A non-surgical procedure at the Royal Alexandra Hospital is the latest local innovation in weight loss, though another looks likely to follow. Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty is a method of stitching the stomach from the inside, with tiny tools inserted via a tube down the throat. While it is performed under general anaesthesia, it's much less invasive than other kinds of bariatric surgery and usually takes about an hour and a half. "Rather than having a complex surgery requiring extensive recovery, patients have access to technology that requires no cuts or incisions that allows them to go home the same or next day," upper gastrointestinal and bariatric surgeon Noah Switzer said in a release. The procedure is covered by Alberta Health Services upon referral.
Edmonton is home to Obesity Canada, which has successfully advocated for greater understanding of and empathy for the condition. Plus, Arya Sharma and Raj Padwal developed the Edmonton Obesity Staging System at the University of Alberta, taking a more nuanced approach to diagnosing obesity than the Body Mass Index method. In 2025, Alberta became the first province to recognize obesity as a chronic disease. That was progress, but there's still room for action, Tasneem Sajwani of the Edmonton Weight Management Centre said in a sponsored piece marking the one-year anniversary: "The hope is that having a declaration that obesity is a chronic disease will seep into policy-making decisions and research funding," she said. "We hope it will help bring this knowledge into medical schools, maybe even into public campaigns, to really change the conversation, not only here in Alberta but across Canada."
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Northernmost is raising a Series A investment round to further develop its new kidney transport device. Founder and CEO Ron Mills worked on the machine-perfusion device preferred by United States health providers today, and said the world needs an upgrade. "Nobody's really done anything in 27 years," Mills told Taproot. "That's too long for something so good to not have a next act. My unfinished business — if I'm angry about anything — is that we're still using so much static cold storage, those ice coolers, for kidney transport."
RUNWITHIT Synthetics has soft-launched the Synthetic Waterloo Intelligent Futures Technology Hub at the University of Waterloo, using RWI tech to help deepen research insights. It is led by Dillon Browne, a Canada Research Chair in child and family clinical psychology. "(This hub ensures) that the best ideas, research and knowledge can be seen by many, that the relationship between ideas converging across disciplines and generations is visible and tangible, and that the resultant sharing translates directly into beneficial impact for many communities and future generations," CEO Myrna Bittner said in an announcement.
The Advancing Healthcare Through Simulation podcast went behind the scenes of a large-scale mass casualty simulation hosted by NAIT's Centre for Advanced Medical Simulation. The event brought together more than 115 students from multiple health disciplines across Alberta for a building collapse scenario.
Health Cities is seeking expressions of interest from technology vendors who can support Alternate Level of Care residents with complex mental health, addiction, and behavioural needs. Selected solutions will be piloted in a facility of up to 30 beds, with the potential to expand across Alberta.
Folio spoke to media lecturer Mackenzie Common on whether social media has arrived at its "Big Tobacco moment" in light of recent verdicts against Meta and YouTube. "Maybe young people shouldn't be accessing social media," Common said, noting that more data is needed before deciding on the best approach. "It's not just that the ban protects them from sex offenders, cyberbullying and other kinds of abuse. There's also concern about how children are spending huge amounts of time on their phones, without a chance to grow and develop as people offline." The piece also cites University of Alberta business professor Noah Castelo, who found that a 14-day digital detox improved sustained attention, mental health, and/or well-being in more than 90% of participants.
Mindbuffs psychologist Mat de Moissac explored misconceptions about burnout on the Life Shouldn't Hurt podcast. He argued that exhaustion arises from a disconnect between time invested and the fulfillment received, rather than simply from working too many hours.
Quest PharmaTech, a publicly traded company that is working on cancer therapies, announced it will now file financial reports twice a year instead of quarterly, using a new regulatory exemption meant to cut reporting costs for smaller public companies in Canada. CEO Madi Madiyalakan said the move will allow the company to "focus its efforts on creating shareholder value."
The Social Impact Innovation Hub is gathering technology builders for a monthly Tech for Good Alliance event, with the inaugural session set for June 24 at Arcadia Brewing. Founder Michelle Frechette described the hub's work as three-pronged: finding a physical space for social-good organizations, running a Tech for Good Alliance to work on solving problems, and hosting In The Loop networking events for social innovators.
