Zoomer Week In Review

Politicians at Queen's Park plan to consider a private members bill that would ensure couples continue to live together in long-term care homes, even if their care needs are different. Waterloo New Democrat Catherine Fife is behind the proposal. THEN More than 700 patients, who'd been admitted to Ontario hospitals the past three years, were part of a local study that aimed to learn what affected their experience during their discharge and transition to home. Family physician and St. Michael's Hospital researcher Dr. Tara Kiran hopes the findings result in improvements in the transition navigated by one million patients every year in Ontario.

Toronto politicians are all in … approving the next step in the continuing focus on caring for the growing number of seniors in the city. You’ll hear about the new ‘emotion-centred approach’ pilot project from Toronto’s Seniors Advocate. AND Dispelling heart health misconceptions that have guided while also misleading patients for years. American cardiologist turned author Dr. Jignesh Shah will help you and your loved ones navigate the healthcare system … regardless of which side of the border you’re on.

There's one holiday list that isn't about being naughty or nice. Before clinking the New Year's champagne glasses, we should all sign off on a year-end financial checklist to put us in the best position for tax time. Libby went over it with Mark Halpern of WEALTHinsurance.com

Have you had any scam calls lately? For many of us it is a daily occurrence. Regulators are promising that we'll see a dramatic reduction because of a new requirement for call-blocking technology that just took effect. Will it work? And how can you protect yourself? Libby Znaimer chatted with tech expert Carmi Levy. AND There's one holiday list that isn't about being naughty or nice. Before clinking the New Year's champagne glasses, we should all sign off on a year end financial checklist to put us in the best position for tax time. Libby went over it with Mark Halperin of wealthinsurance.com.

Libby Znaimer talks to acclaimed producer Robert Lantos about his latest film, "The Song of Names". It's a sweeping drama that spans 50 years, about a man searching for his childhood best friend, a Polish violin prodigy orphaned in the Holocaust. who vanished on the night of his first public performance. AND At this time of year we hear a lot about people who are ill, about their caregivers...not so much. Veteran caregiver and author, Peter Rosenberger, offers 8 great tips for caregivers to give to themselves for this holiday season.

From the Christmas Song to White Christmas to Winter Wonderland - many of the most iconic Christmas songs were written by Jews. It's the ultimate yuletide irony and the subject of Veteran filmmaker Larry Weinstein's documentary "Dreaming of a Jewish Christmas." Libby Znaimer sat down with him when the film came out. AND Have you tried to deal with Air Canada lately? Just in time for the busy holiday travel season - hundreds of passengers are complaining about Air Canada's new reservation system which is preventing them from changing or booking flights and in some cases endangering their personal information. Don't even ask about reaching them by phone. Passenger Rights advocate Gabor Lukacs has some ideas on what to do.

Do you ever speed? Do you have trouble seeing cyclists and pedestrians in the dark? If the answer is yes, those are just two of many reasons it could be time for a driving update. Winter is here, and so is National Safe Driving Week. Expert driver Alex Kelly dropped by with tips to improve our performance on the road. AND As we head into the holiday season, the Christmas season, there’s a fascinating new survey on how Canadians view religion in public life. We are divided on the question - and our views don’t necessarily depend on whether we are believers or not. Libby Znaimer took a deep dive with Dave Korzinski lead author of the research from Angus Reid.

For nearly a year, Mary Sardelis was barred from visiting the nursing home where her 97 year old mother Voula lives. The owners claimed they had the right to do this under trespass laws. It took 316 days before Mary could get in front a judge who ruled that the home was misusing the law. It's not an isolated incident. Jane Meadus of the Advocacy Centre for the Elderly receives dozens of complaints from family members who say they have been barred for speaking out about conditions in the home. AND She had a career as an aerospace engineer before going into politics. Deb Schulte is one of seven Liberals promoted to the front bench. She is the new Minister of Seniors and we had a get-to-know you chat.

