But first…
Hope everyone enjoyed your Family Day.
Family Day, which is called Louis Riel Day in Manitoba, Islander Day in PEI, and something else in Nova Scotia, is a nice break between New Year’s Day and Good Friday, I have to admit.
No such luck if you’re a federal government employee though. Yesterday was just a regular Monday.
The original Family Day started in Alberta after the premier’s son, Dale Getty, was busted selling drugs to an undercover Mountie back in ‘88.
The rumour was Premier Don Getty then went ahead and announced a new holiday called Family Day, as a way of taking the heat off himself and his son. Or something like that.
Either way, Canadians in eight of 10 provinces can all thank Dale’s ill-fated late-1980s attempt at becoming a coke dealer for the extra day off.
Today, we’re back at work and highlighting a survey released last week by the Canadian Medical Association (CMA). It speaks to the number of Canadians using AI for medical advice. Sure, there are some risks, but who can blame people for using it?
-Neil Malik
Photo via TippaPatt, Shutterstock
People have no other choice
Last year, nearly 6 million Canadians reported they lack reliable access to a family doctor, nurse practitioner, or primary care team. Wait times to see a specialist are the longest since 1993.
Meanwhile, AI platforms like ChatGPT are available instantly, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. And, more importantly, they have all the time in the world for patients.
It causes more harm than good
There’s a very good reason why ChatGPT is appealing for people seeking health care advice. It’s very good at answering stressful questions in a calm, caring voice, while sounding like it knows what it’s talking about. That creates a lot of trust.
But here’s the risk. Those same answers may sound confident, but they might also be incomplete, outdated, or flat-out wrong.
In other news
Anderson Cooper is leaving ‘60 Minutes’ after nearly two decades. He says it’s to spend more time with his family, but I gotta think the whole Bari Weiss thing factors into this somehow (CP24)
Tax season is about to kick off. Here are some tips (CityNews)
How Canada’s 7th largest bank aims to become a household name (CTV)
And in case you missed it, here’s a link to the previous story breaking down whether Ottawa’s gun buyback program will make any difference in making Canadians safer
Where do you stand?
In our last issue, we asked if the federal government’s gun buyback program will help make us safer?
The results:
Yes: 57% ✅
No: 43%
Today’s question is:
We’ll publish the results in our next issue.
Until next time!