Posted on: 11-03-04 16:54:37
Quote:
Orginally posted by Rajiv M
.....Is it advisable to carry your own medication (Crocin/Disprin/Brufen/Avil etc) to cover atleast the first initial months in canada.
u know, this is the 2nd time I'm saying this. You can NOT bring foreign medication and foodstuffs into the country, even if they are well packaged etc.
u can get all these things here. A friend once brought six months worth of bottled water to NYC. It was hilarious!
These are the countries that have produced, manufactured and exported all these things/know-hows globally, so it's kinda redundant bringing them back to square one don't ya think?
Plus, with the SARS thing still blowing in the wind, by bringing in foreign-made consumables no matter what they are, you're putting yourself and yr host country at risk. That's certainly not polite.
Also, some medicines from abroad simply won't stand up to the conditions here, so you'll be wasting yr money. My mom once sent me a really expensive herbal flukit which worked little better than a fifty cent Maggi chicken stock in clearing up my flu. That says a lot.
Don't bring ANYTHING except some clothes and your cash/travellers checks. Even clothes... just get some basics... the weather here shifts so many times a season u'll be going shopping the first week anyway.
Sincere advice to all newbies - bring yr settlement funds and use them to really just "settle in". 7-10k should be ample for the first three months.
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i am back 
Quote:
Orginally posted by chandresh
Following BLs suggestion, I am putting down some of my thoughts how healthcare can perhaps be improved in Ontario. I am saying Ontario, because it seems different provinces have different systems thought most of it might be same.
.....
I have mixed feelings and like BL I like the fact that healthcare is always available free of cost. However, the increasing number of people expressing dissatisfaction with the same makes me think. Those sound like good suggestions (of course, it may contain feasability issues to those more aware of the health system).
On the political front, I'm quite sure that even semi-privatization will be political hot-potato (think Alberta). Actually the free healthcare system is so synonymous with Canadian Identity, it maybe easier to move to the US rather than move even part of US system here
.However, if people continue to be unhappy like the majority on this forum...It just may happen.
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Quote:
Orginally posted by beautysalon
u know, this is the 2nd time I'm saying this. You can NOT bring foreign medication and foodstuffs into the country, even if they are well packaged etc.
That is a really strong one beautysalon - almost like mother telling a child he cannot switch on the TV!
By the way, you may not bring foreign medication perhaps (though I have my own doubts), but certainly can!
Secondly, if I am a foreign tourist, you mean Iam not allowed to bring in my own medication from my own sources/country? So as a tourist, the first visit I should make is to a pharmacy?
Quote:
u can get all these things here. A friend once brought six months worth of bottled water to NYC. It was hilarious!
You got to compare apples to apples and not medication to water! Yes bringing bottled water is hilarious, but medication?.........no way.
Quote:
These are the countries that have produced, manufactured and exported all these things/know-hows globally, so it's kinda redundant bringing them back to square one don't ya think?
You mean to say that ayurvedic medicines like septalin (in both Syrup and tablet form), or Pudin Hara originated here? If they did, how come they are not available here?
And even if they were, no it is not redundant if you bring medication from other country. In our case, from India. I find that many medicines are about 5-10 times cheaper in India in $ terms, so why not bring from there.
And by the way, USA IMPORTS a big chunk of its pharmacy requirements from Canada though it is perhaps the country which manufactures and exports its know-how globally. Why? For one reason - it is cheaper here in Canada.
Quote:
Also, some medicines from abroad simply won't stand up to the conditions here, so you'll be wasting yr money. My mom once sent me a really expensive herbal flukit which worked little better than a fifty cent Maggi chicken stock in clearing up my flu. That says a lot.
Would you mean to say don't even bring antibiotics like ampicilin or erythromycin because they will not be better than .............whatever you might want to compare it with ( I am a vegetarian!)
Quote:
Don't bring ANYTHING except some clothes and your cash/travellers checks. Even clothes... just get some basics... the weather here shifts so many times a season u'll be going shopping the first week anyway.
Sincere advice to all newbies - bring yr settlement funds and use them to really just \"settle in\". 7-10k should be ample for the first three months.
Don't be misled - if it is cheaper to bring in the whole house with you, bring it over. I did it, and settled on the third day after the freight forwarders delivered the goods to my home. On the next weeked, I had my house-warming pary with 22 guests! And all of them thought, I had been living in Canada for years!
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Chandresh
Advice is free – lessons I charge for!!
And can we again discuss the ways the healthcare system can be improved in Canada?
We might not be able to make a change, but it will be a fruitful and intelligent discussion I am sure.
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Chandresh
Advice is free – lessons I charge for!!
[quote
I have mixed feelings and like BL I like the fact that healthcare is always available free of cost.
Jake, I personally do not like the term 'Free Health Care' - since it does cost the government, and in turn, to us the tax payers. I can think of only a few things which are free - air, and love! and that is why, even that gets polluted and misused!
What we have here is not free health care in Canada, but to a large extent, a system where low income earners are being subsidized by high income earners - all of them, since there is no private healthcare. My suggestions are directed towards better utilisation of resources and decrease in misuse.
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Chandresh
Advice is free – lessons I charge for!!
Quote:
Orginally posted by chandresh
Jake, I personally do not like the term 'Free Health Care' - since it does cost the government, and in turn, to us the tax payers. I can think of only a few things which are free - air, and love! and that is why, even that gets polluted and misused!
