ADVIN.ORG - Association des Victimes Infections Nosocomiales

The  popular program  «fifth estate« set out on a nine-month quest to uncover data about Canadian hospitals' performance and make it public. The costs of our health-care system never stop growing and the figures are staggering: 56 billion a year - at the same time, waiting lists have never decreased, it becomes more and more difficult to get rapid access to a family doctor, emergency wards keeps being overcrowded and the rates of hospital-acquired infection are still  being a tabou! What do we really know about the quality of healthcare? Not much and certainly not enough - The online hospital ranking tool by CBC's the fifth estate — the first rating system of its kind in Canada — has already amassed more than 23,000 responses from across the country since its launch yesterday.

Many questions may be raised concerning this type of report and particularly the quality and reliablilit y of the information - but it certainly hits a point for most canadians - one day or another, we'll all be a patient.

Read more:  CBC: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2013/04/11/canada-reaction-hospital-ratings-rmh.html

Source: The Globe and Mail, April,8,2013 - «The chances of a patient winning a medical malpractice lawsuit against a doctor in Canada are slim, according to a new book entitled After the Error: Speaking Out About Patient Safety to Save Lives.The book, put together by microbiologist Susan McIver and retired nurse Robin Wyndham, contains a collection of stories about patients who said they suffered from medical errors while being treated in the health-care system-  Citing various studies, the authors say these mistakes contribute to between 38,000 and 43,000 deaths in Canada each year and many more individuals suffer serious harm.»

Susan Mc Giver and Robin Wyndham will be speaking  on their book at a Patient Symposium, in Toronto, Saturday April 13 - for more information contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ,

«When a plane crashes, it is national or even internatioanl news...how did it happen? .. An estimated  40,000 Canadian patients die every year as a result of medical error. That is the equivalent of 80 jumbo jets crashing every year» However, these unacceptable figures never make it to the front page in the daily news.These are the words of  Professor Sir Liam Donaldson (World Health Organization Envoy for Patient Safety) in his foreword to the book «After the error»,  a collection of true stories about the work of patients and their families affected by medical errors to improve patient safety. Their activities have helped to lay the foundation of numerous patient safety programs and continue to raise awareness, identify problems and provide solutions. All of the contributors to this book are Canadians; however their experiences and achievements speak to the world. Writen by Susan McGiver, PhD and Robin Wyndham, RN with foreworded by . To pre-order before the release of the book or to order afterward, email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .  The book is also being published as an e-book.

Source: Canadian Paediatric Society, September 2012 - Community-associated MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) infections have emerged as a significant issue is some Indigeneous communities in Canada.Poor socio-economic circumstances  favor the spread of this infection, in particular householdcrowding and lack in home potable water supplies.