Latest news with #Joffe
Edmonton Journal
06-05-2025
- Health
- Edmonton Journal
Braid: Smith's government mutes vaccine skepticism in face of a measles epidemic
Article content Then, a welcome surprise. Health Minister Adriana LaGrange endorsed Joffe's column and his views on the virus and vaccination. Now there's a campaign to ramp up vaccination as well as aggressively promote the shots across all media. But it took a looming crisis to force the UCP into action. The problem they face is one they helped cause, with their post-COVID anger and questioning of medical science. It's generally believed that 95 per cent of a population must be vaccinated to eliminate the spread of measles. By 2023, only about 69 per cent of Alberta children were vaccinated by age two. Calgary's average was 75 per cent, far below the ideal. And in some northern areas, the vaccination rate was as low as 10 per cent. No area in Alberta met the 95 per cent target. AHS, bless its troubled heart, has never stopped promoting or supplying vaccines. But the message from Premier Danielle Smith and her acolytes has been that the vaccine deniers have a point. Smith has never said people who want vaccinations should be refused a shot. Neither did she tell Albertans they should be vaccinated. But on Monday, the premier repeated the new slogan, 'Don't get measles. Get vaccinated.' A premier's words mean something to a great many Albertans. They heard her vaccination skepticism. Hopefully, they'll now catch her overdue enthusiasm.
CBC
03-05-2025
- Health
- CBC
Need for permanent chief medical officer of health 'dire,' says Alberta Medical Association
Alberta's health minister says the search for a permanent chief medical medical officer of health is in the early stages, prompting concerns about health leadership as the province continues to battle its worst measles outbreak in nearly three decades. The total number of confirmed cases since the outbreaks began in March surged to 210 on Friday. That's the highest case count since 1997, when 242 cases were reported. The escalating case numbers come at a time when the province is without a permanent top doctor. The provincial government appointed an interim chief medical officer of health after Dr. Mark Joffe opted not to renew his contract in mid-April. He had been in the role since November 2022. Joffe left as calls grew for him to take to the podium and speak directly to Albertans about the measles outbreaks. At the time, doctors raised concerns about whether he was allowed to speak publicly on the matter. The province has not yet found a permanent replacement. "I think the need to get someone who has expertise in the role is dire," said Dr. Shelley Duggan, president of the Alberta Medical Association. "It could be tricky. But I think it's important. There's lots of people trained in public health. We need to get somebody in Alberta. And we need to let them develop a campaign and work with their team to get the messaging out." When asked by CBC News about the search for a replacement, Health Minister Adriana LaGrange did not say how much interest there is in the job. Nor did she say how many candidates have been interviewed. "We're at the initial stages of the search," she said at a news conference on Thursday. "We were quite hopeful that Dr. Joffe would have extended his contract. Since that hasn't happened, we are just at the initial stages of the search. And I'll keep you posted as we go along this road." When it comes to concerns about how the province will handle its surging measles cases without a permanent CMOH in place, she said she's confident in the work of the public health teams. "It's the local [medical officers of health] that are in the communities, that are on the ground working with those communities, that are most affected. They report up to the CMOH. So there's obviously a lot of interaction that happens." LaGrange said measles immunizations have increased this year compared to last year due to the work of those teams. When asked if she ever refused to greenlight any requests Joffe made about how to handle the measles outbreak, LaGrange did not answer directly, noting instead that she had many conversations with him about how to reach impacted communities. "There are hot spots, but we do not have a provincial outbreak of measles," she said when pressed further. Recruitment in question "Recruitment and retention of qualified public health leaders and health leaders, in general in this province, has become increasingly difficult," said Lorian Hardcastle, associate professor in the faculty of law and the Cumming School of Medicine at the University of Calgary. She said concerns about politicization of public health could be a deterrent. "And given the revolving door of public health officials — of [Alberta Health Services] CEOs, of the AHS board — I think it's going to be difficult to recruit and retain qualified people to these kinds of roles in this province." It's problematic, she said, to be facing measles outbreaks with people moving in and out of the job. "You don't want to have those transitions in the context of a public health crisis. You want consistent, clear messaging from the same trusted authority. And I don't think they're positioned to do that." The Alberta NDP said it, too, is skeptical about Alberta's ability to recruit a new top doctor. "[Premier Danielle Smith] ran a leadership campaign showing disrespect to science, to public health, to experts, and it continues. And now she's got control over that office and it's caused a lot of chaos," said NDP health critic Sarah Hoffman, adding she's not surprised a permanent replacement is not in place. "It is concerning because there should be separation between those who are in charge of gathering evidence and those who are in controlling political messaging." Changes coming about through the UCP government's health system overall could be a further deterrent, according to Hoffman. Bill 55, the Health Statutes Amendment Act, was tabled on Thursday. If passed, zone medical officers of health who are now part of Alberta Health Services will move to Alberta Health. The plan has sparked concern about the consolidation of decision-making power — for matters relating to the health of Albertans — within the ministry. "It is really important that we have experts that are entrusted to give their very best advice and direction. And when you're within the department, you don't have that same independence," said Hoffman.
