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Housing Options for Seniors
If you are having any symptoms or have any questions, please call 811 to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours a day. Get emergency care if you or a loved one has serious thoughts of suicide or harming others. What is a senior living community? A senior living community is a place where older…
How to Care for Your Baby’s Teeth
If you are having any symptoms or have any questions, please call 811 to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours a day. Healthy teeth are important to your baby’s overall health. They help your baby eat and form sounds and words. They also affect the way your baby’s jaw grows. Good oral care helps…
How to Get the Most From Your Medicine
If you are having any symptoms or have any questions, please call 811 to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours a day. Medicines can help you feel better. But if medicines are taken incorrectly, they can actually make you feel worse. To use prescription medicines and medicines you can buy over‑the‑counter (without a prescription)…
How to Give Your Child Medicine
If you are having any symptoms or have any questions, please call 811 to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours a day. What do I need to know about my child’s medicines? Your child’s healthcare provider and your pharmacist can answer questions about prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) medicines. (OTC medicines are medicines that you…
How to Read an OTC Drug Facts Table
If you are having any symptoms or have any questions, please call 811 to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours a day. What is an OTC medicine? Over-the-counter (OTC) medicines are medicines you can buy without a prescription from your healthcare provider. Examples of OTC medicines include non-prescription pain relievers, allergy medicines, and cough…
How to Stop Steroid Medicines Safely
If you are having any symptoms or have any questions, please call 811 to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours a day. What are steroid medicines? Steroids are a type of medicine with strong anti-inflammatory effects. They can reduce inflammation (redness, swelling and soreness). They come in pill form, as inhalers or nasal sprays,…
How to Treat Common Household Injuries
If you are having any symptoms or have any questions, please call 811 to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours a day. Home, sweet home. There’s no place like it. You may feel your most comfortable when you’re at home, but be aware there are dangers in your home, too. You may get a…
Human Papillomavirus (HPV)
If you are having any symptoms or have any questions, please call 811 to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours a day. OVERVIEW What is human papillomavirus? Human papillomavirus (HPV) is one of the most common sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in Canada. There are over 200 types of HPV. Some types don’t cause any…
Huntington Disease
If you are having any symptoms or have any questions, please call 811 to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours a day. What is Huntington disease? Huntington disease is a rare, progressive brain disorder. It gradually kills nerve cells in the brain. This slowly deteriorates a person’s physical and mental abilities. The disease is…
Hydration – Why It’s So Important
If you are having any symptoms or have any questions, please call 811 to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours a day. Your body depends on water to survive. Every cell, tissue, and organ in your body needs water to work properly. For example, your body uses water to maintain its temperature, remove waste,…
Hypercoagulation
If you are having any symptoms or have any questions, please call 811 to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours a day. OVERVIEW What is hypercoagulation? When you get a cut, your body stops the bleeding by forming a blood clot, which is a thickened mass of blood tissue. Substances in your blood called…
Hyperhidrosis
If you are having any symptoms or have any questions, please call 811 to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours a day. OVERVIEW What is hyperhidrosis? Hyperhidrosis (say: “hy-per-hy-droh-siss”) is excessive sweating. While everyone sweats when they’re hot, exercising or feeling stress, people who have hyperhidrosis sweat heavily and sweat most of the time,…
Hyperparathyroidism
If you are having any symptoms or have any questions, please call 811 to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours a day. OVERVIEW What is hyperparathyroidism? You have 4 pea-sized glands behind the thyroid gland at the front of your neck. These glands are called parathyroids. They make a hormone called parathyroid hormone (PTH)…
Hyperthyroidism
If you are having any symptoms or have any questions, please call 811 to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours a day. OVERVIEW What is hyperthyroidism? Hyperthyroidism, or overactive thyroid disease, means your thyroid gland makes and releases too much thyroid hormone. The thyroid gland is located in the front of your neck, just…
Hypopituitarism
If you are having any symptoms or have any questions, please call 811 to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours a day. OVERVIEW What is hypopituitarism? Hypopituitarism is a disorder in which your body doesn’t make enough pituitary hormones. The pituitary gland is a small, bean-shaped gland at the base of your brain. It…