Your Local Impact

Arthritis is Canada’s most common chronic disease, scorching the lives of approximately 750,000 people in British Columbia. Arthritis Society Canada is committed to helping all Canadians fight the fire of arthritis with research, advocacy, innovation, and information and support.

Research

Donor support enables us to invest in research to better understand, diagnose and treat arthritis, with a goal to one day extinguish it for good.

Among the researchers we funded in 2021-2022 are:

• Dr. Lori Tucker at the University of British Columbia, who is developing a personalized approach to treatment decisions for children with arthritis.

• PhD candidate Enoli De Silva at the University of British Columbia, who investigated how blood platelets contribute to rheumatoid arthritis.

Recent research developments:

• University of British Columbia-Arthritis Research Canada researcher Dr. Jackie Whittaker and trainee Christina Le found that youth and young adults with sports-related knee injuries experience a poorer health-related quality of life as long as three to 12 years after injury, one of our Top 10 Research Advances of 2021.

• University of British Columbia researcher Dr. Mark Harrison found that a multidisciplinary model of care is perceived to be more effective for people with inflammatory arthritis, one of our Top 10 Research Advances of 2021.

• University of British Columbia-Arthritis Research Canada researcher Dr. Mary De Vera found that people with gout are more likely to develop depression and anxiety compared to those without this painful condition, one of our Top 10 Research Advances of 2021.

Learn more about research

Advocacy

We advocate to all levels of government on the most pressing issues affecting people with arthritis, their families and caregivers.

• We responded to provincial budget announcements, applauding the inclusion of millions of dollars in new permanent funding to help reduce surgery backlogs, including joint replacement surgeries. 

• In June 2021, we produced a new report on The Wait: Addressing Canada’s Critical Backlog of Hip and Knee Replacement Surgeries. In our accompanying “Stop the Wait” campaign, 550 British Columbians took action to call on their elected representatives to help reduce joint replacement surgery wait times.

Learn more about advocacy

Information & Support

Drawing on the expertise of healthcare professionals, our information, resources and tools provide trusted, patient-centric information to thousands of people from British Columbia. In 2021-2022:

• About 5,900 people in more than 190 cities, towns and communities in British Columbia participated in Arthritis Talks, our educational webinar series. 

• 135,000+ people in British Columbia sought information and support from our website. 

• 163 people in British Columbia accessed direct, one-on-one support through our Arthritis Line. 

Learn more about information & support

Arthritis is Canada’s most common chronic disease, scorching the lives of approximately 650,000 people in Alberta. Arthritis Society Canada is committed to helping all Canadians fight the fire of arthritis with research, advocacy, innovation and information and support.

Research

Donor support enables us to invest in research to better understand, diagnose and treat arthritis, with a goal to one day extinguish it for good.

Among the researchers we funded in 2021-2022 are:

• Dr. Walter Herzog at the University of Calgary, who is researching if osteoarthritis can be prevented by tackling obesity with diet and exercise.

• Dr. Lauren Beaupre at the University of Alberta, who is investigating if a virtual arthritis rehabilitation program delivered via smart phone is feasible and effective in improving outcomes for patients in rural areas.

Recent research developments:

• University of Calgary trainee Darren Mazzei recently found that supervised exercise programs for people with hip and knee osteoarthritis provide health benefits and are cost-effective, one of our Top 10 Research Advances of 2021.

Learn more about research

Advocacy

We advocate to all levels of government on the most pressing issues affecting people with arthritis, their families and caregivers.

• In June 2021, we produced a new report on The Wait: Addressing Canada’s Critical Backlog of Hip and Knee Replacement Surgeries. In our accompanying “Stop the Wait” campaign, 362 Albertans took action to call on their elected representatives to help reduce joint replacement surgery wait times. 

• We responded to the Albertan government’s Throne Speech and budget, which included an announcement of contingency funds to address evolving pandemic-related costs and surgical backlog, as well as investment in The Alberta Surgical Initiative Capital Program to increase surgical capacity and ensure all patients receive their required surgeries within clinically recommended timelines. 

