“It’s hard to be physically healthy if our souls are hurting.” For Jane Philpott, spirituality plays a role in fixing the health care crisis

To fix the Canadian health care crisis, Jane Philpott believes attention must be paid to not only to the roles of health care professionals and politicians, but also to the spiritual side of well-being. 

Philpott, who served as a federal health minister from 2015-2017, includes that idea in her new book Health for All: A Doctor’s Prescription for a Healthier Canada (Penguin Random House Canada, 2024). 

For Philpott, spirituality — which she defines as having hope, belonging, meaning and purpose — also plays an important role in health care. 

“It’s about having a whole person view of health,” she said. “It’s hard to be physically healthy if our souls are hurting.” 

Read my interview with Philpott in the Free Press.

 

Photo by Justin Tang, Canadian Press.