News & Stories
Read the latest news and stories in the SickKids newsroom. Looking to interview someone? Connect with our media team.
August 9, 2017
Empower Reading team at SickKids brings their program to Cree Nation communities
The Empower Reading team began working with the Cree School Board in the Cree Nation of James Bay, Quebec in January 2015. Originally a pilot project in two schools in one community, Empower has expanded to eight remote communities in the region.

August 4, 2017
This long weekend prevent burns before they happen
Charis Kelly, Nurse Practitioner in the Burns Program, share her perspective on advocating for burn prevention and safety year-round.

August 3, 2017
Canadian study identifies genetic link to cause of cerebral palsy
A Canadian study published in Genetics in Medicine today has identified a genetic link that may explain how cerebral palsy (CP) develops in-utero. New groundbreaking evidence suggests a much stronger underlying genetic link in children with hemiplegic CP than previously thought.

August 1, 2017
A SickKids patient asks to "stop the smoking"
The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) President and CEO Dr. Michael Apkon received a notable letter recently. It was from a patient named Elise who had received a pass to go outside and enjoy the fresh air. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the experience she had hoped for.

July 26, 2017
Doctors from SickKids and Mount Sinai Hospital, inserted a balloon into Sebastian’s heart, via a needle placed under ultrasound guidance through his mother’s uterus, to open up the atrial septum. It is believed that this is the first time in the world that this procedure – a Balloon Atrial Septoplasty (BAS) – has been performed before birth to treat Sebastian’s particular condition.

July 24, 2017
A centennial coin full of memories – a SickKids patient’s Canada 150+ story
Jennifer Rock woke up at SickKids on July 1, 1967, four days after her corrective urologic surgery, to a special gift from the hospital – a coin commemorating Canada’s centennial. Today, the coin is a fond reminder of her hospital stay. An estimated 336 inpatients received the coin on Canada Day.

July 21, 2017
Learn about paediatric pain with Online Paediatric Pain Curriculum
Pain is often undertreated in clinical settings and represents an underfunded area of health research in Canada. Inadequate pain assessment and management practices occur due to gaps in knowledge, pre-existing misconceptions about pain, and lack of training. The Pain Centre, in partnership with the Learning Institute at SickKids, has developed the Online Paediatric Pain Curriculum (OPPC) to address these issues.

July 20, 2017
What can worms teach us about how our body heals itself?
We sat down with Dr. Bret Pearson to learn more about how worms respond to their wounds, which can give us insight on improving our healing and how tumours or tissues that have gone into healing hyper-drive may be formed.

July 18, 2017
SickKids residents advocate for health of child refugees and newcomers
Approximately 50,000 children under 15 arrive in Canada annually. In 2009, SickKids residents founded the Paediatric Outpatient Program (POP) clinic in response to a need for paediatric consultation services for newcomer children facing barriers to health care. SickKids residents Drs. Lucy Duan, Stephanie Erdle, Laura Erdman, Alisha Jamal, and Gabrielle Salmers share their perspective on supporting child refugees and newcomers' health.

July 17, 2017
Scientists at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) have used the gene-editing tool CRISPR to correct a disease-causing mutation in mice with a form of congenital muscular dystrophy, MDC1A.

July 14, 2017
While we know that CF is caused by mutations in the CFTR gene, there are many different mutations within that gene that could be responsible for the disease, some more rare than others. Researchers at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) have been working to determine how these already-approved drugs may also benefit kids with rare CFTR mutations.

July 11, 2017
Prom-inspired event for SickKids teens was the bee’s knees
Jay Gatsby had another infamous party last Friday night, although this time it didn’t take place in West Egg, but at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) instead.