Montreal May 14, 2009 – For many women, menopause is a bittersweet rite of passage that can become downright unpleasant. They may be tormented for years by hot flashes, drenching sweats, and migraines, all prompted by this major physiological change. The symptoms can be reduced by a treatment that replenishes the body’s waning supply of the hormone estrogen, but conflicting opinions still swirl around the long-term safety of such therapy.

It isn’t that Harper forgot about research in the recent blockbuster spending budget. It’s just that focusing exclusively on infrastructure and jobs isn’t going to work.

Published in Future Health, a quarterly publication of Canadians for Health Research, Vol. 31, No. 1, Spring 2009

This time last year, the world was a different place. The global economy was booming. Company profits were at record highs. Governments were growing their economies. The fast-paced world of discovery and innovation was leading citizens to buy and use technologies at unprecedented levels. While global relations provided ongoing challenges, the nature of change, as leaders and personalities came and went from the international scene, appeared to inspire opportunity.

Published in Future Health, a quarterly publication of Canadians for Health Research, Vol. 31, No. 1, Spring 2009

Protracted patient wait-times have received extensive coverage by health reporters; tales of months-long waits for joint replacement surgery or CT scans are a common feature of supper-hour newscasts. The patients in these stories tell of lost wages and living in pain for months. They do not talk about losing time at school or complain about missing playtime with their friends.

Published in Future Health, a quarterly publication of Canadians for Health Research, Vol. 31, No. 1, Spring 2009