CAIC's AMR Action Podcast

In honour of World Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Awareness Week (WAAW) 2024, the AMR Action Podcast welcomed guest speaker Damiano de Felice, Chief of External Affairs at CARB-X. This year's WAAW theme is “Educate. Advocate. Act now.” In alignment with this theme, Damiano spoke about his work to advance conversations with governments around policies and actions needed to address AMR. Damiano shares his insights from Italy's recent investments in AMR and his ideas on how Canada can prepare for its upcoming G7 presidency to enhance countries' commitments to AMR.

In this thirteenth episode of the  AMR Action Podcast, Dani Peters, CAIC Senior Advisor, speaks with Canadian Senator Mohamed-Iqbal Ravalia. Senator Ravalia reflects on his years of practicing and teaching medicine in Newfoundland and Labrador and the importance of a collaborative multidisciplinary approach to addressing the issue of antimicrobial resistance and antimicrobial stewardship. He also shares his insights as a parliamentarian on how the federal, provincial and territorial governments are working together on the implementation of the Pan-Canadian Action Plan on AMR, and shares some of Newfoundland's successes in addressing AMR at the local level.

In recognition of World AMR Awareness Week (WAAW), Steffanie Strathdee, Associate Dean of Global Health Sciences and Harold Simon Distinguished Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine, joined the AMR Action Podcast to share the story of how her husband’s case of “Iraqibacter” led her to find a phage therapy that saved his life. Steffanie also shares her thoughts on opportunities for Canada to lead on AMR innovation, and the resources and regulations required to make phage therapy available as an alternative to antimicrobials in health settings across the United States, Canada and the world.

Read Steffanie’s book: The Perfect Predator: A Scientist's Race to Save Her Husband from a Deadly Superbug: A Memoir

Learn more about Phage Canada.

Our eleventh AMR Action Podcast features an interview with Dr. Andrew Morris, Chair of the Expert Panel on Antimicrobial Availability to discuss the Council of Canadian Academies report, Overcoming Resistance. The report, commissioned by the Public Health Agency of Canada, describes the pull incentives that could help boost the availability of novel antimicrobials in Canada. The report was released on September 7, 2023.

Dr. Morris is the Medical Director of the Antimicrobial Stewardship Program Sinai Health/University Health Network and Professor, Department of Medicine Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto.

In this tenth episode of the AMR Action Podcast, Dani Peters, CAIC Senior Advisor, speaks with Dr. Curtis Nickel, Professor Emeritus, Department of Urology, Queen’s University and Kingston Health Sciences Centre, on the issue of urinary tract infections (UTIs), and why recurring UTIs present a public health issue, especially within the context of rising rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

Learn more about Dr. Curtis: https://urology.queensu.ca/faculty/j-curtis-nickel

Dr. Henry Skinner, CEO of the AMR Action Fund, joins Dani Peters, CAIC Senior Advisor, for World Antimicrobial Awareness Week to discuss the status of the global campaign to combat antimicrobial resistance in this 8th episode of the AMR Action Podcast. Dr. Skinner shares his perspective on the challenges with the broken market, and the barriers that need to be overcome in order to expedite innovation for new antimicrobials. He also discusses incentive models for policy makers and why more robust investments are needed from the private sector. Finally, he shares his optimism stemming from new technologies that are being tested and supported through the AMR Action Fund.

In this ninth episode of the AMR Action Podcast, Dani Peters, CAIC Senior Advisor, speaks with Dr. Sue Twine, National Research Council of Canada’s Director General of the Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, and researchers Dr. Danielle Peters and Alyssa McAdorey, about their work to address the growing public health threat of antimicrobial resistance and the importance of collaborating across institutions and industry in order to tackle the “next big silent pandemic.” 

Our seventh episode of the AMR Action Podcast features Dr. Larissa Matukas, an Associate Professor in the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology at the University of Toronto, Head of the Division of Microbiology and an Infectious Disease Consultant at St. Michael’s Hospital, Unity Health Toronto.  Dr. Matukas speaks about stewardship, surveillance and the use of diagnostic technologies to help combat antimicrobial resistance.

In this episode of the AMR Action Podcast, Lorna McEwan, a cystic fibrosis patient advocate spoke with Dani Peters, CAIC Senior Advisor, about her unique experiences as the oldest CF patient diagnosed at birth in Saskatchewan and her work as a CF advocate. Lorna shares her perspective regarding the importance of biomedical innovation, specifically how a gene-altering drug brought to Canada in 2021 has changed her life for the better. She also provides advice on how patients can advocate for themselves, not give up and share their experiences to impact broader policy and health care in Canada.

Patient advocates Hailey Laxer, cystic fibrosis (CF) patient, and Kristine Russell, sepsis survivor, speak with CAIC senior advisor Dani Peters about their unique patient journeys and how antibiotics have saved each of their lives. They discuss how the new antibiotic pipeline has dried up and the critical role of biomedical innovation in enabling Canadians to live healthier, better lives. Hailey and Kristine also share their personal stories and perspectives on how patients should be engaged in the issues related to antimicrobial resistance and access to newer antimicrobials in Canada.