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SARS Expert Panel Calls on Province to Move Swiftly To Strengthen Infection Control and Public Health
 Toronto- Ontario needs to move swiftly to implement required changes to strengthen infection control and revitalize the province's public health system, according to the final report of the Expert Panel on SARS and Infectious Disease Control.
    The Panel, chaired by Dr. David Walker, Dean, Faculty of Health Sciences and Director of the School of Medicine at Queen's University provides 50 new recommendations for change in its final report, entitled For the Public's Health - A Plan of Action. The Panel's initial report, released in December 2003, contained more than 50 recommendations focused on areas requiring systemic review and urgent action.
 "People look to government to deliver certain essential functions, one of which is to protect the population from disease," Dr. Walker said. "Recommendations in both our initial and final reports provide a comprehensive action plan for revitalizing public health and strengthening the capacity of our healthcare system to respond to disease outbreaks and emergencies.
  "The most lasting tribute we can offer those who were impacted by SARS is to ensure that our healthcare providers, healthcare facilities and communities have the tools, supports and resources necessary to respond effectively to Ontario's next health emergency," Dr. Walker said.
Health Benefits better than cash
Laval, QC - Canadian employees value their health benefit plan so much they wouldn't trade it for cash, according to a national public opinion survey released today. In fact, on average, 72% of those polled would choose their plan over annual payments of up to $8,000(1). At the same time, however, plan members are becoming increasingly dissatisfied with their health benefits, pointing to the need to find ways not only to keep employees satisfied, but also healthy and productive in the long term.
 For the 2004 edition of The Aventis Healthcare Survey, Ipsos-Reid polled 1,503 Canadians who are members of employee benefit plans, seeking to understand the value they place on their health benefits and the services they receive from the public healthcare system. This is the seventh annual edition of the survey.
 Satisfaction with benefit plans decreasing
   While Canadians place significant value on their health benefit plan, there has been a steady deterioration since 1999 in the degree to which these plans meet the evolving needs of Canadians. In fact, only 58 per cent of respondents today say their plan meets their needs "extremely well" or "very well" - down from a high of 73% in 1999.
 The findings point to an important link between satisfaction with the health benefit plan and overall job satisfaction. Among plan members who say they are satisfied in their job, 59% say their plan meets their needs. Of those who are unsatisfied in their job, only 34% say their plan meets their needs.
Pesticides can lead to cancer:
Ontario Physicians
  Doctors in Ontario are warning Canadians about the health hazards linked to pesticides. They say homeowners and lawn care contractors should limit their exposure to many of the chemicals used in weed control.
  The Ontario College of Family Physicians made the recommendation after analysing numerous studies connecting pesticide exposure to cancer, reproductive problems, neurological diseases and other conditions, although at least one pesticide-industry group immediately objected to some of the findings released by the doctors' association.
  Dr. Donald Cole of the University of Toronto, one of the review's authors, could not say whether there's a safe level of exposure to avoid the risk of developing disease.
  "Pesticides, as (are) many chemicals, are widespread in our environment, so we can't really say," he told a news conference.
But Cole was convinced of a link between pesticide exposure and a variety of neurological disorders, including mental and emotional health problems, and diseases such as Parkinson's.
  Dr. Cathy Vakil of Queen's University in Kingston, another review author, said the links between pesticides and various forms of cancer are "compelling."
  “Overall with respect to cancer, this review provides compelling evidence of a link between cancer and pesticide use both occupationally and with home use," she said.WSN