Human Resources committee  Thank you. Thank you for your invitation. I will address you only in English but I will be very happy to answer your questions in French later on. Thank you very much for inviting the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada to present today. We're pleased to provide input to your

Human Resources committee  We've looked at it, obviously, in the context of people with disabilities. Structurally, it's a very good piece of policy innovation. The amounts are very small and they remain very small at this time. We certainly welcomed its introduction, but the real proof in the pudding will

Human Resources committee  I should first tell you that multiple sclerosis varies a lot. However, people who have it are generally more tired for a very short period or for a few weeks or even for a few months. These people could be receiving a treatment, for example, or going through an acute phase. They

Human Resources committee  They get 15 weeks right now but we are asking double that period, so that these people can receive their employment insurance benefits for half the time and work the other half. The same formula would be used for people who have cancer, for example. They could work in the morning

Human Resources committee  There are people who have been marginalized from sustainable attachment to the labour market by reason of family structure or by reason of disability who need not be marginalized from the labour market. The recommendations that we've put forward are very modest and practical, but

Subcommittee on Neurological Disease committee  Thank you, Madam Chair. I will address you in French, to begin with, if you don't mind. Thank you for your invitation to appear this morning. It is greatly appreciated. The Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada is the leading national organization supporting people affected by t

Subcommittee on Neurological Disease committee  Thank you, Dr. Duncan. As has been identified before, I think it's very important to note that the death followed a procedure that included the use of a stent. With balloon angioplasty, where a spring form is not lodged permanently in the vein, there has not been such adverse eff

Subcommittee on Neurological Disease committee  Unfortunately, I'm not aware of it, and I'd be delighted to have the reference to explore it. I recognize the urgency, Dr. Duncan. I also recognize the important link that you have made. MS is progressive, worsening, irreversible, and often debilitating. So in the face of treatm

Subcommittee on Neurological Disease committee  In fact the risks are very small; you're absolutely correct. The question there that has been offered to me and to the society is that in our health system, imaging and diagnostic is usually done as a step to treatment. In this context, because the treatment is not immediately

Subcommittee on Neurological Disease committee  Thank you, Mr. Malo. That is a very important question. The funding is for research on CCSVI, obviously in relation to multiple sclerosis. The reason why are making this request is because this is urgent. Urgent action is required. The Quebec College of Physicians is one of the

Subcommittee on Neurological Disease committee  There are two things. One is that the initial call was very favourably responded to by the current government, with an investment of $50 million to the Public Health Agency to do research to better understand the distribution of the population. How many people are affected? What

Subcommittee on Neurological Disease committee  I think I might suggest that the answer to the question about disease-modifying therapies be given to you by someone who uses them. My colleague Joan Ozirny, who is a volunteer, referred to DMTs earlier. The evidence is substantial, but a personal account might be more useful.

Subcommittee on Neurological Disease committee  These are early data, but there is no question that the work through the neurological study will cement that. There are all these questions of burdens of the numbers of people, and the growth in the prevalence rates as our population ages will obviously add robustness to those da

Subcommittee on Neurological Disease committee  This is the date on which we will announce the results of our CCSVI research competition, which was launched early in the new year. On June 14, after the review by a panel of experts--vascular surgeons, interventional radiologists, MRI specialists, and neurologists--we will be an

Subcommittee on Neurological Disease committee  Absolutely. Ms. Radley is correct that there has not been a vascular surgeon on our medical advisory committee. The recommendations for funding of research applications come through panels that are assembled for various competitions. In the context of the CCSVI competition, obvi