• Next Webinar: Getting a Diagnosis of Arthritis
• What have we been up to?
• Get Involved!
• Useful Resources

Next Webinar:
Getting a Diagnosis of Arthritis

What have we been up to?

CAPA is making sure the voices of people living with arthritis are heard. We’ve shared patient perspectives about the pan-Canadian Pharmaceutical Pricing Alliance consultation on negotiation pathways and provided patient input submissions to L’Institut national d’excellence en santé et en services sociaux (INESSS) and Canada’s Drug Agency (CDA) for a new medication for Polymyalgia rheumatica.

Frustrated with using the 1 to 10 pain scale in conversations with your healthcare providers? These frustrations led CAPA President Linda Wilhelm and Charmaine Jones of Dragon Claw to develop a new chronic pain assessment tool called My Pain Assessment & Communication Tool (MPaCT). Learn more about the tool on the CAPA website or in this Toronto Star digital campaign! 

We have been busy in October bringing together over 30 people representing lived experience, designers, engineers, occupational therapists, and researchers, to set priorities and an action plan for living independently with arthritis. Over half of the participants in these workshops live with various forms of arthritis. We will be sharing more in 2026, but learn more about the team guiding the project for more information! 

On October 15th, we held a patient partner webinar to support patient partners and advisors in their work in research and policy making. The Patient Room was an informal lunchtime chat with Linda Wilhelm and Therese Lane. If you missed it, you can access the recording and infographic with key take-aways below and on our website! 

Get Involved

Do you live with polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR)? Together with the Vasculitis Foundation and Arthritis Society, we are putting together a drug policy submission for a new medication (sarilumab) to treat PMR. Please consider sharing your experiences by completing the survey. 

Skin symptoms are a common part of many rheumatic diseases, like psoriasis and lupus, yet they’re often overlooked in care. Join the next Breaking Barriers Workshop hosted by the Canadian Skin Patient Alliance to learn how skin and joint health are connected, discover practical ways to manage symptoms, and hear lived experiences from people who understand.

Learn more and considering registering for this workshop. 

Useful Resources

Staying active with arthritis isn’t always easy—but movement is one of the best ways to manage pain, protect your joints, and boost your mood. You can move on your own at home by referring to this virtual physical activity session and gentle yoga session which you can follow along at your own pace.

Plus, don’t miss Carole Reece, who will bring us through another live session at our upcoming webinar and Annual General Meeting!

Need a customized assistive device, but not sure how to get one? Check out this blog post by Makers Making Change where they explain some affordable tools and ways to make every day tasks easier with arthritis along for the ride. 

Member spotlight

Our Managing Director, Laurie Proulx, lives with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis, a condition that has shaped many parts of her life—including pregnancy. She was recently featured in a video for the Healthy Pregnancy Hub at the Université de Montréal, where she discusses making decisions about medications during pregnancy and the need for more research in this area.

Watch the video to learn more.