Long Distance House Calls: David Zakus and the Centre for International Health
The Faculty of Medicine's Centre for International Health puts U of T on the global map says a December 17, 2001 Bulletin article featuring Dr. David Zakus in his role as Director of the new centre.
A graduate from the Department of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation David left the university after graduation to pursue his interests in international health including a teaching stint at Addis Abba University and Ethiopia and a job as head of the Canadian Physicians for Aid and Relief.
He returned to the Department in the 1990's to teach part-time, and began to lay the groundwork for an international center within the Faculty of Medicine. With strong support from Dean David Naylor the center was launched in October 2001. In addition to recruiting researchers and developing educational programs, the center will coordinate, connect and build on the dozens of already existing international health research projects at U of T and its nine affiliated teaching hospitals. Putting this wealth of research expertise to work in neglected parts of the world is David's goal (M. Easton, 2001).
+ + IN THE NEWS + +
Patients get Little Say in Hospital Care: Report
Toronto Star, Thursday, December 20, 2001
A lack of input by patients into their treatments and care is one of the main problems identified in the Complex Continuing Care Report: Hospital Report 2001. While almost all facilities are functioning within their budget, three in four patients in complex-care facilities rated the quality of their care as good or excellent, half complained that staff failed to respond promptly when called, almost half felt cut out of the loop when it came to treatment decisions and 41% said they felt ignored by staff altogether. Researcher Gary Teare, Adjunct Scientist with the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences and Assistant Professor in HPME noted that the report "gives an important message...for hospitals in considering how they can strengthen their patient focus".
ER Care Rated Lower in Toronto
Globe and Mail, Friday December 21, 2001
Patients are less satisfied with emergency care in Toronto than in any other part of the province, according to the Emergency Department Care, Hospital Report: 2001. Lead researcher Adalsteinn Brown, Assistant professor in HPME, suggested that patient opinion may be influenced by media stories about hospital delays but noted that "if they're saying they're not satisfied, we have to look into it".
Insulin Predicts Breast Cancer Survival
National Post, December 28, 2001
A prospective cohort study involving 512 women with early stage breast cancer demonstrated that blood insulin levels appear to be a reliable predictor of whether a woman with breast cancer will survive over the long term. Therefore, weight loss and exercise, both contributing to lower blood insulin levels, might have a significant impact on outcome. Pamela Goodwin, lead author and Associate Professor in HPME, noted that diet and exercise "will never replace chemotherapy or hormone therapy or radiation or surgery, but it might provide an added benefit to all of those treatments". The study was published in Journal of Clinical Oncology 2002; 20(1): 42-51.
Study Finds Money A Factor In Surviving Stroke
Toronto Star, January 5, 2002
A study led by Moira Kapral, Assistant Professor in HPME, has found that for every $10,000 increase in median neighbourhood income, there was a 9% decrease in mortality rates 30 days after a stroke and a 5% drop in deaths after one year. The study, published in Stroke 2002 Jan 1;33(1):268-275, also found that lower-income patients were less likely to have access to certain types of medical care such as rehabilitation, occupational therapy, speech therapy and neurological care. Dr. Kapral indicated that variables other than income affect mortality, suggesting that "elimination or reduction of poverty would probably have a far greater impact than anything that physicians could do".
Longevity: When Oscar Losers Become Winners
New York Times, January 8, 2002
Dr. Donald Redelmeier, Director, Clinical Epidemiology Unit at Sunnybrook and Women's College Health Sciences Centre made the New York Times this month with his recent study (with S. Singh, BMJ 2001; 323: 1491-6) that retrospectively examined the link between high success and longevity of screen writers. Apparently, there is some consolation for Oscar nominees for best screenplay who don't get the prize: odds are they will live much longer than the winner.
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