Women and Health Protection (WHP)

Powerpoint presentation on some of the work of Women and Health Protection, including research into the effects of Direct-to-Consumer Advertising (DTCA) of prescrption drugs, the CanWest Charter Challenge, a public forum on silicone gel breast implants, and women and statins.

Examines the information available to the Canadian public through popular pregnancy information sources to assess gaps in information available and determine the extent, if any, of the difference between public information and medical literature on this topic.

Describes how pharmaceuticals are developed and produced, and what is known about the associated hazards. Includes an overview of health and safety laws in Canada and elsewhere, as well as some examples of relevant best practices. Concludes with a series of recommendations. Abridged version of “Occupational health and safety hazards in pharmaceuticals manufacturing: Past, present and future knowledge, policies and possibilities, particularly for women,” written by Dorothy Wigmore for Women and Health Protection.

Online presentation by and discussion with Dr. Barbara Mintzes on what she and colleagues found in a systematic evaluation of all available studies comparing women with depression who did or did not take antidepressants during pregnancy. Their goal was to find an answer to the controversial and urgent clinical question: do pregnant women benefit from taking antidepressants?

The thesis of this article is that the Canadian tradition of secrecy around the approval of drugs and devices, coupled with inadequate post-marketing surveillance, has harmed Canadian women and their families. Mains states that proposed changes to the legislative framework must ensure greater transparency and accountability to the approval process as well as enforcement of more stringent conflict of interest guidelines. This peice includes a list of recommendations.

This letter outlines Women and Health Protection's objections to efforts by the United States and other countries to limit the scope of diseases covered under the Doha Declaration of November 2001.

This letter to Health Canada argues that the pharmaceutical manufacturer, Pfizer, has been running television ads with misleading information on cardiovascular risks and using Canadian's fear of death from heart disease in order to promote sales of its product.  It urges Health Canada to take regulatory action on this campaign.

This letter raises concerns about the risks to public health of an advertisement for a prescription drug, Celebrex (celecoxib), that aired on Canadian television. The letter asks Minister Tony Clement to take immediate regulatory action to stop this advertising campaign and to impose sanctions on the sponsor, Pfizer, to prevent future violations.

Ann Rochon Ford, coordinator of Women and Health Protection composed a letter of concerns around the process of Health Canada's regulation hearings for breast implant use in Canada.  The link includes the reply from Health Canada and further concerns raised by Rochon Ford.

Plain language guide explaining the HPV Vaccine