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The article reports that the Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH) is asking for feedback on its discussion paper about innovation in health technology and its value.

The relationship between the value of currency or foreign exchange between two nations has been explained by author Ian H. Giddy using four related theories, first, the purchasing power parity theory, second, the interest rate parity theory, third, the interest rate theory of exchange rate expectations, and fourth, the forward rate theory of exchange rate expectations. If these events and the relative changes of these events between two countries, the United States and Canada are related to leading economic indicators, then one can hypothesize a relationship between the relative movements of a country's leading economic indicators and the movement of the foreign exchange rates both spot and forward. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between leading economic indicators of two countries and the foreign exchange rates of these countries. The forecasting of foreign exchange rates in an efficient market has received considerable attention from both academics and practitioners as evidenced by the extensive nature of the literature discussed in this article. This paper presents an alternative approach to foreign exchange rate forecasting which has not yet become a part of the growing literature on foreign exchange forecasting. The results indicate that a model using leading economic indicators lagged for 5 periods can forecast future exchange rate movements as well as the naive martingale model.

The major concern in this paper has been to examine conflict in export manufacturer distributor relationships, and the degree of association between conflict and the stake of the manufacturer in the relationship, and the performance of the channel in question. This paper reports findings from a survey of Canadian manufacturers using an exporting arrangement to run their own overseas marketing operations. A number of factors militate against this choice, such as low sales volumes in individual markets and high start-up and running costs of overseas sales branches. The survey sample comprised nineteen Canadian manufacturing companies exporting industrial goods to Great Britain and selling through independent distributors. The study reported here is an early attempt to empirically examine behavior in export marketing channels. Whilst a good amount of channel field studies have been conducted, the focus of studies extent has almost exclusively been domestic. While channel management is universally important, the separation of most exporters and their overseas distributors makes the matter critical once goods flow across international boundaries.

The future environment is of great interest to all planners whether they be concerned with the problems of business, government or society as a whole. Forecasting the possible scenarios for the future is central to the concept of preparing an organization for reaching its stated objectives. There are many means of forecasting the future and many forecasts have been prepared however, there is a continuous need by many individuals and organizations for investigating possible alternative futures. If several forecasts are available, then plans can be pre- pared to take into account various contingencies, the forecasts can be analyzed to identify possible opportunities and each organization can make itself ready for its own journey into the future. This paper presents the results and methodology of one attempt to forecast the future by collecting and analyzing the views of managers and executives from many Canadian associations. Canada is not expected to become economically bankrupt and it is expected that improved world communications will lead to improved prospects for world peace.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a summary of two research studies which examined the differences in the attribute profiles of profitable as compared to unprofitable companies in Great Britain wool textile industry and the Canadian leather accessory industry. The attribute profiles consisted of a wide range of factors which measured managerial attitudes, organizational design, financial variables and many other attributes of the firm. The research study was confined to two individual industries to eliminate problems associated with comparing companies from separate industries having differing industry structures and market pressures. The group profiles of profitable and unprofitable companies for Great Britain wool textile industry were found to differ on 41 attributes. The appropriate non-parametric tests of statistical difference and association were used to ensure that these results were significant at the 95 percent confidence level. The profiles for the Canadian leather industry differed significantly on 43 attributes.

The article reports that the European Union and Canada have agreed to exchange confidential information about the authorization and safety of medicines. The agreement was signed between the European Commission, the European Medicines Agency (EMEA), and the Health Products and Food Branch of Health Canada. The deal is expected to accelerate access to innovative drugs and improve performance and safety of drugs. Examples of information that can be exchanged are position papers on future legislation and scientific advice on product development.

The article presents information related to International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP)congress to be held in Toronto, Ontario from August 8-12. IFIP Congress 77 and Exhibition will be held in Toronto. This meeting is sponsored by the IFIP, which represents the information processing interests of its 35 member countries throughout the world. Past congresses held in Paris, Munich, New York City and other places have been major occasions for the world-wide exchange of information processing techniques and technology. The theme of the program is the maturing profession, perspective and prospects. Three types of presentation are being planned, invited papers, relating the conference theme to broad areas of information processing, submitted papers, reporting on significant current development in information processing, panel discussion exploring the present state of the art and current trends and involving audience participation and special interest sessions formatted according to particular requirements.

Background Drug-related problems have been identified as a major contributor to emergency room visits, hospitalizations, and death. The most commonly implicated medications are nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), antiplatelets, and anticoagulants. Considering a significant proportion of these harms are preventable, indicators to identify risky prescribing before they lead to harm have been developed. Objective To examine the prevalence and patterns of potentially inappropriate prescriptions (PIPs) in a primary care population who are using high-risk medications. Setting This study was performed within two multi-disciplinary family medicine teaching clinics in Winnipeg, Canada. Method A cross-sectional electronic/paper chart audit was conducted within two multi-disciplinary family medicine teaching clinics to evaluate the prevalence of 13 evidence-based high-risk prescriptions. Patients were included if they were prescribed an oral NSAID, antiplatelet, or an anticoagulant within the 12 month period between June 2012 and June 2013. Main outcome measure The proportion of PIPs associated with an increased bleeding risk for NSAIDs, antiplatelets, and anticoagulants. Results Of the 567 patients included in the review, 198 (35 %) patients had received at least 1 PIP in the past year. The most common PIP was the use of an oral NSAID with one or more GI risk factors without adequate gastro-protection. Only 34 (6 %) of these patients received a full medication review performed by a pharmacist. Although not statistically significant, patients who received a medication review had fewer inappropriate prescriptions (27 % with review, 35 % without). Conclusion Over one-third of the patients who were using high-risk medications were using them potentially inappropriately. Although pharmacists have been shown to reduce the amount of inappropriate prescribing, very few patients using these medications were referred to the pharmacist for a full medication review. These data suggest that there is opportunity for the identification and assessment of these patients when prescribing or dispensing these high-risk medications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports that Dr. Famida Jiwa of Osteoporosis Canada commends the decision of several provinces in Canada to include zoledronic acid (Aclasta) in their private and public drugs plans.

