure to help them feel better. Whether it is a minor surgery like a tonsillectomy, or something larger scale such as tumor resection, I have a full discussion with the patient regarding the benefits and risks of doing “something.”