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Need for permanent chief medical officer of health 'dire,' says Alberta Medical Association
Alberta's health minister says the search for a permanent chief medical medical officer of health is in the early stages, prompting concerns about health leadership as the province continues to battle its worst measles outbreak in nearly three decades. The total number of confirmed cases since the outbreaks began in March surged to 210 on Friday. That's the highest case count since 1997, when 242 cases were reported. The escalating case numbers come at a time when the province is without a permanent top doctor. The provincial government appointed an interim chief medical officer of health after Dr. Mark Joffe opted not to renew his contract in mid-April. He had been in the role since November 2022. Joffe left as calls grew for him to take to the podium and speak directly to Albertans about the measles outbreaks. At the time, doctors raised concerns about whether he was allowed to speak publicly on the matter. The province has not yet found a permanent replacement. "I think the need to get someone who has expertise in the role is dire," said Dr. Shelley Duggan, president of the Alberta Medical Association. "It could be tricky. But I think it's important. There's lots of people trained in public health. We need to get somebody in Alberta. And we need to let them develop a campaign and work with their team to get the messaging out." When asked by CBC News about the search for a replacement, Health Minister Adriana LaGrange did not say how much interest there is in the job. Nor did she say how many candidates have been interviewed. "We're at the initial stages of the search," she said at a news conference on Thursday. "We were quite hopeful that Dr. Joffe would have extended his contract. Since that hasn't happened, we are just at the initial stages of the search. And I'll keep you posted as we go along this road." When it comes to concerns about how the province will handle its surging measles cases without a permanent CMOH in place, she said she's confident in the work of the public health teams. "It's the local [medical officers of health] that are in the communities, that are on the ground working with those communities, that are most affected. They report up to the CMOH. So there's obviously a lot of interaction that happens." LaGrange said measles immunizations have increased this year compared to last year due to the work of those teams. When asked if she ever refused to greenlight any requests Joffe made about how to handle the measles outbreak, LaGrange did not answer directly, noting instead that she had many conversations with him about how to reach impacted communities. "There are hot spots, but we do not have a provincial outbreak of measles," she said when pressed further. "Recruitment and retention of qualified public health leaders and health leaders, in general in this province, has become increasingly difficult," said Lorian Hardcastle, associate professor in the faculty of law and the Cumming School of Medicine at the University of Calgary. She said concerns about politicization of public health could be a deterrent. "And given the revolving door of public health officials — of [Alberta Health Services] CEOs, of the AHS board — I think it's going to be difficult to recruit and retain qualified people to these kinds of roles in this province." It's problematic, she said, to be facing measles outbreaks with people moving in and out of the job. "You don't want to have those transitions in the context of a public health crisis. You want consistent, clear messaging from the same trusted authority. And I don't think they're positioned to do that." The Alberta NDP said it, too, is skeptical about Alberta's ability to recruit a new top doctor. "[Premier Danielle Smith] ran a leadership campaign showing disrespect to science, to public health, to experts, and it continues. And now she's got control over that office and it's caused a lot of chaos," said NDP health critic Sarah Hoffman, adding she's not surprised a permanent replacement is not in place. "It is concerning because there should be separation between those who are in charge of gathering evidence and those who are in controlling political messaging." Changes coming about through the UCP government's health system overall could be a further deterrent, according to Hoffman. Bill 55, the Health Statutes Amendment Act, was tabled on Thursday. If passed, zone medical officers of health who are now part of Alberta Health Services will move to Alberta Health. The plan has sparked concern about the consolidation of decision-making power — for matters relating to the health of Albertans — within the ministry. "It is really important that we have experts that are entrusted to give their very best advice and direction. And when you're within the department, you don't have that same independence," said Hoffman.