The article reports on the advisories issued by Sanofi-Aventis Canada and Bristol Myers Squibb Canada, along with Health Canada, to healthcare professionals and the public regarding the potential interaction between clopidogrel and proton pump inhibitors. The move comes following the release of a study which suggests a possible interaction that may reduce the effects of clopidogrel. Healthcare professionals have been warned to be aware of a possible adverse events, while patients are advised to continue treatment with Plavix.

The article reveals the plan of Health Canada to update labelling for tumour necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors. The move was due to increased risk of cancer in children and young adults. The labelling will be updated to highlight the risk of specific cancers and other new safety information based on reviews conducted by Health Canada.

The article reports that a Health Canada-endorsed letter has been issued by Ferring Pharmaceuticals, advising that all intranasal desmopressin formulations are no longer indicated for the treatment of primary nocturnal enuresis (PNE) because of increased risk of hyponatraemia. Ferring has advised healthcare professionals to only prescribe an oral formulation to new patients treated for PNE. Desmopressin formulations include DDAVP spray and DDAVP Rhinyle Solution.

This section offers health regulatory and healthcare news briefs. "Visiongain" predicts that the value of India's medical device market will increase to 11 U.S. billion dollars by 2023 from 3 billion U.S. dollars in 2011. The Canadian Diabetes Association (CDA) released a report recommending the improvement of Canada's drug review process to promote greater drug access. New Zealand's Pharmaceutical Management Agency (PHARMAC) approved funding of two HIV combination therapies.

This section offers news briefs on the pharmaceutical industry. Merck Serono has warned healthcare professionals in Ireland to take risk minimization measures to avoid accidental overdose when switching patients between Siazen formulations. Companies were requested by Health Canada to add risk statements, specially the risk of metaemoglobinaemia, to the labeling of their benzociane-containing products. About 250,000 valid case report was entered by the Australian TGA to its internal database.

This section offers news briefs on issues related to pharmacovigilance. Neurogen Corp. has suspended a clinical trial investigating the treatment of insomnia with a bilayer tablet formulation of adipiplon due to a higher rate of unwanted next day effects. The Canadian government is planning to invest to the establishment of the Drug Safety and Effectiveness network. The British Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has revised the European Pharmacopoeia monographs for heparin preparations.

This section offers news briefs about drug safety. The Finnish National Agency for Medicines has received 84 reports of complications arising from dental local anaesthetics, such as those containing articaine and epinephrine. Intake of bivalirudin without subsequent maintenance dose could lead to increased incidence of major adverse cardiac events. Health Canada banned Wild Vineyard products.

The article presents updates on biopharmaceuticals. Health Canada has reminded hospitals that Anzemet is contraindicated in patients 18 years old and below and in the prevention and treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting in adults. French medicine regulator Afssaps has warned prescribers about the potential non-Hodgkin's lymphoma risk with off-label infliximab. Health Canada has advised women not to use ACE inhibitors during pregnancy due to the risk of birth defects.

The article reports that the European Union and Canada has entered into an agreement to exchange drug safety information. The agreement will allow earlier access to information, thereby strengthening public health protection in both regions. Confidential information such as regulatory guidance and scientific advice will be included in the exchanges. The agreement is expected to accelerate patients' access to innovative drugs.

The article reports on a public communication issued by Hoffmann-La Roche Canada, advising healthcare professionals of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) following off-label use of rituximab in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and vasculitis. The company said that two deaths from PML have been reported in patients with long-standing SLE treated with rituximab.

The article reveals that there have been reports of visual disorders associated with the use of Cialis, Levitra and Viagra that are manufactured by Eli Lilly Canada Inc., Bayer Health Care and Pfizer Canada Inc. According to the companies, there have been rare cases of blindness, including Nonarteritic Anterior Ischaemic Optic Neuropathy, reported post-marketing in temporal association with phosphodiesterase V inhibitor use.

Reports that Apotex Inc. has updated the Canadian Apo-Mefloquine Patient Information Leaflet in February 2005. Objective of the initiative; Purpose of the public advisory and letter issued by Apotex; Reminder on the use of Apo-Mefloquine.

Reports on the adverse reactions to telithromycin in Japan and Canada. Estimated number of patients in Japan who have taken the drug since it became available in December 2003; Advice of the drug's manufacturers on doctors about the possibility of syncope as side effect; Information on suspected interactions between telithromycin and anticoagulants in Canada.