Improvements are required in Nova Scotia with regard to diagnosis, treatment and awareness of all tick-borne diseases, as well as the different ticks that can be carrying disease. As you may know, Nova Scotia has the highest incidence rate of Lyme in Canada and one of the highest in North America. Unfortunately, knowledge is still lacking within the medical community and many residents. 

The fact that ticks in Nova Scotia have been found to carry more than Lyme and that all ticks that bite people or pets can potentially transmit disease(s) is not well known. It's not just black-legged ticks and it's not just Lyme.

As well, many people are unaware that the erythema migrans (EM) Lyme rash looks like a bull's-eye in only a small percentage of cases. Other types of EM rashes are actually more common. It is also not generally known that the present testing for Lyme is not 100% accurate. A negative test does not necessarily mean you do not have Lyme, or another tick-borne disease. 

Preventative measures are not being taken seriously and most medical professionals lack the appropriate training to adequately diagnose all stages and types of tick-borne diseases. 

In an effort to improve awareness and ensure that those bitten are quickly diagnosed, and adequately treated, the NS Lyme Advocacy has prepared a petition for submission to the NS Legislature during the fall sitting. Unfortunately, however, the NS Legislature does not permit electronic petitions. All petitions must bear original signatures of Nova Scotians and each page must include the full wording of the request for action.

Our petition is quite wordy so only five signatures are possible on each page. This will hopefully result in a large stack of pages being provided to the NS Legislature during their Fall sitting.

Although the requirement for original signatures does make it harder to obtain a large number of names, it is doable if we have a lot of help. People can go door to door; ask local businesses to have one available for signing; attend local markets/events; or just get friends and family to sign.

If located in Nova Scotia and interested in helping to obtain signatures you can contact Donna Lugar at donna.lugar@outlook.com and the petition will be emailed to you to be printed off and photocopied. 

If you want to sign this petition as well, please consider including a comment on why you are signing. That additional information, which we don't have on the paper version, will be invaluable.

For your information, the following is the wording:

We, the undersigned residents of Nova Scotia, hereby petition the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly to act upon our concerns with regard to tick-borne infections in this province.

WE ASK THAT THE GOVERNMENT:

COMPLETE the three ASKS of the NS Lyme Disease Advocacy Group as presented to the PC Caucus in February of 2022. The three ASKS were:

 - Adequate Education for all health care providers and residents.

 - Development of a Dedicated Tick-Borne Diseases Care Clinic.

 - Formation of a Non-Partisan Task Force, including those with lived experience.

2. UNDERTAKE a YEAR ROUND awareness campaign, such that ALL Nova Scotians, and visitors to the province, are informed about ticks, what diseases/infections they can carry, how to prevent being bitten, how to properly remove, how to landscape to prevent, how to get diagnosed/treated, that a negative ELISA does not mean that you do not have Lyme disease or another tick-borne disease, etc.

3. INCLUDE in the “Guidance for Primary Care and Emergency Medicine Providers in the Management of Lyme Disease, Human Granulocytic Anaplasmosis, Babesiosis and Powassan virus infection in Nova Scotia”, the following disclaimer contained in the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) Lyme Guidelines, which the NS Infectious Diseases Expert Group recommends for treatment: “It is important to realize that guidelines cannot always account for individual variation among patients. They are assessments of current scientific and clinical information provided as an educational service; are not continually updated and may not reflect the most recent evidence (new evidence may emerge between the time information is developed and when it is published or read); should not be considered inclusive of all proper treatments methods of care, or as a statement of the standard of care; do not mandate any particular course of medical care; and are not intended to supplant physician judgment with respect to particular patients or special clinical situations. Whether and the extent to which to follow guidelines is voluntary, with the ultimate determination regarding their application to be made by the physician in the light of each patient’s individual circumstances.”

If you are unable to help obtain signatures, please consider signing this petition and/or sharing this info.