CBC
02-05-2025
- Health
- CBC
Alberta's measles case count surges above 200
Alberta's total number of reported measles cases, since outbreaks began in March, has passed 200. On Friday, the province's count increased by 17, including 13 in the south zone, four in the central zone and two in the Calgary zone. The province also found that two previously reported cases in the north zone were deemed out-of-province cases, bringing the net total change to 17. Overall, the province has seen 210 reported cases of measles this year. Of that total, 26 are known to be active. The province's south zone has seen the bulk of the cases, with 106. The province also reports that the majority of cases, 121, have been recorded in Albertans between five and 17 years old. The tally is 58 for patients under five years old. Provincial data, which was last updated on April 26, shows 11 people have been hospitalized in Alberta due to confirmed measles cases since outbreaks began this spring. On Thursday, Alberta Health Services released details about a confirmed measles patient in southern Alberta who was in public settings while infectious last week. The patient was at the ATB branch in the Village of Foremost on April 21 between approximately 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., and at the ATB Financial branch in Bow Island between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. and the Rexall Pharmacy at 73 Seventh St. S.E. in Medicine Hat between 4:15 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on April 22. Earlier this week, AHS also informed the public a confirmed measles patient was at the Two Hills Health Centre Emergency Department, Lab and Diagnostic Imaging in the province's central zone between 8:09 p.m. and 10:14 p.m. on April 24, and at St. Joseph's General Hospital in Vegreville between 8:20 p.m. that same night and 3:50 a.m. the following morning. And in Alberta's north zone, a confirmed measles patient was reported on the weekend in a public setting in Whitecourt. The person was reported to be in the Whitecourt Emergency Department on Sunday, April 27, between 4:43 a.m. and 8:36 p.m., and again on Monday from 8:43 p.m. and 3:35 a.m. the following morning. Alberta's former chief medical officer of health, Dr. Mark Joffe, said last week the recent surge in cases "should concern us all." Joffe left the interim CMOH position in April when his contract ended. The premier noted at the time that the government wanted him to stay on as chief medical officer of health. "We are now in a search for a CMOH," Alberta Health Minister Adriana LaGrange said Thursday. "I would love to see a permanent CMOH as soon as possible, but we will have to go out to market … there's a process for that as well." LaGrange added that Alberta is seeing a higher number of immunizations compared to last year. According to the provincial government's website, between one and three out of every 1,000 people with measles will die. Measles symptoms include: High fever. Cough. Runny nose. Red eyes. Blotchy, red rash that appears three to seven days after the fever starts.
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Breakenridge: Why has province been so unwilling to talk about measles vaccines?
Before 2020, there were likely few Albertans who could name Alberta's chief medical officer of health (CMOH). That's likely the case once again. In between, of course, Deena Hinshaw — much like her provincial and federal counterparts — became a household name. That's not the norm, nor should we want it to be. But our level of familiarity with top health officials should be a byproduct of circumstances, not political preference. It was very much a matter of political preference when Premier Danielle Smith fired Hinshaw as CMOH as one of her first acts as premier. Dr. Mark Joffe was subsequently appointed interim CMOH, a position he held for more than two years before finally bowing out earlier this month. We've gone from one interim CMOH to another. Dr. Sunil Sookram has been temporarily appointed, while the province has begun the process of finding a permanent replacement. It remains to be seen whether the new interim CMOH will be any more visible or vocal than his predecessor. Based on Joffe's tenure, that seems unlikely. With a worsening measles outbreak in the province, though, that is less than ideal. Barely a day goes by now that we aren't hearing about new measles cases and potential public exposures to the virus. Alberta's outbreak isn't the worst in North America, or even Canada, but it's highly concerning. As the measles case count has continued to climb — now well over 100 — Alberta's CMOH has been conspicuously absent. There were no public news conferences and no interview requests granted. The province maintained that Joffe was closely monitoring the situation and it was being largely handled by local health officials in affected areas. It's reminiscent of the E. coli outbreak that occurred in Calgary in 2023. It wasn't until we had well over 200 cases linked to that outbreak — including more than two dozen hospitalized children — that the CMOH was finally allowed to appear at a news conference. It was 10 months into his appointment as CMOH and his first public appearance. Was it Joffe's decision to maintain a low profile through this measles outbreak? That should be a decision that falls to the CMOH based on an assessment of the situation. How to find out if you need the measles vaccine What to know about measles outbreaks and why they're happening It is both revealing and troubling that one of the first acts from Joffe as a now-former CMOH was to write an op-ed for the Calgary Herald laying out the reasons Albertans should be alarmed by this measles outbreak, and how crucial it is for us to increase vaccination rates. Later in the week, he gave a lengthy presentation at the University of Alberta emphasizing the same points. It is commendable that he would lend his expertise and whatever profile he still has to raise awareness about this rather important matter, but regrettable that he wasn't able to convey this message only days earlier, while still CMOH. It's fair to note here that Alberta Health Services has been diligent and transparent in publishing the measles case count and details around potential public exposures to the virus. Statements from AHS and Alberta Health have extolled the benefits and safety profile of the measles vaccine. This isn't the COVID pandemic and we certainly don't need daily televised news conferences from the CMOH. However, it's not a binary choice between a saturation of daily briefings and no appearances whatsoever. There is more than enough room in between for some meaningful and deliberate public communications. It's unclear why the province has been so unwilling to allow the CMOH to speak publicly. It could just be a lingering distaste of the CMOH's pandemic profile. Or, perhaps it's a reluctance to concede the seriousness of the outbreak. Hopefully, this has nothing to do with the politicization of vaccines. If we're going to still have a CMOH, this is precisely the sort of situation they need to be at the forefront of. The province shouldn't stand in the way of that. Rob Breakenridge is a Calgary-based broadcaster and writer. He can be found at and reached at
