selhurstpark

Not quite sure if this should be in 'The Maple Leaf' anyhoo...

I just wanted to let people know that I injured my arm a few weeks ago and needed surgery. Stupid injury, no sympathy required.
Long story short, the care I received was excellent. From ripping a bicep on the Friday night to having surgery early on the Sunday afternoon (!) the people I saw could not have been better.
All this on OHIP too! It's something that Canadians should protect and cherish.
So if anyone here is thinking about coming to Canada, specifically Ontario, and is worried about the medical side, don't be.
Obviously there are horror stories, but for me the experiece was great.

Mad Jockette

Nice to hear a positive story about health care.

Hoping you are recovering well.

curleytops

Yes, you're quite right, there ARE horror stories. Glad to hear your experience was positive.

Atlantic Xpat

A caveat to add that healthcare is delivered provincially. So your positive experiences with OHIP & indeed the hospital you were a patient of, don't neccessarily mean that people in other provinces are going to have the same experience.

That being said through similarly doing something stupid and requiring rural ER care, birth of two kids, a near death experience for my wife and, unfortunately, ongoing care for the youngest of my kids, the healthcare services in Newfoundland & specifically at the Health Sciences/Janeway hospitals has been outstanding. Beauracratic, dis-connected and occasionally frustrating, but generally outstanding.

Jani123

Hope you recover soon.

Zoe Bell

In Toronto ( I stress the city not the province because I suspect the experience in a major city would differ greatly from that in the north of the province) I too had a generally positive experience of the hospital system with one major ( to me) exception.

On the positive side I literally got an ultrasound appointment for 20 minutes later once I called, I eventually ended up with a fantastic surgeon who obviously did a great job on my keyhole surgery (two of the scars have completely gone already).
The anaesthetist was awesome and listened to my concerns about previous family reactions to GA. I was in zero pain when I woke up. The nursing staff were great. I was cared for by registered nurses, whereas in the UK they all seemed to be "health care practitioners". I think I went the entire stay without seeing an RN.

I don't regard the waiting times as excessive either, probably about 4 months from the surgeon deciding I need the op to actually having it done.
This was all done at Mt Sinai

On the negative , I will never willingly set foot in St Michael's again and almost blew a gasket when they had the nerve to send me a letter asking for a donation.

iaink

Heres wishing you a swift recovery

Worth pointing out that unlike the NHS, OHIP pays only for the building and personnel, virtually all the equipment in Ontario hospitals is paid for via local fundraising, not by the province, so its important to put your hand in your pocket once in a while to support that!

In this respect smaller communities can have a hard time keeping up with the big city hospitals, and certainly in Belleville the community has a couple of wealthy benefactors whose generosity we should be very grateful for.

Zoe Bell

Thanks but I'm good now. Had surgery back in March, never felt better in my life .

Am raring to go !! Hence the mad crazy flying stuff, too much energy

I'm happy to support local hospitals but I think I've mentioned before that I was refused treatment at a certain hospital for reasons that don't sit too well with me. Although I was eventually referred to Mt Sinai , the messing around probably added a good 4 or 5 months onto my whole timeline

Souvy

To add to this/slightly hijack it, I'm rather impressed by the NHS today.

I had a call from my bro in the UK just now. My 90-year old mum had a heart attack at lunchtime. She lives in a seniors complex (in her own apartment). There are panic alarms everywhere.

She's an ex nurse and knew something was wrong. She hit the alarm. The house manager was there in seconds and did the necessary. The surgeon and other staff were prepped and waiting for her. When my bro called me at 5.30, she'd already had the op (stent). She should be out in a few days.

I'm very thankful for an NHS that can respond like that. I'm even more thankful for those panic buttons. They trigger a 2-way communications system (I've never worked out where the receivers/transmitters are) and the guy at the other end can just take over, including control over your doors.

I'm hoping things don't come in 3's.

Just after than phonecall, I went out to pick up the mail and fell victim to the ice. My back will be a picture in the morning and the back of my head is flatter than it used to be (it makes an interesting noise when it connects with the ground).

I could do without anything else happening today.

Zoe Bell

Ouch, sorry to hear about your mishap

I agree about the NHS thing , My Dad has had amazing care from them during the course of his illness.

Someone on another forum postedthe following " I can't help wondering if there are two NHS', the one that keeps getting villified on the news and the one I've actually experienced"

I tend to agree

ArthurBrit

I find that the people that do complain about healthcare are typically people with problems not emergencies. Distinct difference between the two.

If you have a genuine emergency the NHS in wonderful (as I am sure canadian healthcare is).

If you need a knee replacement you're in for a long wait.

I've no problems with the system - rational head and all that.

bats

There's no need to see an RN when you are being looked after by an ODP. Operating Department Practitioner. That is what they have been trained to do. Health Care Practitioner is a wide ranging term that covers physios, radiographers, OT etc. I would rather be looked after by an ODP than an RN with no experience in the recovery room. Nurses are not the be all and end all of hospitals.

Sorry to hear about your mum and hope she makes a good recovery. Also you, look after that head. No booze today.

I've had great experiences of both the NHS and Ontario health care as a patient, as a worker I can see that the faults are there and that they are often similar. Lack of beds, people kept on stretchers in Emerge, on EMS trolleys. Waiting 8 hours or so to see the doc in Emerge.

Iain, I know the local hospitals fund raise to buy equipment but this is equipment that the MOHLTC has said that they do not need - or maybe knows that it can be collected locally. 85% of hospital funding comes from the ministry

Zoe Bell

I take your point , I don't think I was very clear in expressing myself. My Nursing care in Canada (in the ward etc) was carried out by nurses.

In the UK everything was done by what appeared to be semi literate people just out of high school. It bothered me that there were spelling mistakes on my wristbands and in my notes and that if the automatic machines that took blood pressure and pulse rate etc didn't work , they just didn't bother doing the checks.

My experience in Canada was that everyone (even the admin guy who booked me into the hospital) seemed much more professional.

I'm not against HCP in general but have a sneaky feeling that they are often used in the same way as TAs are in schools, as a cheap replacement for my qualified staff

iaink

So that CT scanner you trained on then wasnt needed? That one was paid for by local contributions as far as I understand it.

bats

It's what MOHLTC says they need, not what they really need. They didn't fund the one I work on now. I reckon they know which areas are good at money raising and hold back the dosh from there.