Canadian ER doctors are quitting, citing burnout

One in 10 Canadian emergency room doctors are quitting the profession, with many reporting feeling that “the future of emergency medicine was hopeless.”

A Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ) study released Monday states that Canadian emergency doctors feel the industry is “broken” and has “no possibility of recovery.”

“Respondents pointed to a broken health care system, unrealistic societal expectations, and insurmountable workplace challenges as reasons for burnout,” the study states.

“The consequences were physician distress and leaving the profession. Mechanisms to continue in emergency medicine were reducing work hours, modifying work roles, and changing health care institutions.”

Out of 410 respondents, 41 said they left emergency medicine — 25 shifted to a different area of practice, 10 retired and six left clinical medicine, meaning they stopped treating patients altogether.

Read more to explore the CMAJ study’s findings.

Health Canada granted injunction over unauthorized peptide retailer sales

Health Canada has been granted a permanent injunction against Quebec-based online retailer Canlab Research, preventing the company from selling unauthorized injectable peptides in Canada.

The agency states that Canlab Research had been “selling unauthorized peptide drugs on various websites and promoting them with many unproven health claims, despite repeated enforcement actions by Health Canada.”

That comes after consumers were urged not to buy unauthorized injectable peptides from Canlab Research in December 2023 due to the “serious health risks posed by these products” and after a ministerial order “directing the company to cease advertising and selling unauthorized health products because of the health risks to Canadians,” Health Canada stated in a news release on Wednesday.

Read more to find out about the injunction.

— THE TOPIC —

E-scooters driving ‘huge’ number of child injuries, doctors say

With summer in full swing, many Canadians are likely seeing a growing number of e-scooters out on the roads — and doctors say they’re seeing a “huge” number of children coming into hospitals after accidents.

That comes after last year saw a 22 per cent spike in hospitalizations from e-scooter injuries across the country, according to data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI).

“We are in summer right now, so certainly highest volumes occur around now up to September,” said Dr. April Kam, pediatric emergency medicine division head at McMaster Children’s Hospital. “We’re seeing a huge number of kids getting hurt. And unfortunately, we don’t think they need to be getting hurt.”

Read more to find out about the risks.