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CMAJ Today!

Health Canada ready for Y2K

Date: July 22, 1999
Time: 9:44 am

Health Canada has contacted more than 2000 manufacturers of medical devices and so far has found that no life-sustaining device will cease to function when the clock strikes midnight on Dec. 31.

A Health Canada spokesman told eCMAJ Today that more than 95% of manufacturers of life-sustaining devices, such as pacemakers and defibrillators, have responded to Health Canada's request for information on Y2K compliance. No instrument in this category -- dubbed class-4 devices -- will cease to function because of the inability to recognize the year 2000. A handful of devices in this group could experience minor glitches, such as printing the wrong date, but none will pose a significant hazard and manual overrides will allow for easy correction.

In addition to the high response rate from manufacturers of class-4 devices, Health Canada has received responses from 92% of all class-3 device manufacturers (diagnostic equipment such as mammography machines) and 57% of all class-2 devices (dental equipment and invasive medical equipment such as sigmoidoscopes). Just 30% of manufacturers of class-1 devices have responded, but Health Canada says most of these are not considered date-sensitive products.

Health Canada also announced yesterday that all of its essential services have been tested and deemed Y2K ready. "I am pleased with what Health Canada has achieved in addressing this unique challenge," said Health Minister Allan Rock. "Health Canada's government-wide, mission-critical systems are 100% ready."

Health Canada has 15 mission-critical computer systems that support essential services like the collection and analysis of disease surveillance information and public health data. These services also include the provision of community health services to First Nations and Inuit people living on reserves. Facilities that have been tested include 14 Health Protection Branch laboratories, 4 First Nations hospitals, 76 nursing stations, 419 health care facilities and 36 treatment centres.

For more information on Health Canada activities concerning Y2K, consult the Year 2000 and Your Health Web site. It includes information on products regulated by Health Canada and the Y2K medical-devices database.

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