Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

Looking at this website from 2014, out of the 11 countries used, Canada ranks 10, just above the US overall care, but when it comes to breaking it down into individual sections, quality of care seems to be an issue in Canada.


Does Canada need to look into changing the system based on some of the countries models that seem to work better, but still better then the US messed up system.

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall, 2014 Update: How the U.S. Health Care System Compares Internationally - The Commonwealth Fund


I would never want a US system but some of the European systems maybe adapted to Canada?


I like the access I have in Canada, and I am glad to have the access, but I am less then satisfied with quality of care at times and frustration with the GP situation a good portion of Canada has.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

It's interesting that the UK system is rated very highly in this report. If you were to believe labour and the SNP the conservatives have destroyed the NHS over the last 5 years.

Canadians often seem to be very proud of their healthcare system but really are only aware of the US as a comparison. I suspect all of the european systems are significantly better. I'd consider the Alberta system to be rather patchy but fortunately to date haven't had to rely on it for anything serious.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

BC is patchy as well, some areas are good, some not so good.

I've got some potential issues, but the patchwork of GP's that I see, I don't think we are getting anywhere as despite electronic records and all working in the same practice, none seem to have the same views.

One says not to worry, another says possible problem, no clue who to believe.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

My husband certainly believes so..

In part he feels he says no to a lot of patients who want specific tests just because and without clinical reason. It seems to be a cultural thing and a lot of doctors just accommodate the requests rather than say no, you don't need this. The NHS is certainly more efficient in this regard.

However most folks in the UK do not know how good the system they have is.

I also think the way pts flip between walk in doctors and then their own FP is madness and should be stopped. If you are fortunate enough to have a family physician then they should be the only one you see other than out of hours etc.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

They need to allow the competition of private medicine in all areas, not just the nutty stuff. Of course competition is not the Canadian way.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

That report seems to focus on resource efficiency (value for money). We hear mixed reports on the NHS here in Britain.

UK cancer survival rates trail 10 years behind other European countries | Society | The Guardian

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

These comparisons are silly because in the US and Canada healthcare varies considerably inside of the country. Hawaii compared to Mississippi and then compared to Puerto Rico is just massively different, and in Canada the way provinces go about healthcare also varies considerably from province to province.

You can't just pump out a 32-page PDF and rank those countries simplistically like that, it's not a statistically valid way of doing it.

I do always think though that the ultimate example of damning with faint praise is when someone says: "healthcare is better in Canada than in the US".

They should translate it into Latin and put it on the passports, it's the first thing out of most people's mouths when the subject of the US comes up.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

Yeah, it is difficult to get a handle on it. Sometimes it's outstanding, sometimes it's terrible, sometimes it's so-so. Going by what's in the paper though I'm glad I don't have cancer.

The basic problem is getting a GP.

The way I look at it is, at least you don't pay high taxes here, so when it seems to be crap you don't feel like you got ripped off.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

There's very little accountability in Canada. Doctors are self employed mostly, a few are epmployed by the hospital but mostly they come and go and are answerable to themselves or the MAC, Medical Advisory Committee, should anyone chose to complain. Often they are paid by numbers of patients seen, number of tests done, in radiology it's the number of views done per examination. So we take twice as many views as we did in the UK. Often done because the patient wants it done. In the UK radiographers have a duty to refuse to perform any xray they feel is unnecessary.

The system here is very much like the US one where fees for services are claimed from the insurer, the insurer being the government. This means there is a whole tier devoted to billing and claiming fees. The same as in private medicine in the UK

I don't find much continuity of care. Medical records are scattered between GPs, hospitals, clinics.

Individually I find the same range of personalities and skills as in the UK but to me it seems hard to move forward, to implement change.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

I am surprised given your work your lack of insight in this issue. Of course doctors are accountable, they are answerable to the Provincial Medical Colleges and quite rightly have to respond to complaints whether at an office level or higher. Your comment concerning getting paid for investigations as I would hope that you would know is most certainly not true. Yes, it is a fee per service system but I personally,as do my colleagues,assess, investigate and subsequently treat 100% in the interests of our patients, not our bank balance.
Please present facts and not presumptions.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

I think to be fair to Bats, my husband has come across some doctors who he believes performed for example unnecessary lung function tests on every pt who presented when there was some sort of kickback/private fee involved. SP you are a British trained doctor and maybe practice medicine a little differently to some not all. I think there are some who are more motivated by money than others.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

I am not a fond lover of anecdotes and generalities TT- my points are made from a position of working amongst 100 doctors in the area from all specialties. Of course there are the rotten apples, there are in any profession but Bats comments were general and in my opinion offensive as well as inaccurate

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

Fair enough!

