Lauren Vogel

Dr. YouTube will see you now

See one, do one, teach one: that’s the philosophy behind a new brand of how-to video showcasing self-surgery and other “do it yourself” fixes to medical problems that’s gaining traction on the social Web. Motivated by financial hardship, frustration with lengthy wait times and a desire for

Sex selection migrates to Canada

Easy access to abortion and advances in prenatal sex determination have combined to make Canada a haven for parents who would terminate female fetuses in favour of having sons, despite overwhelming censure of the practice, economists and bioethics experts say. Arguing that Canadian lawmakers’

Educators propose "flipping" medical training

Given the remarkable pace at which technological change alters the economy and society, it was only a matter of time before it eventually made inroads in the cloistered world of medical education. Change in the hallowed halls of dry medical pedagogy, though, may finally be in the offing as

Sex-selective abortions: no simple solution

While American legislators contemplate criminalizing sex-selective abortion, experts say the experience of other nations which have tried to impose such a prohibition indicates that it is difficult to enforce and easy to skirt. Nevertheless, United States Congressman Trent Franks (Arizona -

Choosing Wisely around the world.

More countries are joining an international campaign to combat overuse in health care. The [Choosing Wisely campaign][1] began in 2012 in the United States to change the “more-is-better” culture of medicine by creating checklists of tests and treatments that doctors should question with their

The secret’s in: Open data is a foreign concept in Canada

The systemic secrecy in which Health Canada shrouds data is “outdated” and “embarrassing” in comparison with the openness of other countries in delivering government information into the hands of their citizens, say public health advocates and access to information policy wonks. While the

The skinny on BMI report cards

School-based body mass index (BMI) measurement programs that send parents report cards on their children’s risk for obesity are gaining traction and sparking controversy as the newest weapon in the battle against the bulge, both in the United States and abroad. But it’s not yet clear whether or

Milk sharing: boon or biohazard?

More than two decades after fears of HIV transmission forced the closure of all but one of Canada’s 23 milk banks, regulators, medical professionals and mothers remain divided on the safety of sharing breast milk. Increased public pressure, regulatory oversight and evidence of the efficacy of

Rwanda moving to provide “good deaths” for terminally ill

Go home and die.” Until recently, that advice constituted the extent of end-of-life care that patients with incurable diseases could expect in Rwanda. As in much of the developing world, palliative care was virtually nonexistent in the tiny Africa nation, condemning those with terminal illnesses

Specialty training out-of-sync with job market.

A national forum should be convened to align postgraduate training with the realities of the job market, as flatlining demand for once highly sought-after specialties is leaving an increasing number of new graduates without work to match their skills or pay down their debts, Canadian Medical