PICTOU, N.S. — CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article stated that the Nova Scotia Department of Health and Wellness has criticized organizations like CanLyme for distributing false and misleading information about Lyme Disease. In fact, the department has never specifically said this of CanLyme. We apologize for this error.
An information session on lyme disease will bring community members and visiting physicians from the United States to the Pictou County Wellness Centre on Sept 6.
An invitation posted on the Nova Scotia Nurses Union webpage says that the discussion will be led by Dr. Marty Ross and Dr. Richard Dubocq, both of whom are visiting from the United States.
“During the session they will discuss diagnosis, treatment, ticks and the diseases they carry. This session is timely,” the invitation reads, “as tick bites have become increasingly more common in our region in recent years.”
The first session taking place at 4:30 will be healthcare workers only. The second, beginning at 7 p.m. will be open to the public.
The event is being described by organizers, Jennifer MacLean and Amy Hayne-Desjardins, as a patient -driven conference, and is designed to bring community members up to speed on lyme disease and provide information on diagnosis and treatment.
In June, MacLean and Hayne-Desjardins spoke to Pictou Municipal Council about their experience with Lyme diagnosis and treatment both in Nova Scotia and in the United States where many Canadians go for treatment.
Mount Allison biology professor and researcher Vett Lloyd is one of them. She was diagnosed with Lyme disease in Canada, but ended up seeing treatment in the United States where doctors are able to prescribe treatments that fall outside of the Public Health Agency of Canada guidelines that the Nova Scotia Health Authority follows.
“I got three weeks of antibiotics, was starting to feel better, but not fully better,” said Lloyd who says that she was still experiencing fevers, muscle weakness, and vision and hearing problems. “I was not happy still being sick and felt it was worth pursuing the issue.”
Lloyd, who now heads-up a lab in New Brunswick which will test ticks for lyme bacteria, will also be on the panel with doctors Ross and Dubocq on Friday.
“While it may or may not be appropriate that it’s community members as opposed to the Health Care System organizing it, what’s important is that it does happen,” said Lloyd.
Some organizations which promote research and education on Lyme disease have been criticized by both the Department of Health and Wellness and the Nova Scotia Health Authority.
In an email to The News, Dr. Ryan Sommers who is the medical officer of the NSHA northern zone expressed concerns for the quality of information being presented at the event.
“A number of Nova Scotian physicians and I are very concerned that this event will present harmful misinformation about Lyme Disease management and practices,” said Sommers.
And on Janurary 28, Nova Scotia’s chief medical officer for the Department of Health and Wellness, Dr. Robert Strang came under criticism for a retweet which dismissed chronic lyme disease, cases where lyme bacteria are believed to persist after prescribed treatment, as being based on pseudoscience.
In an email to The News, the Nova Scotia Health Authorty said that it has no involvement, but would not say whether any officers with the NSHA will be attending or not.
With files from Andrew Rankin.
Read more: https://www.thechronicleherald.ca/news/local/strang-retweet-raises-ire-of-sufferers-279636/