There is important new research that will change the treatment for thousands of patients with blocked coronary arteries. The work found that bypass surgery and stents are no more effective than medication in preventing heart attacks and deaths. Libby Znaimer talked with Cardiologist Dr. Vlad Dzavik at the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre, Toronto General Hospital. AND The holiday season is also prime time for charitable giving. But do you know how much impact your donations have? Or how many cents on the dollar actually go to the cause after administration and other costs. Charity Intelligence has done the research on 750 Canadian charities. Libby sat down with managing Director Kate Bahen.

This week we marked World Kindness Day. Before you roll your eyes, or join hands and sing Kumbaya, have a listen to the evidence of what kindness can do for you. Libby reached Professor Daniel Fessler at UCLA's Bedari Kindness Institute. AND This year drug resistant infections killed 5400 Canadians and those numbers are set to rise dramatically over the next 30 years. A landmark new report predicts superbugs kill nearly 400,000 Canadians and cost the economy $400 billion unless we are able to stop them. Libby reached report author Brett Finlay at his office at the University of British Columbia.

Canadians are often known for downplaying our own stories. As we approach Remembrance Day, author Mark Zuelke is highlighting a forgotten part of our contribution to winning World War 2. The River Battles is the story of one Canadian Corp's crossing of the Emilia Romana plain in Italy in 1944-45. The Italian campaign was the longest undertaken by the Canadian Army and by the time it ended more than 5000 soldiers were killed and nearly 20,000 wounded. Zuelke dropped by our studios to tell the story. AND A new film explores the life and work of Canada's most iconic writer - Margaret Atwood - as she approaches her 80th birthday. Filmmakers Nancy Lang and Peter Raymont got to tag along with Atwood for a year to make their documentary and they told Libby Znaimer all about it.

It was first described as a murder suicide when their bodies were found in a maccabre death scene at their Bridle Path home. It's almost two years after what turned out to be the double murder of Apotex founder Barry Sherman and his philanthropist wife Honey. We still don't know who killed the billionaire victims and why. But The Toronto Star's chief investigative reporter Kevin Donovan uncovered some tantalizing new details in his book: The Billionaire Murders. He stopped by our studios. AND She was one of the first women to rise to the top in Ontario's political back rooms and she was the architect of the unlikely victory of another woman, Kathleen Wynne. But Pat Sorbara, author of 'Let 'Em Howl: Lessons from a Life in Back Room Politics', was caught up in bribery charges that ended her career even though she was acquitted. She looks back on the lessons of a life in politics.

The votes were barely counted after this week's federal election before CARP issued a warning to the new government: The Zoomers advocacy group is demanding dramatic improvements to our healthcare system despite the fact that the issue was largely ignored during the campaign - a campaign that had 40% of CARP members feeling that none of the leaders represented their interests. CARP's Marissa Lennox and demographic expert David Cravit dropped by to mobilize some action. AND It strikes more women over 50 than heart attack, stroke, and breast cancer combined. And while the biggest risk factor for osteoporosis is simply age, most Zoomer women do not believe they are at risk. One in three will break a bone due to osteoporosis but that can be prevented. Libby talked with Family Physician Dr. Iris Gorfinkel about what we can do to protect ourselves.

Canadians go to the polls tomorrow after a polarizing campaign. Short on issues and long on personal attacks is the way many people describe it. And for the Zoomer demographic, there is an overriding feeling of frustration because of the sense that we have been ignored or taken for granted. With only hours left, Libby Znaimer is checking in with our ZoomerVote panel, Peter Muggeridge senior Editor at Zoomer Magazine, and David Cravit, Vice President of ZoomerMedia and our guru on all things demographic. AND Two out of 3 Canadians over the age of 65 take at least 5 different prescription medications. 1 out of 4 take at least 10. With every additional drug, there's also an increased risk of adverse reactions like memory problems and falls. Now a team of researchers at Mcgill University has come up with an online tool to figure out which drugs can be stopped safely. Libby reached Dr. Todd Lee, Associate Professor of Medicine at McGill University.

