Thinking Out Loud with Sheldon MacLeod

It’s been more than a decade since the Nova Scotia government has made it possible for pharmacists in the province to be more active in delivering primary health care. But there are still people who don’t know about all of the services that are available to them. And there are also people who can’t afford to access those services because they aren’t covered by the province. Opposition politicians...

Blue Monday might have been a marketing campaign gone wild, but depression and seasonal depression are real issues that can affect our mental health. And this time a year may be even more detrimental for Public Safety Personnel and First Responders because of their experiences. But Dr. Luke Schneider says it Blue Monday doesn’t have to be so blue. He’s a Registered Psychologist with the Nova Scoti...

Amy Graves has been dealing with health issues over the past year. She’s still recovering from an aneurysm and has permanently lost the sight in one of her eyes. The recent story of Allison Holthoff’s death in an emergency room had Amy wondering how close she came to a similar fate. In October, she ended up in an emergency room in extreme pain from an internal bleed. And although she was examined,...

It shouldn’t come as a shock that there are people in serious medical distress who don’t survive after arriving at an Emergency Room in Nova Scotia. The case involving the death Allison Holthoff is bringing the issue of ER deaths to the forefront. According to information provided to the Nova Scotia New Democrats, she was one of 558 people who died in an ER in 2022. Susan Leblanc is the NDP Health...

Health care shouldn’t be political. But politicians are riled up after the story of a woman who died in the Emergency Department in Amherst on New Year’s Eve. Liberal Leader Zach Churchill is asking why government's first response to the death in Cumberland County was to threaten legal action towards those who advocated on behalf of the grieving family. He says the letter has since been rescinded,...

What was behind the Nova Scotia Justice Department sending a letter to Elizabeth Smith-McCrossin over a letter she posted about the death of Allison Holthoff? If they were trying to silence the Cumberland North representative, they weren’t likely to succeed. The Independent MLA had the consent of Gunter before going public with the story of his wife’s death in an Emergency Room. And she had three...

A woman in pain heads to the Emergency Room in rural Nova Scotia. And now a husband, her children, her family, her Fire Department and her Community are asking for answers. Allison Holthoff was just 37 years old when she died more than six hours after going to the the Cumberland Regional Health Care Centre on New Years Eve. Her story became public after social media posts started circulating and t...

It’s been quite the journey for Myles Goodwyn and the band he co-founded in 1969. And after more than 50 years, fifteen studio albums and thousands of concerts later, there’s one more show with him as a frontman. And it will happen on March 2nd, 2023 in Nova Scotia, where it all began. He’ll continue writing and producing April Wine records, but says touring as a 74 year old with diabetes, is too...

It’s one of the largest events in Downtown Halifax in years. And by all accounts, organizers couldn’t have asked for a better outcome. And neither could the business owners on the peninsula. Canada will be playing in the Gold Medal game of the World Juniors. And Paul MacKinnon with the Downtown Halifax Business Commission says it’s great to see the crowds again.

Now that the holiday season is over, we’re moving into the heating season. And for many, it will be a struggle for the essentials. Nova Scotia’s Liberal Party is urging government to do more for those who have less. They’ve introduced a number of ideas that would help Nova Scotians throughout the affordability crisis including a bill to index income assistance to inflation and increase the thresho...

Not everyone is struggling under the weight of high inflation these days. In fact, by 9:43 am January 3rd, the average member of the 100 highest-paid CEOs in Canada will have made as much money as the average Canadian worker makes in a year. That's $58,800, by breakfast time on the year's first workday. David Macdonald is an economist with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. He shakes out...

What started out as a memoir of his time growing up under the transmitter tower of VOCM is now into a second season as a television series. Mark Critch is proud of how these tales about his own family are being enjoyed by other families. Season two of Son of a Critch will begin airing on January 2nd, 2023 on CBC television and streaming on CBC Gem. Critch describes how they have rejigged the stori...

She became a household name just as the world went into lockdown in 2020. The Netflix series Tiger King brought Carole Baskin and Joe Exotic into our homes, and we ate it up like fresh baked bread. Her five year involvement with the program was to be like Blackfish for big cats. That 2013 documentary exposed the treatment of captive orcas. But as Baskin explains, the producers changed everything w...

