On August 8, a special event took place at St. Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver to celebrate a major milestone – 500 heart transplants in British Columbia. Heart transplant recipients, the transplant care team at St. Paul’s Hospital, representatives from BC Transplant and Public Health Services Authority, and Health Minister Adrian Dix, joined together for the occasion. The
Heart failure is a serious condition which can affect anyone, however, it can be a difficult disease to diagnose since the symptoms may be subtle at times. “Symptoms may be variable depending on the underlying cause and severity of the patient’s heart failure,” said Sean A. Virani MD, MSc, MPH, FRCPC, FCCS. Dr. Virani is
Heart failure is on the rise in Canada. It’s often the last stop for people who have experienced a journey through cardiovascular disease, according to a 2016 report on The Burden of Heart Failure, published by the Heart and Stroke Foundation. Regardless of whether you’re aged 18 or 68 being diagnosed with heart failure and
Temperatures are soaring across Canada, and while we welcome the warmer days, it’s not always easy living with heart failure in high levels of heat and humidity. In fact, these conditions can make things incredibly dangerous for people with cardiovascular health problems. At present, there are approximately 600,000 Canadians living with heart failure, as reported
The HeartLife Foundation was established in 2016 when two heart failure patients determined that there needed to be a dedicated advocacy group, led by patients, for those living with the chronic illness. Those two patients are our founder and president, Jillianne Code, and our co-founder and vice president, Marc Bains. After a series of
Heart failure is the most rapidly rising cardiovascular disease in Canada, according to the Ted Rogers Centre for Heart Research. There are approximately one million Canadians living with heart failure. There’s a common misconception that those most likely to have heart failure are older. When in reality, heart failure affects people at every stage of
It’s 2018 and we’re stepping out for heart failure patients in Canada because the need for advocacy is greater than ever. One million Canadians are living with heart failure and 50,000 are diagnosed with the illness each year, according to the Ted Rogers Centre for Heart Research. Meanwhile, heart failure is costing the Canadian healthcare
Jamie Barber experienced a childhood that most children don’t. He was diagnosed withlymphoma at two years old and received chemotherapy until he was six. Doctors knewthat the amount of chemo he had would damage his heart, and it did. It left him withdilated cardiomyopathy, a disease of the heart muscle that affects the chambers
What you’ve heard is true: Canada does in fact take longer than the U.S and the European Union to approve new drugs. According to a study published by the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ), delays in submitting new drugs to Health Canada for review have had a huge impact on this, with certain products being
A look back at our amazing first year (and a half) as the first and only patient-led heart failure organization in Canada. All made possible by our teammates, patients, families, caregivers, medical professionals and everyone who has come together to support us and each other!
If you are a patient, family member or friend of someone with lived experience of heart failure or if you are a practitioner, allied health professional, not-for-profit or corporate partner, or simply a concerned citizen – Become a member – it’s free.
Are you a patient with lived experience of heart failure? Are you a family carer and need support? Request access to our closed Facebook support group.