The City of Edmonton and the Edmonton Community Foundation launched the $2 million Faith Lands Affordable Housing Incentive to support faith-based charities in exploring affordable housing developments on their properties. The initiative offers up to $135,000 for pre-construction work such as feasibility studies. Supported partly by $1 million from the federal Housing Accelerator Fund, this program aims to ease financial risks and unlock new housing opportunities. With about 9,000 religious buildings potentially closing this decade, the initiative is designed to preserve community spaces and address Edmonton's future need for nearly 39,700 affordable rental units by 2031.
IslamicFamily is seeking a real estate lawyer for its first affordable housing project, a development worth more than $30 million that aims to create more than 200 new bedrooms. The project draws on federal and provincial grants alongside what the organization describes as Canada's first institutional-quality Shariah-compliant housing investment fund.
More than 1,100 people are living in insecure housing situations in Parkland County, Spruce Grove, and Stony Plain, according to a new report. Women were four times more likely to be housing insecure than men, and nearly all Indigenous respondents identified as housing insecure.
Chris Tse has joined Free Play for Kids as vice-president of innovation, saying his goal is to free up the organization's 150 staff from administrative tasks so they can focus on children. Free Play for Kids uses sport to deliver social-emotional learning for families.
Volunteers have repainted the Pride crosswalk at St. Albert Place. Kevin Malinowski, the organizer on behalf of the St. Albert Rotary Club, said increased hostility shows that these symbols are still needed.
The City of Leduc invites residents to participate in the Sincerely, Leduc letter-writing initiative, an anonymous program that encourages community members to write notes to seniors to help them feel connected and valued.
The family of 33-year-old Travis Smith is seeking answers after he died in the Royal Alexandra Hospital emergency room waiting area on May 8. Alberta Health Services confirmed that a quality assurance review is underway, but it did not disclose details due to privacy laws. The family learned from police that paramedics administered naloxone to Smith before he died. The case has fuelled an ongoing debate about emergency room conditions in Alberta.
Alberta saw a net decrease of 16 physician registrations in the first quarter of 2026, with 339 new registrations offset by 355 cancellations, including 93 retirements, according to the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta. There were 12,992 registered physicians at the end of March — a physician-to-population ratio representing the best first-quarter result recorded since at least 2016.
Alberta began implementing a new funding model for some surgeries in 12 public hospitals, paying operators based on the number and type of procedures performed rather than through block funding. The model currently applies to knee, hip, and cataract surgeries as well as shoulder repairs. The province has committed more than $800 million to expand surgical capacity alongside the change. NDP hospitals critic Sarah Hoffman said this does not address Albertans' concerns. "If this government truly wanted to fix health care, it would invest in public surgical capacity, address bottlenecks across the system, and work with patients, providers and communities on real solutions," she said.
Thousands joined rallies across Alberta organized by the Alberta Federation of Labour to push back against the provincial government's policies, covering healthcare, coal mining in the Rockies, separatism, and worker rights. AFL president Gil McGowan told the Edmonton crowd: "Why are we protesting? Because it's our democratic right and our democratic duty."
An Alberta judge cited podcasters David Wallace and James Di Fiore for criminal contempt, accusing them of a campaign to "humiliate and demonize" former Alberta Health Services CEO Athana Mentzelopoulos. This was intended to discourage her wrongful dismissal lawsuit against the government. Court of King's Bench Justice Michael Lema described their actions as deliberate interference and approved a restraining order against them, mandating the removal of their videos. These actions also extended to the alleged intimidation of ex-AHS board member Sandy Edmonstone.
The Alberta government slashed $1 million in funding for rural women's shelters, affecting services for abused women in a dozen communities. Cat Champagne, executive director of the Alberta Council of Women's Shelters, said the "cuts are a shock" and will have "devastating consequences." Statistics show rural communities experience higher rates and severity of domestic violence.
St. Albert's domestic violence statistics have risen 27% since 2022. There was a slight decrease last year, but police told city council the numbers don't tell the full story of the challenge. "We know that it is always underreported, so … a decrease doesn't immediately trigger some feeling of 'Well, there's a win,' or anything to that effect," said St. Albert RCMP Staff Sgt. Andrew Hobson.
This roundup was sponsored by Applied Pharmaceutical Innovation.
API is one of Canada's largest not-for-profit life sciences commercialization organizations. We catalyze growth in the life sciences sector by addressing key challenges that hold companies and innovators back.
