OT - Canadian HealthCare System

[damo]

I wonder how the Alberta health care system differs from the Ontario system? It seems to be having a lot more problems.

 

[2forMe]

Interesting you brought that up. Just this week the Calgary Health Region announced they were going to select 100 people who meet their qualifications to have gastric bypass surgery and nutritional counselling and all costs would be covered. They feel it is an investment in the long run.
The biggest abuse of the system I see is people who are in emergency for non emergency reasons and people who are in emergency because they do not have a family doctor and believe for some reason they will recieve quicker service by going to emerg. than to a walk in clinic.

It is not gastric bypass surgery but lap-band surgery.. less in vasive and less costly and less permanent than gastric bypass. Also this procedure is covered by some provinces but not others.

 

[Think I'm Tink]

I think we need a combo system - at least we do here in Manitoba. Our healthcare works just fine if you have bronchitis and require penicillin, or a wart to burn off, or a sprained ankle, and if you don't mind laying on a bed in the hallway of a hospital during flu season. However unless something drastically changes here, I have already vowed that should I ever find a lump in my breast or any other more serious medical situation, I will sell everything I own and head straight for the States. I don't like the idea of possibly cancerous cells growing and multiplying within my body for weeks and weeks before I can even have a biopsy performed. And then waiting more weeks for treatment. Being really sick here in Manitoba is a major fear of mine because there are too many instances of overworked staff trying to do their best in a system that is top heavy in management and is abused by Joe Q Public. I guess what I'm saying is that I'm already planning for a universal health care system supplemented by a private system, should that situation ever arise in my family, regardless.

 

[Camilo]

I come from Brazil, a country that has both public and private health care.
30+ years ago, there was only public health care there. It wasn't great, but it worked once it was the only one available.

Since they introduced the private health care, the public one has been destroyed.

In other words, if you have money to pay for private doctors, great for you, if not, good luck, you will need it.

Please don't change the one in Canada, I love it even with the problems we have.....