Suzanne Lepage

2021 Mental Health Summit: Pharmacogenetic testing success stories in mental-health treatment

Pharmacogenetic testing has become a popular addition to employee benefits packages, primarily because of its ability to inform personalized drug treatment, especially in mental health where it can be challenging to find an appropriate treatment and dosage that’s effective without causing side-effects. Many patients end up trying multiple medications and dosages without achieving improved outcomes, […]

  • December 9, 2021 December 6, 2021
  • 15:55

2021 Mental Health Summit: Rapid access, recovery and return to work with intensive outpatient programming

Approximately two in five Canadians live with a mental-health disorder and about eight million are struggling with non-prescriptive addiction. Medically managed intensive outpatient programming, or MMIOP, provides rapid access to treatment, resolution of symptoms and rapid return to work, said Dr. Rob Tanguay, vice-president and chief medical officer at the Newly Institute, during a session […]

  • December 9, 2021 December 8, 2021
  • 15:54

2021 Mental Health Summit: Expanding the mental-health toolkit with ketamine-assisted psychotherapy

Mental health is a major pandemic in and of itself, with surveys showing a 300 per cent increase in people reporting symptoms of anxiety and depression during the coronavirus pandemic. Despite the availability of hundreds of drug treatments, rates of mental illness continue to increase and “there hasn’t been any pharmacotherapy innovation for mental illness,” […]

  • December 9, 2021 December 8, 2021
  • 15:46

How is the pandemic, policy issues impacting group benefits and pharmaceutical industries?

The proposed amendments to the patented medicines regulations by the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board could have a big impact on both the group insurance and pharmaceutical industry. “The CLHIA is very supportive of PMPRB adjustments that may be coming,” said Joan Weir, director of health and disability policy at the Canadian Life and Health […]

  • November 22, 2021 November 22, 2021
  • 09:00

Webinar coverage: Pharmacy-based diabetes management improves access, outcomes

Innovative technology to monitor glucose levels for patients with diabetes offers improved health outcomes, reduced absenteeism and improved productivity, said Rick Siemens, certified diabetes educator pharmacist, during a webinar in June hosted by Benefits Canada and sponsored by Dexcom. The roles of pharmacists in Canada are evolving. Siemens said he spends most of his time […]

  • July 16, 2021 July 16, 2021
  • 09:00

Webinar coverage: Diabetes technology can improve workplace productivity

Approximately 10 per cent of Canadians live with diabetes and one in 300 children live with Type 1 diabetes, according to Dr. Angelo Simone, a paediatric endocrinologist at Trillium Health Partners, during a webinar hosted by Benefits Canada and sponsored by Abbott in April. As a parent caring for two children living with Type 1 […]

  • May 20, 2021 May 19, 2021
  • 09:00

Webinar coverage: Switching to biosimilars can generate savings, say early adopters

With Canadian biologic drug sales growing at a rate of 13 per cent annually over the last 10 years, plan sponsors are looking for ways to manage the related costs — and the introduction of biosimilars may help. At a recent Pfizer-sponsored webinar hosted by Benefits Canada, “Evidence to Policy — Biosimilar Transitioning in Canada,” two […]

  • April 7, 2021 April 14, 2021
  • 12:57

Pharmacoeconomic analyses a tool in private-payer decision-making process

A recent Telus Health comparison of a drug’s cost effectiveness when calculated from the private versus the public-payer perspective demonstrated clearly that the private-payer perspective matters when assessing the value of a medication, explained Dr Nina Lathia, pharmacist, and health economist, at Benefits Canada’s Face to Face Drug Plan Management Forum on Dec. 9, 2020. […]

  • January 15, 2021 April 14, 2021
  • 08:56