Learn more about advocacy

Information & Support

Drawing on the expertise of healthcare professionals, our information, resources and tools provide trusted, patient-centric information to thousands of people from Alberta. In 2021-2022: 

• About 3,700 people in more than 160 cities, towns and communities in Alberta participated in Arthritis Talks, our educational webinar series. 

• 96,000+ people in Alberta sought information and support from our website. 

• 81 people in Alberta accessed direct, one-on-one support through our Arthritis Line. 

Learn more about information & support

Arthritis is Canada’s most common chronic disease, scorching the lives of approximately 200,000 people in Saskatchewan. Arthritis Society Canada is committed to helping all Canadians fight the fire of arthritis with research, advocacy, innovation and information and support.

Research

Donor support enables us to invest in research to better understand, diagnose and treat arthritis, with a goal to one day extinguish it for good.

Among the researchers we funded in 2021-2022 is:

• Dr. Emily McWalter at the University of Saskatchewan, who is using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to study early joint degeneration in OA, how it progresses, and how it is affected by treatments.

Learn more about research

Advocacy

We advocate to all levels of government on the most pressing issues affecting people with arthritis, their families and caregivers. 

• In April 2021, we responded to the provincial budget announcement, highlighting the need for a specific investment to address the long wait times people experience for joint replacement surgeries in Saskatchewan.

• In June 2021, we produced a new report on The Wait: Addressing Canada’s Critical Backlog of Hip and Knee Replacement Surgeries. In our accompanying “Stop the Wait” campaign, 70 people in Saskatchewan took action to call on their elected representatives to help reduce joint replacement surgery wait times. 

Learn more about advocacy

Information & Support

Drawing on the expertise of healthcare professionals, our information, resources and tools provide trusted, patient-centric information to thousands of people from Saskatchewan. In 2021-2022: 

• About 920 people in more than 80 cities, towns and communities in Saskatchewan participated in Arthritis Talks, our educational webinar series. 

• 25,000+ people in Saskatchewan sought information and support from our website. 

• 25 people in Saskatchewan accessed direct, one-on-one support through our Arthritis Line. 

Learn more about information & support

Arthritis is Canada’s most common chronic disease, scorching the lives of approximately 200,000 people in Manitoba. Arthritis Society Canada is committed to helping all Canadians fight the fire of arthritis with research, advocacy, innovation and information and support.

Research

Donor support enables us to invest in research to better understand, diagnose and treat arthritis, with a goal to one day extinguish it for good.

Among the researchers we funded in 2021-2022 is:

• Dr. Liam O’Neil at the University of Manitoba, who is researching the role of white blood cells called neutrophils in rheumatoid arthritis development.

Recent research developments:

• University of Manitoba’s Dr. Lily Lim recently found that students with childhood arthritis performed worse than their peers on their Grade 12 standardized math and language tests, independent of their sociodemographic factors and common childhood mental health issues, one of our Top 10 Research Advances of 2021.

Learn more about research

Advocacy

We advocate to all levels of government on the most pressing issues affecting people with arthritis, their families and caregivers.

• In April 2021, we responded to the provincial budget announcement, applauding the inclusion of a minimum of $50 million in new funding to reduce wait times, including dedicated funding for joint replacement surgeries. 

• In June 2021, we produced a new report on The Wait: Addressing Canada’s Critical Backlog of Hip and Knee Replacement Surgeries. In our accompanying “Stop the Wait” campaign, 115 Manitobans took action to call on their elected representatives to help reduce joint replacement surgery wait times.

Learn more about advocacy

Information & Support

Drawing on the expertise of healthcare professionals, our information, resources and tools provide trusted, patient-centric information to thousands of people from Manitoba. In 2021-2022:

• About 1,700 people in more than 90 cities, towns and communities in Manitoba participated in Arthritis Talks, our educational webinar series. 

• 31,000+ people in Manitoba sought information and support from our website.

• 58 people in Manitoba accessed direct, one-on-one support through our Arthritis Line.

Learn more about information & support

Arthritis is Canada’s most common chronic condition, scorching the lives of approximately 2.3 million people in Ontario. Arthritis Society Canada is committed to helping all Canadians fight the fire of arthritis with research, advocacy, innovation and information and support.

