editor, writer, talking head, optimistic nomad, loyal to the end

Joined March 2010
We spoke to Nancy Halupa, whose been a nurse for 25 yrs: ‘This pandemic broke me. The anxiety of not knowing how many patients I would be bagging because our morgue was full…Every patient that died, I remember their face.’ For the full conversation #TVOTheThread tonight 9pm @tvo
This month on The Thread, we talked to you about mental health in Ontario—from accessible support for youth and marginalized communities to the opioid crisis. Watch the conversation highlights tonight at 9pm on TVO and TVO.org. tvo.org/programs/the-thread
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.@GOtransit @TTChelps would be so helpful if you gave us info on other platforms. I was stuck on a GoTrain for 30 mins with no communication as to what is going on. And I had already tapped on, couldn’t find a customer rep to refund because Presto machines don’t have function😵‍💫
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"That 'Black people don't experience pain' takes us back to this animalistic sort of view of us but it also translates into our intellectual ability." On (MIS)Treated, @namshine talks with @NotishaMassaqu1 about the racist roots of gynecology. podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcas…
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1987 @TorontoStar column by Bruce McLeod who died this week. The last columnist/witness for a media outlet to experience the conditions overnight in a shelter. 1987. #investigativejournalism 👏🙏💯
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I cannot stress enough that homelessness is caused by policy levers primarily at the provincial level. And @AMOPolicy's new report shows it: homelessness in Ontario rose 8% last year, with 85,000 people becoming homeless. 20,000 were youth and children. globalnews.ca/news/11611244/…
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CBC News will add 33 local journalists and create 11 new bureaus, increasing its Canadian footprint from 66 to 77 locations. This "boots-on-the-ground" investment is in addition to last year's expansion of 30 journalists in 22 communities across Canada. cbc.ca/news/editorsblog/cbc-…
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Modern gynecology was built on experiments Dr. James Marion Sims performed on enslaved African women without anesthesia, even after it existed. On the next episode of (MIS)Treated, @namshine talks with @NotishaMassaqu1 about reckoning with his legacy. podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcas…
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#BREAKING: Bonnie Crombie has officially resigned as Ontario Liberal leader effective immediately, party will appoint an interim leader (she previously said she would stay on until a new leader is chosen) #onpoli
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I should have said this before, but please do share this. I want the entire world to see how much I love my wife, and want her to know everyone knows. So please. Retweet. Share.
Hey guys. This is going to be the most personal update I’ve ever shared publicly. I live in public view — my work does, anyway. I’ve never been shy about sharing my ideas or passions. But I’ve always worked very hard to keep my family out of view. That’s partly for their safety. But also because, despite appearances, I am an intensely private person. The public part of my job is exhausting and often a little frightening. I’m now facing something far more frightening. And I may need your help. Last fall, my wife became very ill. A series of medical tests ruled out the non-scary explanations. Just before Christmas, we were told it was metastatic cancer. She has since undergone urgent surgeries, including successful removal of the primary tumour. She is young, strong, and otherwise healthy, and her recovery so far has been remarkable. Now we are entering a long, grinding phase of this fight — chemotherapy and we hope other treatments — with the goal of getting ahead of this nightmare. We have cause for optimism. The metastasis is real and terrifying, but limited and small. We didn’t catch this “early,” but we may have caught it early by the standards of such things. We have a real shot, and we are determined to fight as hard as we possibly can. Many of you noticed I went completely to ground. This is why. If you are the praying type, we would appreciate your prayers. For those who may be able to offer medical help and options, please reach out — I’m easy to find. I’m assembling an army for her. This is the most important thing I’ve ever done, and I can’t imagine a better use of my energy or my skills. As we settle into a new rhythm, I’m beginning a gradual return to work. Don’t be surprised if you see more thoughts from me about the health-care system. I’ve been amazed and humbled by some of the care we’ve received. I’ve also been shocked and frightened by other parts of the experience. I’ll have more to say about that later. But now I want to talk about my wife. We met when we were 17. We had math class together. I changed my seat so I could look at her. She was stunning. I can still see her in my mind’s eye exactly as she was then. To me, she is as beautiful today as she was at 17. I did, and still do, feel like I’ve been winded when I just look at her. We weren’t high-school sweethearts. Our journey was longer. We didn’t become an official couple until late in university, after a long period of circling each other — trying to understand what to do with a deep friendship that was evolving into something much scarier and more consequential. We made the jump. Not without false starts. Not without fear. But we made it. And my life has been amazing since. Because of her. She is all I have ever wanted. She isn’t perfect. She isn’t easy. Neither am I. We’ve had good times and bad. But she is the absolute foundation of my world. My entire sense of self is wrapped up in her. I don’t know where I end and she begins. Nearly 20 years after we stood in a park and agreed to be together, I am as hopelessly in love with her as I was then. It is a crippling love — more than I contain. I can barely think about it. It just feels like too much when I try. She and our two children are my everything. And I am going to fight for her and for this family with absolutely everything I have. I will never surrender. I can’t. There is no me without her. So that’s the story. Please be patient with me. Please be kind. Pray for us if you can. And help us if you have the power.
