Health Committee on Nov. 17th, 2016

[Darshan Singh Kang, Liberal, Calgary Skyview, AB]

You see this costing $10.4 billion. How much are the medical costs alone? Do you have any number on that?

[Mimi Lowi-Young]

Not here—

[Darshan Singh Kang, Liberal, Calgary Skyview, AB]

If you do get the number, would you please write to the committee through the chair.

In your opinion, what other national objectives should we include in the strategy? Are we covering everything here with this Bill C-233, or should there be more?

[Mimi Lowi-Young]

Yes, if I'm looking over the bill, there are the critical elements of the three pillars we talked about—research, prevention, and living well with the disease. It's a good start, but ultimately Canada needs a national dementia strategy and action plan. I emphasize the action plan because strategy is not going to get us to where we need to go. We need to develop specific actions that we can take around some of the ideas I presented today.

[Darshan Singh Kang, Liberal, Calgary Skyview, AB]

I have first-hand experience with home care. Could the fourth pillar in this be home care?

[Mimi Lowi-Young]

Well, home care fits into living well with the disease, because people then can live as long as possible in their homes with dementia, as Tanya spoke to. It's very important because changing environments is very hard on somebody with Alzheimer's disease or dementia. When they need long-term care, yes, it needs to be available for them and they need to be cared for properly in the long-term care home. But people generally want to stay in their own homes and their own communities as long as possible.

[Darshan Singh Kang, Liberal, Calgary Skyview, AB]

The reason I stressed home care is because it works. I don't want to see home care lumped in with something else. If home care would stand alone, maybe it would go a long way to help Canadians. That's why I stress home care, because I know it works.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bill Casey]

I'll end that there.

Mr. Kang, I want to thank you for your testimony and your questions. Your comments were very meaningful.

Dr. Carrie and I have to leave to go to the House as part of our procedure on another bill. The House procedure requires us to do a certain thing at a certain time, and we have to leave. I don't want the witnesses to think it's because we're not interested in their testimony. I just wish that everybody could hear your testimony.

At any rate, we have to go now, but we'll be back as soon as we can.

[Colin Carrie, Conservative, Oshawa, ON]

We have to go now?

[The Chair, Liberal, Bill Casey]

We have to go now if we're going to be there by 10 o'clock and in our seats and ready.

I'm going to ask the vice-chair, Len Webber, to take over.

[Darshan Singh Kang, Liberal, Calgary Skyview, AB]

Is there a vote at 11? Do we have to leave at 10:30? Is the vote at 11?

[The Chair, Liberal, Bill Casey]

Bells are at 10:30.

[Colin Carrie, Conservative, Oshawa, ON]

We don't have to go now.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bill Casey]

Well, the routine proceedings will take place.

[John Oliver, Liberal, Oakville, ON]

Yes, before the bells ring the first time.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bill Casey]

We have to go to routine proceedings. Then I don't know. Is the vote for sure? Are the bells at 10:30?

I'm sorry; I don't know what's going to happen here.

[A voice]

The bells are at 10:10.

[John Oliver, Liberal, Oakville, ON]

Let's just continue on with our questions.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bill Casey]

We are not masters of the agenda here, but we'll do the best we can.

Your testimony is very important to us and very meaningful, and I want to thank you all for it. I hope I'll be back.

Mr. Webber.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Len Webber]

Thank you.

The next one on our list is Ms. Harder.

You have seven minutes, so go ahead with your questions.

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

Thank you.

Like my colleagues, I want to say it's really a pleasure to have you here. Thank you so much for taking the time to be with us today and for offering not only your experience but also your expertise and your understanding of this disease.

Like many around this table, I think, my life has certainly been impacted as well. I have two grandmothers who both have dementia, one of whom we've watched decline in health quite severely and at a rate that is unprecedented. I'm having to learn about this condition as well and figure out what it is to look after those with dementia. Again, I have a great appreciation for your testimony.

I have a number of questions here. Perhaps I will direct my first question to Kathleen.

I'm wondering if you can just outline for me your thoughts with regard to palliative care, if that would be something that is needed, and what that might look like in order to help families who have a loved one with dementia.

[Kathleen Jamieson]

My whole upbringing was in another country. One of the things I saw as I was growing up was that you cared for old people. You cared for them at home, respectfully and very thoughtfully. I didn't ever occur to me that I would agree to my husband going into any kind of institution. But I do feel that at the end of life, there may be times where there are people, especially if they come from other countries and don't have many family members here.... I had only one family member who lived here. I could see that there would come a point where I might have to agree to some form of palliative care in some place other than our home. It was getting extremely difficult; I can't tell you.

I hope that answers your question.

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

Thank you.

Tanya, you mentioned that you've done some research, looking at other countries and what they offer, and you made the comment that Canada is actually quite behind.

I'm very pleased to see this bill come to the floor with regard to putting a strategy together. I think the intent would be, certainly, to see an action plan as well. I'm interested in what other countries are doing and how effective they are. A part of this bill, actually, is working with countries abroad to find out what their practices are. I'm wondering if you can briefly outline one country that does it well and some of the best practices we could borrow from that country or learn from.

[Tanya Levesque]

I know that the United Kingdom is well advanced with their dementia care research. The U.S. is a little further behind than the U.K., but I know, for instance, that they do stem cell research in the United States. I met a gentleman a couple of years ago whose wife suffers from Alzheimer's, and he actually brought her to California to have stem cell therapy. In Canada I have never come across that in my research. We have some drug trials here. There are more in other countries.

Speaking to the idea of collaboration, that's what's needed. Other countries have a better grasp, provide more home care, and provide payment for caregivers, which helps them out in keeping them at home. These are some of the strategies. Some other countries have national strategies, as I said. The U.K. is probably at the top with their dementia-friendly society and the way they care for the elderly.

[Dale Goldhawk]

Mr. Chair, I could elaborate on some of that in terms of the countries with strategies. The G8 summit on dementia was convened in 2013. Before that, there were only 13 countries in the world that had effective and meaningful strategies, which means policy and funding as well. After that conference, the number grew quite rapidly, and we're now approaching 30. Canada, with its strategy, would make either number 29 or number 30 on that list.

In terms of Canada being behind, I can only speak from the perspective of many of the researchers I've talked to around the world in my years with ADI. As far as research is concerned, Canadian researchers are renowned in the world. They are some of the leaders in neurological study and research and share that with the rest of the world. What has kept us behind is the fact that we do not have a strategy. It happens often that when I attend board meetings in some part of the world, I'm always asked when the strategy is going to come. It was with great pleasure that I was able to say, well, very soon. After that, hopefully, meaningful funding, as mentioned in the Senate report, will make it a workable reality.