N ew s
MDs to fo llo w conscience on physician-assisted death: CMA annual meeting highlights edical marijuana and seniors’ care were extensively debated at the Canadian Medical Asso ciation (CMA) 147th annual meeting in Ottaw a Aug. 17-20, but physicianassisted death was the main action item. The 269 delegates voted to “support the right of all physicians, within the bounds of existing legislation, to follow their conscience when deciding whether to provide medical aid in dying.” That resolution, which was approved by 91% of delegates, will now be considered by CMA’s Board of Directors. CM A’s 2007 policy states that doc tors should not participate in euthanasia or assisted suicide. The new position prepares physicians for the possibility that laws may be changing in light of a recent Quebec bill and an upcoming case at the Supreme Court of Canada. In a related move, delegates asked CMA to develop a strategy to ensure there are enough doctors trained in pal liative care. The annual meeting began with the release o f a survey and a call for a national seniors’ health care strategy. The survey of 1000 Canadians (aged 45 and older) found that 95% saw the need for a pan-Canadian seniors’ care strateg y — a p ercen tag e outgoing CMA President Louis Hugo Francescutti called “asto n ish in g .” “Federal politicians should worry about this if they want to stay federal politicians,” he told CMAJ. C M A ’s new president, Dr. Chris Simpson from Kingston, Ont., said the failu re to ad d ress s e n io rs ’ needs “impacts every single component of the health care sy stem .” F or exam ple, “w arehousing of seniors in hospital beds” wastes about $2.3 billion annually. In his inaugural address, Simpson also slammed the federal government for its inaction on medicare. He cited a recent report from the Commonwealth Fund indicating that Canada’s health sys tem ranks second last on virtually every measure o f quality and access. Topranked countries all have “strong leader ship” from a committed federal govern ment. He urged the federal government
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A m o n g t h e h ig h lig h t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 C M A a n n u a l m e e t i n g w a s t h e c o n f ir m a t i o n o f P r e s id e n t e le c t D r . C in d y F o r b e s o f N o v a S c o tia .
to begin with a comprehensive seniors care strategy. F e d e ra l H ealth M in iste r R ona Am brose said a national strategy is “valid” but so far there has been no call from the provinces or territories to create one. Ambrose also responded to concerns about Canada’s new medical marijuana law, which puts physicians in a “pre carious situation.” “The m ajority of doctors don’t want to prescribe and I would encourage them not to do it if they don’t want to,” she said. At the same time, she insisted that doctors are the best gatekeepers for marijuana. Francescutti said the new law, which came into effect Apr. 1, 2014, “strains the physician-patient relationship.” “I t’s ju s t plain bad m edicine to prescribe a product w hen we do n ’t know how it works ... or how much to prescribe.” The CM A’s long-standing position is that there is insufficient evidence sup porting marijuana’s use as a therapeutic agent. D elegates approved a motion calling for the CM A to speak out against sm oking any plant material. R espiro lo gist Dr. D eborah H ellyer noted that sm oking one jo in t is the equivalent of up to 10 cigarettes. A second motion called for licensing bodies to develop comprehensive regu
CMAJ, Septem ber 16, 2014, 186(13)
latory standards to guide physicians in prescribing m arijuana. Currently the information available and policies vary. New president elect Delegates confirm ed the election of CMA President-elect Dr. Cindy Forbes, from Waverley, Nova Scotia. Her term as president begins Aug. 2015. Forbes has practised as a family physician for 28 years and is the form er president of Doctors Nova Scotia (1996/97). “My goal as president is to identify and promote innovative solutions and positive change for health care,” she stated in a media release. She identified seniors’ care and the health care trans form ation initiative as two areas of engagement. During the meeting, CMA received the Canadian Forces Medallion for Dis tinguished Service. It recognizes CMA’s long support for the Forces, from the cre ation of the first permanent military med ical service in 1899 to recruitment of physicians in recent missions. And last, but not least, for the first tim e in 15 years, there will be no increase in CM A fees; they stand at $495 annually. V isit cm aj.ca for extensive news coverage of the annual meeting. C M AJ 2014. DOI:10.1503/cmaj.109-4887
© 2 0 1 4 C a n a d ia n M e d ic a l A s s o c ia tio n o r its lic e n s o rs
Copyright of CMAJ: Canadian Medical Association Journal is the property of Canadian Medical Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.
