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How do we catch cardiovascular disease early when millions lack access to regular care? An estimated 5.9 million adults in Canada lack reliable access to a regular family doctor, nurse practitioner or primary care team, according to the 2025 OurCare survey, reported by the Canadian Medical Association. That gap matters for prevention. Identifying risk, arranging screening and following up on treatment require consistent care, often before someone feels unwell. Marc Bains, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the HeartLife Foundation, Dr. Sean Virani, Past President of the Canadian Cardiovascular Society and Chief of Cardiology at Providence Health Care, and host David Jones, Managing Director at Merck Canada, explore how stronger primary care, community support and coordinated investment can help Canada intervene earlier. The potential of preventive medicine depends on people being able to access it. Watch the full conversation in The Future of Life Sciences Expert Series, presented by Merck Canada and produced by TheFutureEconomy.ca: thefutureeconomy.ca/intervie… #CardiovascularHealth #WomensHealth #HealthEquity #Prevention #CanadianHealthcare

AI can help your team reply to customers faster. But are those customers getting their problems solved any sooner? Jim Lambe, Vice President and General Manager, Canada, at Databricks, argues that companies should start with a business problem and decide what a better result looks like before they roll out AI. For a customer service team, that could mean tracking how often a customer gets their issue resolved on the first try. That tells you more about what improved than counting how many employees use the tool. Read Jim Lambe’s op-ed → thefutureeconomy.ca/op-eds/a… #AIAdoption #CanadianBusiness #CustomerService

If Canada wants workers to learn AI, who should be responsible for showing them what to learn? One approach puts the responsibility largely on individuals: understand how your profession is changing, identify the skills employers want and find the right training. The other asks employers, colleges and workforce organizations to build clearer pathways between AI training and specific jobs. Right now, 55% of Canadians primarily navigate career decisions on their own. Drew Lindsay, Founder of PathPilot, argues that as Canada invests in AI skills, we also need to think about who helps people translate those skills into actual work. Where should the responsibility sit? Read Drew’s op-ed: thefutureeconomy.ca/op-eds/c… #ArtificialIntelligence #FutureOfWork #Skills #Careers #Canada

Canada's data-centre industry is growing faster than some of the country's biggest economic sectors. But is the rest of the economy keeping up? Canada is rapidly expanding the infrastructure needed to power AI, from data centres to cloud computing. That's good news for investment. But more computing capacity doesn't automatically mean greater productivity across the economy. The real opportunity is what Canadian businesses do with that infrastructure. Can manufacturers, healthcare providers and other industries turn access to AI into better products, more efficient operations and new jobs? Building the infrastructure is one thing. Making sure the economic benefits spread beyond the tech sector is another. What should Canada prioritize to turn its AI infrastructure boom into broader economic growth? #CanadianEconomy #ArtificialIntelligence #DataCentres #Productivity #EconomicGrowth #TheFutureEconomy

64% of Canadians believe young people will have the skills to qualify for AI-related opportunities. Only 44% believe they personally have, or could develop, the skills to compete for an AI-related job. That gap raises a bigger question about Canada’s push to build an AI-ready workforce. Telling people to “learn AI” is easy. Knowing which skills to learn, how they apply to a particular field and whether they lead to realistic job opportunities is much harder. Drew Lindsay, Founder of PathPilot, argues that AI training needs to be connected to career guidance, clearer employer expectations and practical applications at work. Because if someone is going to invest their time and money in learning AI, they should have a clearer idea of where it can take them. Read Drew’s op-ed: thefutureeconomy.ca/op-eds/c… #ArtificialIntelligence #FutureOfWork #Skills #Talent #Canada

Why wait for a hospital admission to make heart health a priority? Earlier detection and treatment can help prevent disease from advancing. But making that happen takes sustained investment, accessible care and coordination across the healthcare system. David Jones, Managing Director at Merck Canada, brings together clinical expertise and patient experience to explore how Canada can put prevention at the centre of cardiovascular care. The opportunity is to act earlier. What will it take to seize it? Watch the full conversation in The Future of Life Sciences Expert Series, presented by Merck Canada and produced by TheFutureEconomy.ca: thefutureeconomy.ca/intervie… #CardiovascularHealth #Prevention #PrimaryCare #HealthInnovation #CanadianHealthcare

