Linguo1988

Hi all, I was redirected here from the Welcome Inn and hope I can get some country-specific advice.

I'm considering becoming an expat at some point in the future and thought that it would be a good start to come here to get some advice. At present, I'm living in Wales and am an MA student in my mid 20s. Unfortunatly, I suffer from Hydrocephalus (albeit quite a mild form) which is making me consider my options carefully for the sake of my health. At the moment, I don't require any meds but whenever I need my shunt drained (only 3 times since the age of 5 weeks *touch wood*) I need to go to Liverpool as that's where the nearest neurology centre to me is at present. Now as well as employment, housing and generally settling in, I'd need to consider the facilities available in Canada in case I happened to need my shunt drained whilst overseas. Ideally, they'd need to be just as good if not better than the facilities in Liverpool, so if anyone has any experience of neurological centres in Canada and could tell me how they stack up compared to any treatment they've had in the UK that'd be very much appreciated.

I've read also that healthcare/insurance differes between provinces so any province-specific advice (where applicable) would be very much appreciated.

As for the question of why leave Wales considering my current situation, it's, for me at least, a question of having less strain and a better quality of life than if I were to stay in Wales as I have been getting a lot of aggro since my mother passed away last year, and stress of that kind has the potential to land me in hospital, something I do not want. As a result, I'm feeling the need for either an extended holiday (hence the WHV) or perhaps a clean break.

Now I do of course realise that making this kind of move also has its own stresses, however, I have taken these into consideration whilst weighing up my options.

I've been considering factors such as my Health and safety in the main, and this is one of the reasons Canada appeals.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated from those who have experience of Hydreocephalus and/or WHVs.

Thanks in advance.

christmasoompa

I've no idea what hydrocephalus is tbh! But I hope somebody will come along that can help you.

There is also lots of info in the Wiki about healthcare in Canada so that might be worth a read.

If you're only planning on going for a year or two on a WHV then at least you wouldn't have to worry about failing an immigration medical.

Best of luck, I hope you get some answers.

Linguo1988

Thanks for the reply. No worries, you're not the first person not to have known what it is. Simply put it means water on the brain, and happens when the fluids that accumulate in the brain aren't drained as they should be and so that causes a build-up of pressure in the brain.

Thanks for the info re the healthcare wiki, all looks very useful. I've also since found info about a neurology clinic in Montreal, but not been able to find out any more so far, so hope someone with more info about the treatment of Hydrocephalus in Canada pops along.

Thanks again for taking the time to reply.