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

My experience of the Canadian health care system after almost 47 years here, from the patient's point of view ...........


I couldn't have received better care anywhere!

I've had excellent Family doctors, all of them Canadian trained, all who took great care of their patients, and were concerned as much with prevention as with curing once developed.

The first GP I had, insisted on everyone in the family having an annual checkup ........... he maintained that he couldn't know whether a child was sick if he didn't know what the child was like when healthy.

The second insisted on giving every male patient the PSA test ............ admitting that it was not infallible, but it was the best test there was. He just used to tick the box on the form that said there was a reason, and so it was covered by the provincial scheme!

Most of the nurses I've seen have also been good ....... with one or two exceptions

As an example of the care I have had ...............

1995, annual mammogram at a screening clinic, 5 days later sent to the mammography clinic for another mammogram and biopsy, 1 week later seeing the specialist, 1 week later having a lumpectomy, 2 weeks later having a mastectomy. No further treatment required.

Total time elapsed from first mammogram to the end was just under 6 weeks ......... and I had been assessed by one of the top radiologists and one of the two top breast surgeons in the city.

I don't think that I could have got better or faster care

Now, we go to the Family Practice Clinic connected to the Medical Faculty ...... where newly minted doctors do their 2 year residency. They have a link with the university hospital, so we get x-rays and lab tests almost immediately



Yes, there could be improvements ..............

...... we need more doctors ....... but where are to get them??? Every country is looking for doctors, and every country is recruiting from every other country!

...... same for nurses

...... more money could be put into the health care system .......... but maybe we should be questioning some of the procedures that are now carried out?

...... there could be more procedures done privately, over and above the orthopedic surgeries. Incidentally, Workers Compensation cases do seem to get priority over a person opting to go private.

But there seems to be a political aversion to allowing private clinics to operate.


I do well remember one experience from before I left England though ........... in one of those huge wards of 30 or more patients, having a surgical check-up which was done by a Resident because the surgeon had a "sore throat and cannot conduct operations". Women in the bed across from me in for an internal exam. Surgeon came to see her to give her the result of her exam.

"Mrs xxxx, you have a cancer, and it must be operated on as soon as possible. I can operate in 3 months on the NHS, but if you want to go private, I can do it in my Clinic in 3 days time" ...........

and he still allegedly had a sore throat

She was lucky, they managed to find the money!

I would hate to see the same or similar scenario played out here

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

I agree, the issue is though GP's in this area anyhow have so many patients because there is a lack of them, it takes weeks to get an appointment, so a walk in is the only feasible method for the patient to access a doctor.

For things that can wait, I agree wait for your GP if you can, although waits can be long and when worried about something waiting 4+weeks isn't ideal.

Even when I make an appointment with my GP, doesn't mean I will even see him, tomorrow I have an appt with my GP but I am seeing another doctor within the office since my doctor is unavailable now which happens a lot.

One issue that significantly cuts down on available GP hours is the need for them to cover the ER and Walk In clinic, all the local GP's rotate through both cutting down on their available hours at their office, which also leads to patients going to the ER to see their GP.

My appointment for tomorrow, was made mid-March, there was a 6 week wait which is the norm around here.

As for tests, I only ask the doctor for one, and only because he forgets I need it 2 times per year.

I call my doctor the gooogle doc, chances are he has to access google during your appointments...lol

There was an article in the Vancouver media recently about a man with cancer on his nose, his GP didn't diagnose it correctly, then a series of errors by doctors led to this poor man's nose being taken over by cancer, the health authority had no clue about his condition and the cancer agency apparently forgot about him.

Things like that are what scare me.


I do wish doctor would call about test results, they never do, the only reason I knew I needed to see a doctor about test results done back in February is because I got a call from the walk in clinic telling me I needed to see my GP to discuss the results a few weeks later.

I already knew what the results where, but I can't decipher what the results mean other then its not within the range considered normal and has an H next to it which I presume means high, google brings up everything from minor things to certain death and everything in between which is why I tend to never google medical issues.