Preventive care shouldn’t depend on how well you can navigate the system. Which risks matter? What screening should you ask for? Who follows up? Patients and caregivers shouldn’t have to figure it all out alone. Marc Bains, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the HeartLife Foundation, argues that prevention needs to be built into everyday healthcare, with clear information and support that reaches people in their communities. How do we make earlier care something people receive, rather than something they have to fight for? Watch the full conversation in The Future of Life Sciences Expert Series, presented by Merck Canada and produced by TheFutureEconomy.ca: thefutureeconomy.ca/intervie… #CardiovascularHealth #Prevention #PrimaryCare #HealthInnovation #CanadianHealthcare

The first step in preventing heart disease is having somewhere to turn before you’re sick. Screening, early treatment and follow-up depend on consistent access to care. Without that foundation, even promising medical advances can struggle to reach the people who need them. Dr. Sean Virani, Past President of the Canadian Cardiovascular Society and Chief of Cardiology at Providence Health Care, makes the case for stronger, team-based primary care to catch cardiovascular risks earlier. Can Canada make preventive care easier to access than crisis care? Watch the full conversation in The Future of Life Sciences Expert Series, presented by Merck Canada and produced by TheFutureEconomy.ca: thefutureeconomy.ca/intervie… #CardiovascularHealth #Prevention #PrimaryCare #HealthInnovation #CanadianHealthcare

Before you give up your evenings and weekends for an AI course, you should know what jobs it could help you land. In a PathPilot survey conducted by Angus Reid, 64% of Canadians said young people will have the skills for AI-related jobs. Only 44% believed they already had or could develop those skills themselves. Drew Lindsay, Founder of PathPilot, says career guidance should start before enrolment and continue through the job search. He wants employers to spell out which AI skills they need and how people will use them at work. And he wants funders to track what happens after training. Did learners land interviews, find new jobs or take on bigger responsibilities? If you were choosing an AI course today, what would you need to know before signing up? Read Drew’s op-ed on TheFutureEconomy.ca thefutureeconomy.ca/op-eds/c… #AI #AISkills #SkillsTraining #FutureOfWork #Canada

An autism services waitlist can become a career interruption. Reduced hours. A promotion turned down. A job left altogether. When services are unavailable, parents absorb the gap, and employers can lose experienced workers. In a small Ontario pilot study of 74 caregivers, 55.4% reported an impact on household employment. The findings are not representative of every family, but they put a number to a cost that funding announcements can overlook. Serena Thompson, Founder and Executive Director of The Lighthouse Learning and Development Centre, argues that Ontario’s autism funding decisions need to account for what happens when support doesn’t arrive. Are we counting the cost of services while overlooking the cost of waiting? Read her op-ed: thefutureeconomy.ca/op-eds/t… #AutismSupport #Caregiving #WorkforceParticipation #Ontario

Can an annual healthcare budget capture the value of preventing a crisis years from now? Prevention takes investment today. Its benefits build over time, while hospital visits, missed work and caregiver demands carry costs of their own. Dr. Sean Virani, Past President of the Canadian Cardiovascular Society and Chief of Cardiology at Providence Health Care, and Marc Bains, Co-Founder & Executive Director of HeartLife Foundation, explain why Canada needs to connect health funding with the longer horizon of prevention. Watch their conversation with David Jones, President and Managing Director of Merck Canada, in the Expert Series presented by Merck Canada: thefutureeconomy.ca/intervie… #PreventiveHealthcare #CardiovascularHealth #HealthPolicy #CanadianHealthcare