Research

Donor support enables us to invest in research to better understand, diagnose and treat arthritis, with a goal to one day extinguish it for good.

Among the researchers we funded in 2021-2022 are:

• Dr. Robert Rottapel at the University Health Network, who is investigating a new childhood inflammatory syndrome.

• Dr. Cheryle Séguin at Western University, who is studying the links between obesity, changes in specific proteins, disc degeneration and back pain.

Recent research developments:

• Institute of Work and Health researcher Dr. Arif Jetha discovered that the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to a loss of employment among young adults with arthritis and created barriers to healthcare and treatment access, one of our Top 10 Research Advances of 2021.

• University Health Network and University of Toronto's Dr. Sowmya Viswanathan and trainee Mable Wing Yan Chan created a new tool to evaluate osteoarthritis treatments in the lab, which could accelerate the testing and development of new drugs, one of our Top 10 Research Advances of 2021.

Learn more about research

Advocacy

We advocate to all levels of government on the most pressing issues affecting people with arthritis, their families and caregivers. 

• In June 2021, we produced a new report on The Wait: Addressing Canada’s Critical Backlog of Hip and Knee Replacement Surgeries. In our accompanying “Stop the Wait” campaign, 1,288 Ontarians took action to call on their elected representatives to help reduce joint replacement surgery wait times.

• We partnered with the Canadian Arthritis Patient Alliance (CAPA) and the Ontario Rheumatology Association (ORA) along with our provincial Arthritis Rehabilitation and Evaluation Program (AREP) to lead a panel discussion at the Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH) Symposium on accessing care during a pandemic.

Learn more about advocacy

Information & Support

Drawing on the expertise of healthcare professionals, our information, resources and tools provide trusted, patient-centric information to thousands of people from Ontario. In 2021-2022: 

• About 17,300 people in more than 640 cities, towns and communities in Ontario participated in Arthritis Talks, our educational webinar series.

• 430,000+ people in Ontario sought information and support from our website.

• 624 people in Ontario accessed direct, one-on-one support through our Arthritis Line. 

Learn more about information & support

Arthritis is Canada’s most common chronic disease, scorching the lives of approximately 1.25 million people in Quebec. Arthritis Society Canada is committed to helping all Canadians fight the fire of arthritis with research, advocacy, innovation and information and support.

Research

Donor support enables us to invest in research to better understand, diagnose and treat arthritis, with a goal to one day extinguish it for good.

Among the researchers we funded in 2021-2022 are: 

• Dr. Fawzi Aoudjit at Université Laval, who investigated the movement of inflammatory cells to treat rheumatoid arthritis. 

• Dr. Évelyne Vinet at McGill University Health Centre, who led research to understand the safety of biologics in pregnancy.

Recent research developments: 

• Université Laval researcher Dr. Maria Fernandes recently discovered how a protein dampens inflammatory responses seen in gout and other types of inflammatory arthritis, one of our Top 10 Research Advances of 2021.

Learn more about research

Advocacy

We advocate to all levels of government on the most pressing issues affecting people with arthritis, their families and caregivers. 

• In June 2021, we produced a new report on The Wait: Addressing Canada’s Critical Backlog of Hip and Knee Replacement Surgeries. In our accompanying “Stop the Wait” campaign, 909 people in Quebec took action to call on their elected representatives to help reduce joint replacement surgery wait times. 

• Following the announcement of Quebec’s move to a biosimilar transition initiative, we issued a statement that we were ready to review the policy and provide any necessary feedback. It was implemented in July 2021, and our resources were referred to for support.

Learn more about advocacy

Information & Support

Drawing on the expertise of healthcare professionals, our information, resources and tools provide trusted, patient-centric information to thousands of people from Quebec. In 2021-2022:

• About 5,900 people in more than 790 cities, towns and communities in Quebec participated in Arthritis Talks, our educational webinar series. 

• 550,000+ people in Quebec sought information and support from our website.

• 1,207 people in Quebec accessed direct, one-on-one support through our Arthritis Line.

Learn more about information & support

Arthritis is Canada’s most common chronic disease, scorching the lives of approximately 150,000 people in New Brunswick. Arthritis Society Canada is committed to helping all Canadians fight the fire of arthritis with research, advocacy, innovation and information and support.

