Kids are waiting too long for surgery

Plus, anger over a Ukraine soldier at Parliament and the Canadian market for stolen cars [The Star] First Up [By Kevin Jiang] By Kevin Jiang Good morning. Here’s the latest on Canada’s child surgery backlog, backlash after MPs honour a man who fought for the Nazis and Peter Nygard’s sex assault trial. DON’T MISS Dreamstime Photo health [Surgical backlogs are forcing thousands of kids to wait beyond a medically safe window]( As children’s hospitals struggle to clear out growing surgical catalogs, our kids — and the nation’s health-care system as a whole — are paying for it. A new report found four in 10 surgeries for kids with scoliosis (an abnormal curvature in the spine) were completed outside the medically recommended window. This, alongside other delayed procedures, threaten the children’s long-term health, increasing the risk of chronic pain or missed developmental milestones, Megan Ogilvie reports. An expert says kids are now waiting longer than many adults for essential health services — [here’s what that means for your family](. - More: In the long run, these surgical delays could cost Canada tens of millions of dollars, as doctors contend with medical complications that could have been avoided with timely surgeries, according to the report. - Armine Yalnizyan’s take: One patient is often waiting for one doctor at a time — but Canadian trials have shown another model would dramatically improve wait times. [Why doesn’t Canada’s health care system have a centralized wait list?]( Canadian Press/Patrick Doyle ukraine [Jewish groups are angry after Parliament gave a standing ovation to Ukrainian who fought for the Nazis]( Jewish advocacy organizations are demanding an apology after Yaroslav Hunka, a Ukrainian nationalist who fought with the Nazis, was given a standing ovation during Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s speech to Parliament Friday. Hunka was invited to the event by House Speaker Anthony Rota and was introduced as a “Ukrainian hero and a Canadian hero” who “fought for Ukrainian independence against the Russians.” Hunka was a member of the First Ukrainian Division — previously called the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS — which one Jewish group said was “responsible for the mass murder of innocent civilians with a level of brutality and malice that is unimaginable.” [Here’s more on the invitation and the backlash](. - Word from the House Speaker: Rota posted a statement on social media late Sunday offering his “deepest apologies to Jewish communities in Canada and around the world.” He added that Hunka was from his riding: [“This initiative was entirely my own.”]( - Go deeper: In his Canadian tour Friday, Zelenskyy pulled on Canada’s historic heartstrings by urging the nation to stay on the right side of history, as it has in the past. [Here are five key highlights from his visit](. Canadian Press/Alexandra Newbould courts [Once the “playboy” of Canadian fashion, Peter Nygard’s sexual assault trial begins tomorrow]( There was a time when Peter Nygard was hailed as a millionaire fashion mogul, Jacques Gallant writes — he was revered as the six-foot-three, permanently tanned founder of the nation’s largest producer of womenswear. Those days are long gone. The pale, 82-year-old man now sits in court facing allegations of sexual misconduct going back to the 1980’s. Represented in part by Brian Greenspan, one of Canada’s top criminal defence lawyers, Nygard will go before a jury tomorrow for the start of his seven-week trial. The complainants are five women whose identities are protected by a publication ban. [Catch up on the details before the trial](. - More: Last week, [Nygard pleaded not guilty to five counts of sexual assault and one count of forcible confinement](. - Context: [Nygard was first arrested in Winnipeg in 2020]( after being accused of abusing his position to lure and sexually assault dozens of women and girls. He has denied all the allegations against him. WHAT ELSE As Ontario Legislature resumes, [opposition parties say Greenbelt questions still linger](. [Ottawa is expected to suspend its urban park study]( after Doug Ford’s Greenbelt reversal. After Canadian assassination allegations, [India comes to the UN with a mess on its hands](. [Israeli airstrikes hit Gaza for the third day in a row]( as West Bank violence intensifies. A tentative deal has been reached to [end the Hollywood writers strike](. Unifor autoworkers have [ratified their deal with Ford Canada](. Ahead of National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, [here are seven Indigenous organizations you should know](. “You get what you believe.” [Jully Black championed Black talent and won the Icon Award at the Legacy Awards](. Roughly half of stolen vehicles are resold to unsuspecting buyers in Canada. [Here’s how to protect your car](. What’s the Blue Jays’ magic number to clinch a wild-card berth? [Here’s the latest update after Sunday’s games](. [Passengers were stuck upside-down for about 30 minutes]( on a Canada’s Wonderland ride. Need to craft an updated resume? [ChatGPT can help — here’s how](. GET THIS Nathan Pilla/Toronto Star Graphic [The summer of 2023 was frighteningly hot around the world — but not in Toronto. What’s going on?]( CLOSE-UP Ozan Kose/AFP via Getty Images LIBYA: A man inspects a mud-smeared room in Libya’s eastern city of Soussa on Friday, in the aftermath of flash floods that killed thousands across the country. Thank you for reading. You can reach me and the First Up team at [firstup@thestar.ca](mailto:firstup@thestar.ca?source=newsletter&utm_source=ts_nl&utm_medium=emailutm_email=6C53B63A8E3FAD70AD4EF13004527437&utm_campaign=frst_200057). I’ll see you back here tomorrow. If you're not enjoying these emails, please tell us how we can make them better by emailing newsletterfeedback@thestar.ca. Or, if you'd prefer, you can unsubscribe from this newsletter by clicking the first link below. [Unsubscribe From This Newsletter]( [Sign Up for More Newsletters and Email Alerts]( [View in Browser]( Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. 8 Spadina Avenue, 10th Floor, Toronto, ON M5V 0S8. 416-367-2000 [PRIVACY POLICY](