I really liked my GP in Vancouver, she never rushed you, always took the time to listen and then exam and discuss if necessary, my current GP rushes in, doesn't appear to be listening, rarely does an exam, and just wants to go onto the next patient.

I still have horrible abdominal pains and only getting worse, but its been an uphill battle with the doctor.

There is one really awesome doctor in town, had her in the ER when I had heart stuff going on, very good doctor. I am on her wait list so hopefully someday she will accept patients.

My GP is nice, I just don't have the most confidence in him or his abilities.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

I didn't think MSP would cover either of those.

"preventive services and screening tests not supported by evidence of medical effectiveness (for example, routine annual "complete" physical examinations, whole body CT scans, prostate specific antigen (PSA) tests);"

Services Not Covered by MSP - Benefits


South of the border, insurance companies push preventive care and may even discount your premiums if you have an annual preventive care exam.

MSP seem's to prefer waiting until your sick, but won't that cost more in the long run?

Too much conflicting information out there for my brain to decipher it all.



I am about 75% satisfied with physical medical care, but with mental health, I give it a big fat 0, the mental health system just sucks, and focuses way too much on medicating and refuses to provide alternatives that studies show help the patient, my disorder, there is no medication, but studies have shown a specific therapy to be of great benefit to the patient, but MSP won't cover it, and it's not cheap, so like many who cannot afford it, we go without proper mental health care.


I don't want a US system, I just think an over haul is needed to bring the system up to be more efficient and have high quality of consistent care.


Biggest concern with getting older is knowing the local hospital is not capable of handling major medical emergency like a major heart attack, brain bleed, stroke, and that the paramedic unit overnight is not staffed and if needed, BC ambulance calls them from home, then they have to go to the ambulance house get their unit and then respond, can easily take 20-30 mins to get paramedic unit overnight.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

Chetwynd, BC

We have a nice new clinic, but we need doctors.

Apparently the 4 current doctors are leaving town, and no new doctors have signed up yet.

Chetwynd, B.C., builds new clinic — but has no doctors - British Columbia - CBC News

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

When doctors are paid a fee per patient seen it's hard to imagine the practice of doubling up of patients per appointment is conducive to good patient care.

This province had a problem a couple of years ago with an unexplained massive difference in what many doctors were charging compared to others. I must remember to look it up when I get back later and see what happened to the announced investigation.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

I have a feeling due to the overall lack of doctors and few accepting patients, some take on more patients then they can handle in an effort to try and provide a GP to a patient.


Obviously pre-expenses and overhead my doctor received 312,000 in compensation from MSP in the last fiscal year.

I have no idea where that falls for a GP. Looking at the list of doctors in his practice, his is the 2nd highest, lowest in the practice is 129,000.

Obviously before overhead costs, there are 12 doctors in the practice.


http://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/DownloadAs...uebook2014.pdf


I wonder how that compares to what a GP makes south of the border. (appears the median is 180,000 for a GP/Family doc and appears to not include self employed GP's.)

http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes291062.htm

Doctors can be employed with companies/non-profits directly down there.

http://scpmg-physicians-site.ttcport...y-medicine--31



I would support higher pay for doctors if their take home pay in BC is lower then average, suppose it all depends on the overhead a doctor has here, but doctors are worth every penny in my view.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

Don't presume I haven't posted facts nor accuse me of lack of insight. Accountability at College level is far from accountability at a local level. A complaint at College level is about overall fitness to practice, not individual problems. Do you want patients to contact the college every time they think you or your practice are in error?

I've seen and read little evidence of clinical audit, of evidence based practice. Statistics on surgery outcomes for example. You'll find it for hospitals and departments but not for individual doctors. If I want to complain about how long I have to wait for an outpatient appointment there's nowhere to go, should I call the College?

The staff and doctors I work with are very skilled and caring people and yet
I routinely take xray views here that are rarely carried out in the UK. Every examination has more views done. Why?

There's a limit to what I can post on a public forum so I can't post specifics and my comments are not just based on my workplace. Plus I've been a patient in the system too.

Medicine here is, as are many things in Canada, half way between the USA and Europe. It needs to be more cohesive joined up medicine to give a better overall service.

