Open letter From Palliser friends of medicare
Full disclosure - Kelly Allard is co-chair of the Palliser Friends of Medicare. Kelly Did Contribute to this letter. It is signed by the Board of Palliser Friends of Medicare.
The Alberta Government is trying to sell us a Pig in a Poke with its “Surgical Initiatives” and “Urgent Care Centers”. Our hospitals already have underused surgical suites because of not enough medical staff. Dr Paul Parks, (previous president of the Alberta Medical Association and Medicine Hat ER Physician) has said that the Medicine Hat Regional Hospital (MHRH) has the room for an Urgent Care Centre.
The infrastructure is there and paid for, why pay for a new facility when the facilities we already have are being underutilized?
This government has created a two-tier health system based on an ability to pay, the Haves and the Have Nots.
NB - This two-tier system may be in violation of the Canada Health Act which may result in lower federal healthcare transfer dollars.
The Haves get immediate access to
Vaccines such as covid-19 and shingles
Diagnostic imaging without a doctor’s order which turns into
Access to a specialist which results in
Medical and or surgical treatment
The Have Nots must wait and/ or go without
Vaccines such as covid-19 and shingles
Diagnostic imaging which is only done with a doctor’s order which delays
Access to a specialist which results in
Medical and/ or surgical treatment
Health care is more expensive when people cannot afford to pay to skip the queue and don’t get timely care. ER doctors are diagnosing late stage cancers because we have a critical shortage of family doctors, delayed diagnosis means patients are dying prematurely or requiring more expensive treatment.
The purpose of any government is to do good for its people, not harm. The government's Action Plan for Health includes few local details and doesn't explain how they will address the current shortage in healthcare personnel (which is Canada-wide); it’s like reading a fairytale.
Albertans need real solutions to healthcare in our province. They need a healthcare system designed by doctors, not politicians; we don't want or need a two-tiered system. The Haves already have the choice to pay out of pocket, they can go out of the country (which will indeed shorten wait times for the Have Nots).
Albertans have always stepped up to help their fellow Albertans, when did we get so selfish?
Palliser Friends of Medicare Board