MDs to fo llo w conscience on physician-assisted death: CMA annual meeting highlights edical marijuana and seniors’ care were extensively debated at the Canadian Medical Asso ciation (CMA) 147th annual meeting in Ottaw a Aug. 17-20, but physicianassisted death was the main action item. The 269 delegates voted to “support the right of all physicians, within the bounds of existing legislation, to follow their conscience when deciding whether to provide medical aid in dying.” That resolution, which was approved by 91% of delegates, will now be considered by CMA’s Board of Directors. CM A’s 2007 policy states that doc tors should not participate in euthanasia or assisted suicide. The new position prepares physicians for the possibility that laws may be changing in light of a recent Quebec bill and an upcoming case at the Supreme Court of Canada. In a related move, delegates asked CMA to develop a strategy to ensure there are enough doctors trained in pal liative care. The annual meeting began with the release o f a survey and a call for a national seniors’ health care strategy. The survey of 1000 Canadians (aged 45 and older) found that 95% saw the need for a pan-Canadian seniors’ care strateg y — a p ercen tag e outgoing CMA President Louis Hugo Francescutti called “asto n ish in g .” “Federal politicians should worry about this if they want to stay federal politicians,” he told CMAJ. C M A ’s new president, Dr. Chris Simpson from Kingston, Ont., said the failu re to ad d ress s e n io rs ’ needs “impacts every single component of the health care sy stem .” F or exam ple, “w arehousing of seniors in hospital beds” wastes about $2.3 billion annually. In his inaugural address, Simpson also slammed the federal government for its inaction on medicare. He cited a recent report from the Commonwealth Fund indicating that Canada’s health sys tem ranks second last on virtually every measure o f quality and access. Topranked countries all have “strong leader ship” from a committed federal govern ment. He urged the federal government
M
978
A m o n g t h e h ig h lig h t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 C M A a n n u a l m e e t i n g w a s t h e c o n f ir m a t i o n o f P r e s id e n t e le c t D r . C in d y F o r b e s o f N o v a S c o tia .
to begin with a comprehensive seniors care strategy. F e d e ra l H ealth M in iste r R ona Am brose said a national strategy is “valid” but so far there has been no call from the provinces or territories to create one. Ambrose also responded to concerns about Canada’s new medical marijuana law, which puts physicians in a “pre carious situation.” “The m ajority of doctors don’t want to prescribe and I would encourage them not to do it if they don’t want to,” she said. At the same time, she insisted that doctors are the best gatekeepers for marijuana. Francescutti said the new law, which came into effect Apr. 1, 2014, “strains the physician-patient relationship.” “I t’s ju s t plain bad m edicine to prescribe a product w hen we do n ’t know how it works ... or how much to prescribe.” The CM A’s long-standing position is that there is insufficient evidence sup porting marijuana’s use as a therapeutic agent. D elegates approved a motion calling for the CM A to speak out against sm oking any plant material. R espiro lo gist Dr. D eborah H ellyer noted that sm oking one jo in t is the equivalent of up to 10 cigarettes. A second motion called for licensing bodies to develop comprehensive regu
CMAJ, Septem ber 16, 2014, 186(13)
latory standards to guide physicians in prescribing m arijuana. Currently the information available and policies vary. New president elect Delegates confirm ed the election of CMA President-elect Dr. Cindy Forbes, from Waverley, Nova Scotia. Her term as president begins Aug. 2015. Forbes has practised as a family physician for 28 years and is the form er president of Doctors Nova Scotia (1996/97). “My goal as president is to identify and promote innovative solutions and positive change for health care,” she stated in a media release. She identified seniors’ care and the health care trans form ation initiative as two areas of engagement. During the meeting, CMA received the Canadian Forces Medallion for Dis tinguished Service. It recognizes CMA’s long support for the Forces, from the cre ation of the first permanent military med ical service in 1899 to recruitment of physicians in recent missions. And last, but not least, for the first tim e in 15 years, there will be no increase in CM A fees; they stand at $495 annually. V isit cm aj.ca for extensive news coverage of the annual meeting. C M AJ 2014. DOI:10.1503/cmaj.109-4887
© 2 0 1 4 C a n a d ia n M e d ic a l A s s o c ia tio n o r its lic e n s o rs
Copyright of CMAJ: Canadian Medical Association Journal is the property of Canadian Medical Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.