Research

Donor support enables us to invest in research to better understand, diagnose and treat arthritis, with a goal to one day extinguish it for good.

While there are currently no active research projects in New Brunswick being funded byArthritis Society Canada, the outcomes of research across the country will impact all Canadians living with this disease, such as the discoveries showcased in our Top 10 Research Advances of 2021.

Learn more about research

Advocacy

We advocate to all levels of government on the most pressing issues affecting people with arthritis, their families and caregivers. 

• In April 2021, New Brunswick announced its biosimilar policy, after considering input from  Arthritis Society Canada and other stakeholders. 

• In June 2021, we produced a new report on The Wait: Addressing Canada’s Critical Backlog of Hip and Knee Replacement Surgeries. In our accompanying “Stop the Wait” campaign, 74 people from New Brunswick took action to call on their elected representatives to help reduce joint replacement surgery wait times. 

Learn more about advocacy

Information & Support

Drawing on the expertise of healthcare professionals, our information, resources and tools provide trusted, patient-centric information to thousands of people from New Brunswick. In 2021-2022: 

• About 740 people in at least 125 cities, towns and communities in New Brunswick participated in Arthritis Talks, our educational webinar series.

• 31,000+ people in New Brunswick sought information and support from our website. 

• 20 people in New Brunswick accessed direct, one-on-one support through our Arthritis Line. 

Learn more about information & support

Arthritis is Canada’s most common chronic disease, scorching the lives of approximately 25,000 people in Prince Edward Island. Arthritis Society Canada is committed to helping all Canadians fight the fire of arthritis with research, advocacy, innovation and information and support.

Research

Donor support enables us to invest in research to better understand, diagnose and treat arthritis, with a goal to one day extinguish it for good.

While Arthritis Society Canada is not currently funding any active research projects in Prince Edward Island, the outcomes of research across the country will impact all Canadians living with this disease, such as the discoveries showcased in our Top 10 Research Advances of 2021.

Learn more about research

Advocacy

We advocate to all levels of government on the most pressing issues affecting people with arthritis, their families and caregivers. 

• In June 2021, we produced a new report on The Wait: Addressing Canada’s Critical Backlog of Hip and Knee Replacement Surgeries. In our accompanying “Stop the Wait” campaign, 14 people in Prince Edward Island took action to call on their elected representatives to help reduce joint replacement surgery wait times. 

Learn more about advocacy

Information & Support

Drawing on the expertise of healthcare professionals, our information, resources and tools provide trusted, patient-centric information to thousands of people from Prince Edward Island. In 2021-2022:

• About 230 people in more than 25 cities, towns and communities in Prince Edward Island participated in Arthritis Talks, our educational webinar series..

• 7,000+ people in Prince Edward Island sought information and support from our website.

• 17 people in Prince Edward Island accessed direct, one-on-one support through our Arthritis Line.

Learn more about information & support

Arthritis is Canada’s most common chronic disease, scorching the lives of approximately 200,000 people in Nova Scotia. Arthritis Society Canada is committed to helping all Canadians fight the fire of arthritis with research, advocacy, innovation and information and support.

Research

Donor support enables us to invest in research to better understand, diagnose and treat arthritis, with a goal to one day extinguish it for good.

Among the researchers we funded in 2021-2022 are:

• Dr. Rebecca Moyer at Dalhousie University, who is leading research on getting people with knee osteoarthritis moving to improve their health.

• A team including Dr. John Hanly at the Dalhousie University lupus clinic, who are performing a nationwide study looking at the impact of COVID-19 on people with arthritis. As many as 260 clinic patients are participating in the study.

Learn more about research

Advocacy

We advocate to all levels of government on the most pressing issues affecting people with arthritis, their families and caregivers. 

• In June 2021, we produced a new report on The Wait: Addressing Canada’s Critical Backlog of Hip and Knee Replacement Surgeries. In our accompanying “Stop the Wait” campaign, 31 people in Nova Scotia took action to call on their elected representatives to help reduce joint replacement surgery wait times. 

