Top ten signs you might be Canadian

PKC wrote:The healthcare system in Canada isn't broken, the people who misuse it are.

Have you ever gone to a hospital emergency room? Take a look at how many people are there for anything and everything as simple as a little cough. People get the smallest little thing like a sore finger or a tiny bit of a cough and they run off to the hospital where people who are legitimately injured are forced to wait to be seen.

The fact that people over rely on medicine and prescriptions for even the tiniest little cold is the real problem with the health system. Not the fact that doctors want to go somewhere where they can be reimbursed accordingly and justly for their years and years of studying and paying for school.

I have a family doctor. I've had one for years. It's really not that hard to find one. And when I cut my finger a few months ago and went to the Ottawa Hospital, I waited 15 minutes tops to be seen and treated. I was bandaged and out in under 30 minutes.

So I don't get where this stigma of a lousy, below par health care system in Canada Dung comes from.

So much better than the profiteering, money-first insurance companies in the States who will find absolutely ANY single way to screw you out of money for your treatment.

Noone who is legitimately injured is waiting at hospitals over people with the sniffles. That's what the triage system is for. At a clinic perhaps where it's first come first serve, but not at a hospital. I do agree with your views though.

I work in the Alberta health care system and see all sorts of ridiculous reasons people come in. I think it should be a 3 tiered system. Hospitals are for emergencies. Urgent care ought to be for things like cuts, broken arms, etc. A walk-in clinic is where you go to get your sick note, or to be refered elsewhere for say something like back pain.

The worst part about this whole debate is that it seems like the people who complain the most are the ones who go to an Urgent Care Centre with the sniffles and Wing Dang Doodle and moan about being there 3 hours. Get a clue.

ddt wrote:

Cap'n Clutch wrote:Yeah. I'm not sure where that comes from. The only thing I can come up with is it's the people living in remote areas where Doctors don't want to practice because I too had zero issues finding a family doctor and I know of another one taking patients in Carp. Since I'll be moving to that area at the end of March I may just have that Doctor as my Family physician.

I'm still waiting after three years, but it may be because I'm on the Quebec side. I'm not going to drive to Carp (talk about remote areas) to see a family doctor.

Been in Calgary over 5 years now and I don't have a family doctor. There's a massive shortage here due to the booming population over the last decade or so. I basically have my medical charts at the nearest clinic and just go there. Hell, I had the "big V" done last year at a walk-in clinic.

I think you screwed up on #3. The foot in the crease was the SCF against Buffalo. So it would go well with "Top ten signs you might be a Buffalonian".

I think you're thinking of "Hull's stick over the shoulder" goal to tie it against Canada, a game the 'Merks went on to win 5-2.

Please hand in your OHIP card, passport and Quickpay Tim card.

OMG, I'm the worst person in the world when watching games. I get very serious about it and have to have a solid yell at the players and refs.

I've got a Tim Hortons coffee maker at home.



So good.

Clutchie, I'm still waiting for your passport and Timmy's card (you can keep the OHIP card since it's not, strictly, Canadian).

PKC wrote:Have you ever gone to a hospital emergency room?

Not recently, no. I avoid those places like the plague.

PKC wrote:I have a family doctor. I've had one for years. It's really not that hard to find one.

You can try and discredit what I'm saying till you're blue in the face, but the fact remains that I still don't have a local family doctor where I am now, after two years of looking. And I too had one for years, but never mind the fact that he's in a different province and I have to pay for everything out of pocket, but he's also 1 hour+ away in Rockland.

PKC wrote:And when I cut my finger a few months ago and went to the Ottawa Hospital, I waited 15 minutes tops to be seen and treated. I was bandaged and out in under 30 minutes.

And when I needed an appendectomy a few years back, I had to wait 16 hours in the hospital for god knows what. The surgeon thought it was ridiculous after it finally burst, fortunately for me that occurred as I was being prepped, so they were able to get to it quickly.

PKC wrote:So I don't get where this stigma of a lousy, below par health care system in Canada Dung comes from.

I do. I also once spent 18 hours on a gurney with multiple hairline spinal fractures, waiting for a simple ambulance to transfer me somewhere else (apparently somewhere they actually gave a damn). Oh, and what did they give me for the excruciating pain? Tylenol. Not Tylenol-3 mind you, the regular stuff.

PKC wrote:So much better than the profiteering, money-first insurance companies in the States who will find absolutely ANY single way to screw you out of money for your treatment.