Edit. SP I see that you were offended by my post so I went back to see why. Take out the word 'so' in my comment which makes it imply that the views are done for monetary gain considering how busy the rads are this is unlikely in a hospital setting. My grumbles are not with individual or the standards of care but with the system in which we work.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

Based on a patient perspective, I do find I get more x-rays done in Canada vs the US.

Another difference I notice between the 2 countries is when you have a sore throat, in the US the doctor always swabbed and sent it to the lab for a culture before prescribing anything for it.

Here they just dish out antibiotics like they are going out of style.


(based on my experience as a patient with the doctors I have seen, and no way implying all doctors operate the same way.)

I complained once to the health authority about the ER doctor who was nasty to me, and all they did was send a form letter saying they expect professional behaviour from staff, and they were sorry. But no mention of them talking to the doctor about it.

I no longer complain, total waste of time.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

Healthcare is a provincial issue not a national one. And what is your "frustration with the GP situation a good portion of Canada has"?

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

Funnily enough, as I was reading this thread I was listening to a London talk radio station and the news came on. One of the top stories included a clip of Milliband complaining about the alleged destruction of the NHS at the hands of the Tories :rofl:

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

Its provincial based on federal rules, no reason the feds cannot update and bring in changes to the Canada Health Act.

Your living under a rock if your not aware of the doctor shortage in Canada with a lot of people without adequate medical care because they have no GP or they have to wait weeks to see their GP.

Not to mention some of the wait times for procedures.

Canada is just above the US healthcare wise in many reports, not really anything to be proud of.

Improvements can be made, and doesn't mean it has to go private. Some reason people think changes to the system means having to go private like the US which is not true.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

I know of a similar case in the UK - the husband of a colleague was told he needed open heart surgery urgently. The surgeon said the waiting time on the NHS was six months. He could do the operation next week in the private hospital he worked in for £10,000 (and that was when £10,000 was worth £10,000). The patient did not have £10,000. He did not survive the NHS waiting list.

A public / private system may be more efficient but I think that any system that requires you to periodically come up with large amounts of cash just to stay alive is wrong at every possible level.

And for those that complain of Canadian practitioners over-treating just for money, don't you see the glaring conflict of interest inherent in the public / private model?

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

I was just writing a response to Colchar's rather bizarre assertion, but you got there before me. This trope of healthcare being a provincial rather than national issue is largely a myth. For sure, the provinces administer the money and provide both the funding for hospital services and the single-payer insurer. But the fundamental issues over the provision of basic care through Medicare, the effective prohibition of private health care, the establishment of physicians as private practitioners who bill the provincial insurer, the amount of funding transferred to the provinces for health and social programmes, are pretty much all regulated federally through the 1984 Canada Health Act.

Canada's healthcare services are, in many instances and in many places, creaking at the seams. Access to family practitioners, long wait times for follow-up appointments with specialists, inconsistent access to notes, are all widely documented and well publicised. If Colchar chooses to look through his rose-tinted spectacles, that's his prerogative, but that does not mean that everything in the garden is necessarily as rosy as it appears.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

I've always said laughter is the best medicine.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

On that comment & what you know from your personal or your husbands shared experience, would you say or comment on ....

-That the NHS at GP level is much better or more efficient than in Canada, if so - in which way is it better?

-The GP's in the UK work harder than they do in Canada, or the other way round?

-That the GP's in the UK give better service to their patients than in Canada?

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

I'll share my experiences with the specialists I have been to.

Colonoscopy in 2011, referral sent in March 2011, appointment with specialist in May 2011, and procedure in late August.


Heart thinger test (forget the actual name of test) referral in September 2013, hospital called in November 2013, procedure in May 2014.

That was longest I have ever waited for anything in Canada, but it was a heck of a long wait, even called and got quotes in WA state (too much $$ so wasn't able to) just so I didn't have to worry for months on end.


Wife had a referral for well I doubt she want's me to post it, but 2 months in and not even an appointment yet, specialist does have the referral, just booked solid at the moment.


I'd like to say its because we are in a small town, but none of these referrals or procedures are done locally and are all in Vancouver/North Vancouver/Fraser Valley. 90% of the time its North Vancouver, but not always.