• For the provincial election in August 2021, we launched an online advocacy campaign calling on all the party leaders to take action on surgical wait times and participated in a Chronic Disease Health Forum to ensure that access to care and treatments were election priorities. The elected government committed to meeting wait time benchmarks. 

Learn more about advocacy

Information & Support

Drawing on the expertise of healthcare professionals, our information, resources and tools provide trusted, patient-centric information to thousands of people from Nova Scotia. In 2021-2022:

• About 1,500 people in more than 160 cities, towns and communities in Nova Scotia participated in Arthritis Talks, our educational webinar series.

• 42,000+ people in Nova Scotia sought information and support from our website.

• 71 people in Nova Scotia accessed direct, one-on-one support through our Arthritis Line. 

Learn more about information & support

Arthritis is Canada’s most common chronic disease, scorching the lives of approximately 100,000 people in Newfoundland and Labrador. Arthritis Society Canada is committed to helping all Canadians fight the fire of arthritis with research, advocacy, innovation and information and support.

Research 

Donor support enables us to invest in research to better understand, diagnose and treat arthritis, with a goal to one day extinguish it for good.

Among the researchers we funded in 2021-2022 are:

• Christie Costello and Salem Werdyani, two research trainees at Memorial University, who are investigating why some people with osteoarthritis don’t respond well to joint replacement surgery.

Recent research developments:

• Memorial University researchers including Salem Werdyani recently found three distinct osteoarthritis subtypes, one of our Top 10 Research Advances of 2021.

Learn more about research

Advocacy

We advocate to all levels of government on the most pressing issues affecting people with arthritis, their families and caregivers. 

• We made a pre-budget submission to the Newfoundland and Labrador government focused on access to treatment and care, wait times for joint replacement surgery, and medical cannabis. In June 2021, we responded to the provincial budget announcement, highlighting the need for a specific investment to improve wait times for joint replacement surgeries.

• In June 2021, we produced a new report on The Wait: Addressing Canada’s Critical Backlog of Hip and Knee Replacement Surgeries. In our accompanying “Stop the Wait” campaign, 48 people in Newfoundland and Labrador took action to call on their elected representatives to help reduce joint replaement surgery wait times. 

• Our input was received by Health Accord NL, which released a report that included objectives to address wait times and backlogs of surgeries.

Learn more about advocacy

Information & Support 

Drawing on the expertise of healthcare professionals, our information, resources and tools provide trusted, patient-centric information to thousands of people from Newfoundland and Labrador. In 2021-2022: 

• About 500 people in more than 80 cities, towns and communities in Newfoundland and Labrador participated in Arthritis Talks, our educational webinar series. 

• 22,000+ people in Newfoundland and Labrador sought information and support from our website.

• 14 people in Newfoundland and Labrador accessed direct, one-on-one support through our Arthritis Line. 

Learn more about information & support

Arthritis is Canada’s most common chronic disease, scorching the lives of approximately 15,000 people in Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and Yukon. Arthritis Society Canada is committed to helping all Canadians fight the fire of arthritis with research, advocacy, innovation and information and support.

Research

Donor support enables us to invest in research to better understand, diagnose and treat arthritis, with a goal to one day extinguish it for good.

While Arthritis Society Canada is not currently funding any active research projects in the Territories, the outcomes of research across the country will impact all Canadians living with this disease, such as the discoveries showcased in our Top 10 Research Advances of 2021.

Learn more about research

Advocacy

We advocate to all levels of government on the most pressing issues affecting people with arthritis, their families and caregivers.

• In June 2021, we produced a new report on The Wait: Addressing Canada’s Critical Backlog of Hip and Knee Replacement Surgeries. In our accompanying “Stop the Wait” campaign, 7 people from the Territories took action to call on their elected representatives to help reduce joint replacement surgery wait times. 

Learn more about advocacy

Information & Support

Drawing on the expertise of healthcare professionals, our information, resources and tools provide trusted, patient-centric information to thousands of people from the Territories. In 2021-2022: 

• About 65 people in more than 10 communities in the Territories participated in Arthritis Talks, our educational webinar series. 

• 1,800+ people in the Territories sought information and support from our website.

Learn more about information & support