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This January, (MIS)Treated is back with new episodes on the dark history of gynecology, gender bias in mental health, forced sterilization of Indigenous women, and why so many women get ADHD diagnoses later in life. Starts Jan. 20 with @namshine podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcas…
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✨Tonight was a golden moment for Maggie Kang who won two Golden Globes for her debut film, K-Pop Demon Hunters, including: Best Motion Picture - Animated Best Original Song - Motion Picture for “Golden” Congrats, Maggie! #SheridanProud
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New today: 1.98 million Ontarians still don’t have a family doctor. The Ford government says it is closing the gap, on track to meet its target of connecting everyone to primary care by 2029. But critics warn looming retirements & population growth could derail that promise.
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This Sunday was the final broadcast of PBS News Weekend, at least for the foreseeable future. PBS cancelled the show due to the loss of federal funding for public media. As our team signs off the air, PBS News Weekend anchor John Yang looks back at some of our top stories and highlights over the years.
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Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, who recently lost her 21-month-old son, has released a statement detailing the circumstances surrounding his death. ARISE News reached out to Adichie’s media team, who confirmed that she did author the statement. According to her representatives, the message was originally sent privately to family members and a few close friends. "My son would be alive today if not for an incident at Euracare Hospital on January 6th. We were in Lagos for Christmas. Nkanu had what we first thought was just a cold, but soon turned into a very serious infection and he was admitted to Atlantis hospital. He was to travel to the US the next day, January 7th, accompanied by Travelling Doctors. A team at Johns Hopkins was waiting to receive him in Baltimore. The Hopkins team had asked for a lumbar puncture test and an MRI. The Nigerian team had also decided to put in a 'central line' (used to administer iv medications) in preparation for Nkanu's flight. Atlantis hospital referred us to Euracare Hospital, which was said to be the best place to have the procedures done. The morning of the 6th, we left Atlantis hospital for Euracare, Nkanu carried in his father's arms. We were told he would need to be sedated to prevent him from moving during the MRI and the 'central line' procedure. I was waiting just outside the theater. I saw people, including Dr M, rushing into the theater and immediately knew something had happened. A short time later, Dr M came out and told me Nkanu had been given too much propofol by the anesthesiologist, had become unresponsive and was quickly resuscitated. But suddenly Nkanu was on a ventilator, he was intubated and placed in the ICU. The next thing I heard was that he had seizures. Cardiac arrest. All these had never happened before. Some hours later, Nkanu was gone It turns out that Nkanu was NEVER monitored after being given too much propofol. The anesthesiologist had just casually carried Nkanu on his shoulder to the theater, so nobody knows when exactly Nkanu became unresponsive. How can you sedate a sick child and neglect to monitor him? Later, after the 'central line' procedure, the anesthesiologist casually switched off Nkanu's oxygen and again decided to carry him on his shoulder to the ICU! The anesthesiologist was CRIMINALLY negligent. He was fatally casual and careless with the precious life of a child. No proper protocol was followed. We brought in a child who was unwell but stable and scheduled to travel the next day. We came to conduct basic procedures. And suddenly, our beautiful little boy was gone forever. It is like living your worst nightmare. I will never survive the loss of my child. We have now heard about two previous cases of this same anesthesiologist overdosing children. Why did Euracare allow him to keep working? This must never happen to another child".
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