Is better heart care reaching the people who need it, or mainly those who already have it? New technology can identify risks earlier. But distance, access to regular care and the support available in a community still shape who benefits. Marc Bains, Co-Founder & Executive Director of HeartLife Foundation, and Dr. Sean Virani, Past President of the Canadian Cardiovascular Society and Chief of Cardiology at Providence Health Care, explain why cardiovascular innovation has to work beyond the best-served patients. Watch the interview, hosted by David Jones, President and Managing Director of Merck Canada, in the Expert Series presented by Merck Canada: thefutureeconomy.ca/intervie… #HealthEquity #CardiovascularHealth #RuralCanada #HealthInnovation

A parent leaves work to fill a gap in autism services. Their employer loses experience. Their household loses income and pension contributions. Those costs rarely feature in the debate over what support should cost. Serena Thompson, Founder and Executive Director of The Lighthouse Learning and Development Centre, argues that Ontario needs to count both sides: what timely support costs, and what families and the economy lose without it. What would change if caregiver employment became a measure of whether services are working? Read her op-ed: thefutureeconomy.ca/op-eds/t… #AutismSupport #WorkforceParticipation #Ontario #FutureEconomy

Nearly 80% of premature heart disease and stroke can be prevented. Yet heart disease remains Canada’s second-leading cause of death, accounting for 17.7% of all deaths in 2024. The challenge isn’t simply medical innovation. It’s getting prevention to people before they need emergency care. Canada’s healthcare system is still largely built around treating illness rather than preventing it. Gaps in primary care, unequal access to services and short-term funding make it harder to intervene early. If prevention can save lives and reduce healthcare costs, why is it still so difficult to fund? #HeartHealth #HealthcareInnovation #CardiovascularHealth #PreventiveCare #CanadianHealthcare #TheFutureEconomy

What good is knowing how to prevent heart disease, Canada’s second leading cause of death, if people cannot access the care that helps prevent it? Canada knows a great deal about preventing cardiovascular disease. The harder question is how to make prevention part of everyday care, before a hospital visit becomes unavoidable. Marc Bains, Co-Founder & Executive Director of @HeartLifeCanada, and Dr. Sean Virani, Past President of the @SCC_CCS Canadian Cardiovascular Society and Chief of Cardiology at @Providence_Hlth , join David Jones, President and Managing Director of @Merck Canada, to connect the patient experience with the funding, primary care and innovation changes Canada needs. Watch the full conversation in The Future of Life Sciences in Canada Expert Series, presented by Merck Canada: thefutureeconomy.ca/intervie… #CardiovascularHealth #Prevention #PrimaryCare #CanadianHealthcare

The hospital became his second home. But he was still one of the lucky ones. Marc Bains lived with heart failure for 10 years before receiving a heart transplant. He had exceptional specialist care, a family doctor, a pharmacist and support at home. His assessment: “I was the exception and not the rule.” That raises a difficult question for Canada: How can we expect to prevent disease when most Canadians cannot consistently access the care that makes prevention possible? This episode of The Future of Life Sciences Expert Series explores what it will take to close that gap, featuring: - Marc Bains, Co-Founder and Executive Director, @HeartLifeCanada . - Dr. Sean Virani, Past President, @SCC_CCS Canadian Cardiovascular Society, and Chief of Cardiology, @Providence_Hlth, who has been Marc’s cardiologist since his diagnosis. - Host David Jones, Managing Director, @Merck Canada. Together, they connect the human experience of cardiovascular disease with the decisions shaping its future: stronger primary care, earlier detection, accessible innovation and funding that looks beyond the next budget cycle. New technology could help identify risk sooner. But who will benefit if the same barriers to care remain? Canada knows a great deal about preventing cardiovascular disease. The challenge is making prevention part of everyday care, wherever people live. Part of The Future of Life Sciences Expert Series, presented by Merck Canada and produced by TheFutureEconomy.ca. 🎬 Watch the full episode now: thefutureeconomy.ca/intervie… #CardiovascularHealth #Prevention #HealthEquity #PrimaryCare #CanadianHealthcare