Love it when people who have never lived there can comment on the state of their health care. When I was in California for six years, we never had any trouble getting any service approved by our health insurance, including elective surgeries.

hemlock wrote:Been in Calgary over 5 years now and I don't have a family doctor. There's a massive shortage here due to the booming population over the last decade or so. I basically have my medical charts at the nearest clinic and just go there. Hell, I had the "big V" done last year at a walk-in clinic.

Fortunately, I had mine done when I was in California. No fuss, my family doctor (who I was able to see within two days' notice, unlike here) put in the request with the health insurance company, and the whole thing was done within a week.

If you have health care coverage in the US, usually you're fine and the "system" looks no different than up here. The biggest issue is the number of people who do not have health care coverage at all. Over 45 million people are without health care coverage in the US.

shabbs wrote:If you have health care coverage in the US, usually you're fine and the "system" looks no different than up here. The biggest issue is the number of people who do not have health care coverage at all. Over 45 million people are without health care coverage in the US.

I'm well aware of what's going on, and I agree that there has to be a better way. Where I disagree with the previous posters however, is that the Canadian system is that better way. Having lived in both systems first-hand, the Canadian system provides utterly crap service. I even disagree with your first statement to some extent, that the US system is "fine" and looks no different; it is much, much better at providing fast and efficient service.

You could ask 10 different Canadians and get 10 different experiences... just like you could ask 10 different Americans with coverage and get 10 different experiences.

Very simple example of a complete conflict of interest:

The parking lot next to the hospital is run by the hospital, and proceeds from the parking lot go to the hospital. There is no incentive for the hospital ro provide shorter wait times. Why, for example, can't you "call ahead" to reserve your place in line? I realize it just sounds wrong to call-ahead for an Emergency Room visit, but unless you get to the hospital clutching your left upper arm you're not going to be seen by anyone relevant any time soon. It's just like a walk in clinic with a larger waiting area that's open all night. Of course the same "call ahead" procedure could easily be applied to walk in clinics as well. I cannot for the life of me imagine why it isn't being done. Probably because every clinic knows that whoever implements it first will be swamped, and no-one wants that since the doctors' salaries are already at the cap with just the usual traffic. Just think of all that lost productivity as people sit, sometimes for hours, reading Readers' Digest and McCleans. Hmm, maybe it's all a conspiracy by the publishing companies.

wprager wrote:

Hmm, maybe it's all a conspiracy by the publishing companies.

I wouldn't think so since all I can get my hands on when I go to my family doctor are 2 or 3 year old copies

wprager wrote:Very simple example of a complete conflict of interest:

The parking lot next to the hospital is run by the hospital, and proceeds from the parking lot go to the hospital. There is no incentive for the hospital ro provide shorter wait times. Why, for example, can't you "call ahead" to reserve your place in line? I realize it just sounds wrong to call-ahead for an Emergency Room visit, but unless you get to the hospital clutching your left upper arm you're not going to be seen by anyone relevant any time soon. It's just like a walk in clinic with a larger waiting area that's open all night. Of course the same "call ahead" procedure could easily be applied to walk in clinics as well. I cannot for the life of me imagine why it isn't being done. Probably because every clinic knows that whoever implements it first will be swamped, and no-one wants that since the doctors' salaries are already at the cap with just the usual traffic. Just think of all that lost productivity as people sit, sometimes for hours, reading Readers' Digest and McCleans. Hmm, maybe it's all a conspiracy by the publishing companies.

My clinic has an after-hours call-ahead service. Has for years.

What I know is that if me and my siblings had to pay for my sister's recent hospital stay we'd ALL be wiped out for good.

I'm not saying I'm not grateful for the system we have. I'm saying the system is not perfect.

wprager wrote:I'm not saying I'm not grateful for the system we have. I'm saying the system is not perfect.

Yeah, same here. I know I've done a lot of criticizing, and comparing to the US system. But I'm seriously not advocating moving to a system like that. I like our universal health care, and it wasn't so long ago that it used to be world-class.

Last night, I was at my sons Minor Midget game, then he was asked to play for a beer league team because their goalie didn't show up so I stayed for that, then I watched the OTT/WSH on PVR.

Is that Canadian?

SeawaySensFan wrote:Last night, I was at my sons Minor Midget game, then he was asked to play for a beer league team because their goalie didn't show up so I stayed for that, then I watched the OTT/WSH on PVR.

Is that Canadian?

Yep. That's what it's all about!