A real case study in drug use is about to get underway in British Columbia. Bill Bogart says it will hopefully show lawmakers that prohibition and criminal charges are not effective ways of dealing with a drug epidemic. The author and retired law professor weighs in on the difference between legalization and decriminilization and the review of legal cannabis that is underway.

Michelle and Ken Porter founded Souls Harbour Rescue Mission in Regina, Saskatchewan in 2000. And it became the largest service provider for the homeless in that province. A decade later, they sold all of their possessions and came to Halifax. Nine months after that, Souls Harbour Rescue was established in HRM. It's now grown to help people in Halifax, Bridgewater, Eastern Shore and Sydney. And Ro...

For an agency that was established in 1984 to provide emergency food relief, things have never been so busy at Feed Nova Scotia . There are close to 11-hundred people a day being fed by food banks across the province through the umbrella organization. And there are 300 new people entering the system each week. Feed NS Executive Director Nick Jennery adds there are now more than 20-thousand people...

It started as a way to make up for lost fundraising opportunities when things shut down because of COVID. And in the two years since then, it has grown into the largest weekly 50/50 fundraising campaing of its kind in Canada. Andrew Wallis is with the Amherst Firefighters Association, the group that started organizing the weekly draw. It's gone from fewer than 10 fire departments to more than 250....

It's one thing for people to be criticial of a journalist's work. It's another to threaten them and their families. That's what Teresa Wright has been dealing with as a woman working in journalism in Canada. She says it's caused her to reevaluate her use of social media platforms and on using it for anything other than work. The Charlottetown-based health reporter with Global News explains what sh...

Most of us don’t really need another coffee mug or gadget for Christmas. And this year, one of Canada’s Top 100 Charities is asking us to re-think the gift-giving process. Compassion Canada is asking us to consider gifts with impact that help meet the basic needs of the most vulnerable - those facing food insecurity around the world. Allison Alley, President and CEO of Compassion Canada . She tell...

It can be a difficult time of the year for anyone who experiencing the loss of a loved one. And as much as the holidays are supposed to be full of joy and excitement, there's also a time for reflection and reminiscing. Andrea England is originally from Guysborough. The singer-songwriter is now living in Toronto. And this year, she's written, recorded and released her very first Christmas song. And...

It was a rude awakening for someone who had been a social worker, professor and author. That medication he was taking for a physical issue was turning him into a different person psychologically. And it is something that has Todd Leader sharing his story so that he can help others. And a note of caution; this conversation deals with serious issues of mental health, mature themes and suicide. The N...

Before he was a teenager, Trayvone Clayton was chosen to be one of the kids chosen to participate in CopShop. That program by Halifax Regional Police teams up officers and kids to go shopping for Christmas. And that's the inspiration for a new program being promoted by Gamechangers902. Clayton says his goal is to bring kids together from African Nova Scotian communities across HRM to give them a c...

The idea wasn't to bust myths. But it seems they have. Teams of researchers across the country wanted to see if family physicians from different generations practise medicine differently. And Dr. Ruth Lavergne says she was surprised to find out the simple answer is there's very little difference. She is an associate professor in Dalhousie's Department of Family Medicine and a Canada Research Chair...

He's been a part of the Canadian Entertainment scene for decades. And he's been teaching and helping others for an even longer time. Tom Jackson is back on the road, raising money and awareness. His 'Stories, Songs & Santa Causes' tour will be at the Bella Rosa Arts Center in Halifax supporting Feed Nova Scotia on Tuesday, December 13th. And he wraps up his 13 shows in St. John's at the First Ligh...

A Merry Christmas and no avalanche of bills in the new year. That's what Samantha Taylor wants to offer this season by sharing her insights on how you can enjoy the holidays without taking on unmanageable consumer debt. From decorating to gift exchanges to the new credit card pass through fees, she offers her advice. Sam is senior instructor in the Rowe School of Business at Dalhousie University a...