The fax machine is still the principal means of communication in Canadian health care.

In the age of AI, our health infrastructure remains firmly rooted somewhere between the 19th and 20th centuries, with a mix of paper records, facsimiles (some still using paper, others encrypted digital versions), and databases that operate in splendid isolation.

Currently, while 95 per cent of health care providers have some form of electronic records, only 29 per cent of them are able to share electronic information securely and seamlessly outside of their offices.

If a patient goes to the ER, their family doctor (if they have one) is unlikely to know; if a patient fills a prescription (or doesn’t), their specialist will be none the wiser. Many patients still carry around file folders full of paper records from appointment to appointment. Tests get repeated over and over because providers can’t find the results.

For patients, the data dysfunction is even worse. The 2025 OurCare survey found that only about one-third of patients can access information like their vaccination or medication history, and fewer than 10 per cent are able to access info on a hospital stay or ER visit.

In short, our health data is........

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