Only procedure that never has a long wait is CT scans which are done in Whistler. X-rays and ultra sounds a few days, and lab is accessible without wait on a first come basis at the hospital.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

I'm fine as we have our own medical staff but HID would like to be able "go private" but apart from all the looney types of nonsense like chiropractors and faith healers, there is no option other than to go down to the US. :(

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

I wasn't thinking about just having more patients than one should which would usually just mean longer wait times for apointments. By doubling up I meant literally seeing two patients in one appointment slot. Or when all the slots are taken but the secretary - being the darling she is - will somehow fit you in.

It's great that this means you can usually get seen within a day, but it does mean that appointments start running behind and you feel pressured to finish your turn with the doc.

I think it can make a considerable difference when it comes to treatment outside of the hospital.

When we moved here from Quebec (and pre-existing conditions prevented us getting prescription coverage) my wife and stepson had ongoing prescription drugs that cost about $30 or $40 a month in Quebec. Here it was $170.

Luckily we had a bit of capital to call on but then my wife developed other conditions and we were faced with costs of around $450 a month just for her.

Our income was low enough for every other province to have applied a maximum to costs of between $50 and $100 a month but this province's program required one to be virtually skint and we still had a bit of capital.

So that was $350-$400 a month extra to find because of the differences in how the provinces run health care.

It just strikes me as odd that such inequality exists in something so basic as prescriptions according to where you live. It really is the difference in being able to afford it or not.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

I don't know how doctors schedule exactly but they appear to be 10 mins apart, mine today is 10am and my wife is at 10:10 same doctor, but yes the doctor is never on time, 10am really probably means closer to 10:30 before I get called by the nurse.


Prescriptions are a worry we have with leaving BC, BC is pretty generous and covers nearly all our medications and I know some provinces would not be as generous. Once in a blue moon there will be something not covered.

My wife's medication has no generic, and runs about 300 per month if we had no provincial coverage. (4.79 per pill 2 pills per day)

Mine has a generic so overall pretty cheap at 39 cents a pill and 22 cents per pill. (the 22 cent one is also available OTC, but costs more OTC.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

Our very own family GP (same age as we are) that we have had from the mid 70's, runs a full blown medical clinic that you get everything in one stop shop that is open 7 days a week excluding stat holidays..

Waiting to get into his office for him personally (as one of the dozens on site) I can say its never less than a 30 minute wait for a scheduled time appointment any time after 8am. I have waited over one hour & over the years have 'stop watched' the average per patient time he spends on each one. He spends an average of 6 minutes per patient.

His own personal practice days seeing patients, are Monday to Friday

His seeing patient hours

- Monday: 6:30am - 8pm
- Tuesday: - Thursday 6:30am - 5pm
- Friday: 6:30am - 3pm

I know he does hospital visits prior to starting in the morning because he has told me this, as well as he visited my daughter at 6am when she was in hospital & goodness knows if he also does after office hours visits or related billing work.

Now after all of this, If ts not urgent, I will book & try to get a first appointment to see him between 6:30am to 7am, this way the wait time is shorter. Should I try & be successful in getting an appointment with another doctor in his facility because its a 3-4 day wait to get in to see my very own GP, I have seen from my own personal experience & that of my wife that he is well & truly pissed that some other doctor is taking his patient.... I wonder why?

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

Only took an hour, but the doctor was 26 mins late as she got held up in the ER, she was on ER duty overnight, so its not her fault she was late.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

:confused:

Of course its her fault, are you thinking or believing that you are to blame for your appointment in seeing the doctor?

Not to worry because everyone waited, so she never lost a penny of her billing;)

Doctors do not rank very high on the scale of service level in my books, after all, knowing the snotty nosed kid from next door that I went to school with that is now a GP who thinks that he walks on water, really gets my goat, as do the kids on the other side, one who is a motor mechanic & the other on lifetime welfare benefits.

There is no winning the human race battle. Its a service industry world & I'm pleased that I have choices to pick & choose who I get service from including my tardy GP which I haven't seen in 2-years:amen:

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

It's not really anyone's fault when an emergency arises and a doctor is delayed because of it. You can't plan for emergencies.


I am not going to fault a doctor for having to deal with an emergency.

We have very down to earth hippy like doctors in this town, none of any attitude that I have met and are incredibly nice and good bed side manner, they just have too many patients overall, and a good amount of them also cover the walk in clinic and ER at some point in the week.

This town doesn't doesn't attract the arrogant type of doctors that exist.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

Let's look at the lack of doctors from another angle ............ that of producing doctors.

