Nova Scotia, New Brunswick receive ‘D’ grade in arthritis report card

Arthritis Society Canada speaks about their new report card, and their action plan for eliminating the painful disease.

The Arthritis Society of Canada recently released a report card on the state of the disease in Canada, and it revealed some startling statistics.

More than six million Canadians live with arthritis – more than those living with diabetes, heart disease, cancer, stroke, and dementia combined.

The society’s report card says the Atlantic provinces have some of the highest rates of arthritis, but have some of the lowest scores.

New Brunswick and Nova Scotia both scored a D, while Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador scored an F.

Nova Scotia woman Jenna Kedy lives with a rare form of arthritis. She was diagnosed when she was 11 years old, even though she had symptoms since she was a baby.

She says it can be challenging to get a diagnosis and access support and services.

“I’d say it affected most parts of my life, I’ve been able to get through with a lot of supports, especially from the arthritis society, having camps and workshops and being there for me through this journey, I wouldn’t be able to do it without them. It’s been quite the up-and-down rollercoaster,” she told Your Morning Atlantic’s Crystal Garrett.

While Kedy hasn’t let arthritis stop her from living her life, and becoming a national-level cheerleader, even getting out of bed can be difficult.

“It takes a lot of coping strategies and skills, I have to go get an infusion every six weeks and when I started getting that in high school it was a little easier to manage, but now that I’m working full time and I’m in university, it’s really hard to schedule those infusions because the clinics aren’t open in the evenings, so even that struggle has been really hard,” she said.

The Arthritis Society of Canada has also recently released its plan to end the painful condition in the country.

President and CEO Trish Barbato especially wants people in pain to know about access to resources like rheumatologists and orthopedic surgeons.

“People don’t know that joint replacements are primarily caused by arthritis. People say, ‘Oh I have a bad knee, I have a bad hip.’ It’s like no, you have a disease that has progressed so much you now need a whole joint replaced. And so all of those areas are areas for improvement,” she said.

“I think about productivity and the economic opportunity of getting people back to work and helping them function at work with arthritis. I think this is an opportunity for the Atlantic region.”

Kedy says an arthritis-free Canada would be “incredible.”

“I just want people with arthritis to know you’re going to be OK, but I just really hope that there’s better supports to set them up for success and that young kids don’t need to wait 11 years anymore and they’re able to be set up at a young age because the younger the diagnosis the easier it is to get support long-term.”

A big fundraiser for the Arthritis Society is coming up on April 25, featuring CTV’s own Steve Murphy.

The 32^nd East Coast Roast will raise funds for arthritis research and programs like Camp JoinTogether, which gives kids with arthritis a chance to go to camp for free.