This week we marked World Mental Health Day, with mental or substance disorders affecting up to 20% of Canadians every year. It manifests in different ways as we move through the life cycle. Psychologist Dr. Oren Amitay told Libby Znaimer that Zoomers are more prone to depression, while he believes the younger generation lacks the resilience to cope with the ups and down of life. AND Two biographies of Justin Trudeau - with two very different takes - came out just in time for the election campaign. We featured John Ivison’s “Education of a Prime Minister” early on, but we held on to Aaron Wherry’s book rather than running it at the height of the blackface scandal which happened well after it was written. Wherry had lots of access to the Prime Minister as he wrote “Promise and Peril” , and his take is that Trudeau had a lofty ambitous agenda even it didn’t always work out.

Do you take Zantac for heartburn? Millions of us do. But the drug - whose generic name is ranitidine - has been recalled while authorities investigate whether it contains too much of a cancer-causing impurity. Meantime, the instructions are confusing: drug stores won't get new stock but they can sell what they have and patients shouldn't necessarily stop taking it. Libby Znaimer sat down with Pharmacist Billy Cheung to get some advice. AND Dr. Bob Bell is an orthopedic cancer surgeon who rose to head up the University Health Network before becoming the province's Deputy Minister of Health. In retirement, he's written a novel - a thriller about a new type of hip replacement that goes very wrong. He walked - very carefully - into our studios to talk about it - a few days after his own hip replacement!

Over the past 5 years, the number of physicians in Canada has skyrocketed - the profession has grown by 12.5% nearly triple the growth rate of our population. But the latest numbers, published by the Canadian Institute for Health Information, beg the question: why do so many people find it so hard to get in to see their doctor in a reasonable amount of time. Libby Znaimer drilled down on the numbers with Dr. Sohail Gandhi, President of the Ontario Medical Association. AND It captured the essence of being a single woman in the 1990's. Sex and the City began as a column Candace Bushnell wrote for the New York Observer before it morphed into a book and a hit TV series about the love lives of four New York women. Bushnell is back with another book based on her own experiences, this time as a Zoomer who leaves the City after the death of her mother, and her dog, followed by a divorce. Libby chatted with her about "Is there still Sex in the City?"

Following those explosive pictures of Justin Trudeau in blackface, we look at the history behind this harmful practice. Photos and videos of Justin Trudeau in blackface and brownface rocked the campaign and they have made headlines around the world. We have all heard extensive discussions about what the impact will be but there is a long and hurtful history to the practice of donning black and brown makeup to pose as characters of colour and Libby sat down with Zoomer Magazine Editor in Chief, Suzanne Boyd, to talk about it. AND Two Montrealers with degenerative diseases will now have access to Medical Assistance in Dying following a Quebec Superior Court decision that declared declared parts of both the federal and provincial laws unconstitutional. Nicole Gladu suffers from post-polio syndrome and Jean Truchon has cerebral palsy. They went to court after their applications for MAID were denied because their deaths were not imminent or forseeable - to use the language of the law. Libby talked to Corey Ruf,

The writ has been dropped, the campaign is on, and two new books take an in depth look at Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's four years in power. Libby will take a feature look at both starting this week with National Post columnist John Ivison's "Trudeau:The education of a Prime minister." AND From the Prime Minister to his mother. Libby talks to Margaret Trudeau about her one woman show which lands in Toronto next week. "Certain Woman of an Age" is a no-holds barred account of her marriage to then-prime minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau and her delayed mental illness diagnosis.

It was a brotherhood until it wasn't. Once Were brothers, the documentary that opened this year's TIFF, chronicles the story of one of the most iconic rock bands ever, The Band. It tells the story from Robbie Robertson's perspective and Libbie Znaimer sat down with the 76-year-old star earlier this week. AND It has been a conundrum for doctors treating patients after a heart attack caused by blocked arteries. Should they try to prevent a second heart attack putting stents in arteries that are only partially blocked or is that too invasive? A study out of McMaster University has answered that question decisively. Dr. Shamir Mehta is the lead author.