In 2010 and again in 2013 (election years!), the BC Government announced a new programme called the GP for Me campaign.

They promised that every BC citizen who wanted a family doctor would have one by the end of 2015.

Well, they have just announced that they will not be meeting that promise ........... in fact the waiting list of people without family doctors has increased from 176,000 to over 200,000, although the population has also increased by over 200,000

Anyone involved with a university or knowing anything about the training of doctors, laughed in disbelief when the promises were made.

First, there were not enough places at a BC university to train sufficient medical students to graduation in the time

Second,there were not enough places in Family Practice Resident programmes

Third, many existing doctors were approaching retirement age as they had begun practise in the 1960s and 1970s

so, fulfilling the promise meant producing enough trained Family Doctors to both replace retirees and increase the numbers.

That required that the universities and residency programmes needed more funding to provide the classroom and lab spaces, and staff, needed for training. The government did not then give enough money to provide as many places as needed, of course!

There have been advances made .......... the opening of the Medical School at the University of Northern British Columbia, associated with the UBC programme, an increase in the number of seats in existing programmes, increase in the number of places for Family Practice residents, encouraging immigration of trained doctors, etc. And also the development of more integrated health team clinics.

I know that at the Family Practice Clinic at UBC, and I think also at the one run from St Paul's Hospital, that the majority of each year's intake are required to promise that they will work in rural areas for (I think) 5 years ..... and they are actually often sponsored by a rural organization, eg Northern Health, that requires the doctor to work for the authority for 2 years post-residency. They also have to serve a portion of their residency in the ER, so that they will be able to staff ER in small towns.

I've been treated by residents at the Clinic who then moved to Powell River, Terrace, and other places after completion of their programme. The first two were especially good doctors, as well ........... only much too far for me to travel!! The communities who got them really won.


this is the link to the article in today's Vancouver Sun .......

B.C. family doctor shortage worsening, despite campaign promise

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

JS said in responding to something that I posted...........



The annual test 30 years ago consisted of blood work, and physical examination, for adults and children. Plus my doctor also did an annual Pap smear for women until about 1973, then it changed to every 2 years. This was of course not that long after that test had been devised, and they were still trying to find out how often it should be done ............ but what I've said applied to every woman over the age of 21 or 25.

The PSA test is covered if your doctor ticks the box that says there is a reason for the test to be carried out .............. that doctor believed that men should be tested regularly. My OH had it every year, even after we moved to the Clinic, until 2005 ........... when he had one operation that led to a problem that meant his prostate had to be reamed out (literally!). Now, they do the test about every 2 or 3 years.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

well now ............ yes, I do happen to think that an annual exam consisting of blood work, bp, and physical exam is GOOD health care ............... and it is what I pay for in the monthly premiums I pay to the provincial MSP programme, but they in their bureaucratic wisdom have decided that such exams are not necessary. Change from one to the next is noted .......... and the patient warned if necessary

It seems that I am assumed to be able to tell if I am developing diabetes, or a liver problem, or kidney problem, or lung problem.

.......... so instead of having the security of a simple annual exam, the patient goes more often to the doctor because of "feeling funny"


Why did you assume that invasive unnecessary tests were done???????



Every good doctor that I have had, and I have had several over the last 10 years who are being trained this way, has done bp every time I go, and I still have blood tests done every year ........... admittedly, I now have high bp that needs checking, and I take a couple of medications that COULD affect liver function.

Re: Does Canada need to change their healthcare method?
 

MSP pays doctors according to a schedule ............. 10 minutes is the "standard" visit time. The doctor does not get paid if he spends longer than 10 minutes with you.

That's why some doctors are apparently insisting that you discuss only 1 topic per visit ............ hard lines if you have 2 problems you wanted to discuss!!

Nor does it allow much time for the doctor to really talk to you if he wants to find out more about you and your health / state of mind. etc


The payment schedule has been set by bureaucrats in Victoria ........ and has set times and payments for differing appointments


I never worry if I have to wait for a doctor ............. it probably mans that he is spending longer than the 10 minute allotted time listening to someone, and I may want him to spend more than 10 minutes with me!



You are lucky that BC is covering your medications .......... they've given us such a high deductible limit that we would not reach it until about October each year!!

Luckily, we can pay for Extended Health Insurance which begins to kick in when we've spent $1,000. My average drug costs per month are between $300 and $400.