We Canadians love “free” universal health care, till delay times and access problems become, compared to the US, ridiculous. When services are rationed, the definition of “need” and “urgency” shifts.
More serious conditions do get attention faster — yes, the “triage” concept has arrived in Canada. Even still, you can die of appendicitis in the Emergency room in this country, while waiting 20 hours to be first seen.
Trade offs in both systems.
Another fact, never mentioned in the debate: those who work in publicly funded health care are government employees, and boy, one thing our countries have in common is you sure know it when you’re being treated to the service of a government employee. Would it kill these people to offer just a minimal degree of basic human courtesy?
Perhaps a better question, is this attitude killing patients? The rude, brusque, “I don’t really give a darn” attitude among public sector health employees is epidemic, and I suggest it affects quality of care.
Bottom line, for me, I work in Mental health — a truly two tier system in Canada. I work in both sides of the system. If the public “free for service” system were truly satisfactory, I wouldn’t have any private practice at all.
Some days, though, I’d rather enter the witness relocation program and take up snow farming.
We Canadians love “free” universal health care, till delay times and access problems become, compared to the US, ridiculous. When services are rationed, the definition of “need” and “urgency” shifts.
More serious conditions do get attention faster — yes, the “triage” concept has arrived in Canada. Even still, you can die of appendicitis in the Emergency room in this country, while waiting 20 hours to be first seen.
Trade offs in both systems.
Another fact, never mentioned in the debate: those who work in publicly funded health care are government employees, and boy, one thing our countries have in common is you sure know it when you’re being treated to the service of a government employee. Would it kill these people to offer just a minimal degree of basic human courtesy?
Perhaps a better question, is this attitude killing patients? The rude, brusque, “I don’t really give a darn” attitude among public sector health employees is epidemic, and I suggest it affects quality of care.
Bottom line, for me, I work in Mental health — a truly two tier system in Canada. I work in both sides of the system. If the public “free for service” system were truly satisfactory, I wouldn’t have any private practice at all.
Some days, though, I’d rather enter the witness relocation program and take up snow farming.