What we have here is not free health care in Canada, but to a large extent, a system where low income earners are being subsidized by high income earners - all of them, since there is no private healthcare. My suggestions are directed towards better utilisation of resources and decrease in misuse.
I understand what you are saying Chandresh, I know that its been taken advantage of. I also know that I am being heavily taxed to support this system. However, here are my reasons for my mixed feelings
1) I landed in Canada without much resources and after a year my daughter was born. This was not planned. My wife and me found ourselves parents at 25 without any family membbers to help/guide. At that time I was earning less than 30k and the healthcare system helped us, from the pre-natal classes right to awesome service before/during/after the delivery. Since I was the only one working (my wife could not due to bad sickness bought on by the pregnancy) I was not paying much by way of taxes and was really happy with the service I received
2) Just 3 months after the birth of my daughter I used up the little money I had scraped together to quit the job and chase my dreams by going back to school. The worst thing, that I felt could happen to me, was that my family would fall sick. The fact that we had free(for me...remember I quit the job) healthcare gave me added confidence and strength to go to school.
3) As soon as I finished school...it was back to odd jobs like parking attendant, security guard, office boy etc for 3-4 months. At that time again all I had to worry about was rent and food. It did help me sleep better.
So the system was there for me when I was most vulnerable and needed it. Even 7-10 $ was a big deal for someone who used to think twice about buying tic-tac. I would not be able to afford it.
Who knows how many super achievers(i do not regard myself as one), who will do great things in the future, currently depend on the system like I did once. Would it be fair if I now sold the system to the highest bidder, just because I can now afford to do without it? Would'nt that be selfish of me? These are the reasons I am sitting on the fence especially when it comes to #4,#6 and #8(charge for child birth). I feel I am paying today for the peace of mind I had back then. Also like we know, situations change, and inspite of our best efforts my kids or me could very well need the same peace of mind in the future. I dont mind paying for it when I can.
What do you guys think?
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This post is bit off the line ... as now we are discussing how health care can be improved in Canada.
This articles shows why doctors want to leave Ontario.
Thanks and regards.
Biomed
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1 in 6 Doctors: "I am seriously considering leaving the Province of Ontario"
Ontario Physicians rank long wait times, under-funding of the system, and access to hospital services as immediate priorities.
Toronto, January 27, 2004 - A recent landmark survey of 2000 doctors in the province has found that almost one of every six doctors in the province is seriously considering moving their practice outside of Ontario. The survey conducted by The Strategic Counsel in December 2003, suggests that an inability to treat their patients in a timely manner, the chronic shortage of physicians and a declining quality of life are contributing factors as to why physicians are considering moving to other jurisdictions.
"A North American shortage of doctors requires that we take steps immediately to make Ontario an attractive place to practice medicine again," said Dr. Larry Erlick, President of the OMA. "We cannot sit back and watch while other jurisdictions entice our doctors away from the province."
When asked about the state of the health care system in Ontario, the survey clearly shows that doctors are most concerned about the negative impact that physician shortages (97%); general under-funding of the health care system (95%); and delays in treatment caused by waiting lists (90%) are having on patient care. In a similar survey completed in 2000, only 75% of doctors felt that increasing the number of physicians in Ontario should be a priority, compared to almost 97% today.
When asked about their working lives and life satisfaction, doctors in the province reported low levels of satisfaction due to their inability to treat and refer patients adequately. Only 20% of physicians report being very satisfied with their lives as a physician in Ontario, and 75% feel that their quality of life has declined in the last three years. The survey suggests that working 50 hours a week on average, having difficulty in accessing speciality care and diagnostic tests for their patients and sending patients out of province for care are factors attributable to this dissatisfaction in their profession.
"I have a message for all of the physicians in the province who are thinking about retiring or moving their practices to another province or to the United States - we hear you, and we're going to make sure the government hears you too!" said Erlick. "I will be spending the next few months, travelling the province, to hear from the public, from community leaders and from doctors directly on what steps can be taken in communities across Ontario, to address some of these concerns."
OMA Membership Survey - Highlights and Survey Information
State of the System
•97% feel that the physician shortage is having a detrimental effect on the health and treatment of patients
•95% feel that the under-funding of the health care system is putting the care of patients at risk
•90% feel that delays in treatment caused by waiting lists have had real negative impacts on the health of patients
•Only 27% of family physicians in the province are accepting new patients
Physician Priorities
•97% - reducing the wait times for patients
•97% - increasing physician resources in under-serviced areas
•97% - improving access to hospital services like operating room diagnostic tests and treatment
•97% - increasing the number of physicians in Ontario - up from 77% in 2000, clearly becoming an urgent issue
•95% - increasing the number of spaces within Ontario medical schools for med students
•94% - ensuring a reasonable tuition for medical students in Ontario
Working Lives of Physicians
•Excluding on-call hours, physicians on average are working 50 hours a week
•Physicians report working 30 on-call hours a week, this is up from the 20 hours reported in 2000
•81% report not receiving additional compensation for providing on-call services
•83% of Family Practitioners report having difficulty in accessing specialty care for their patients
•79% of all physicians report that wait lists have increased by up to three months in the last year
•73% of all physicians report that they have had difficulty accessing diagnostic tests
•23% of physicians report sending patients out of the province for care, treatment or diagnostic tests
Life Satisfaction:
•Only 20% of physicians report to be very satisfied with their lives as a physician in Ontario
•Almost 75% of all physicians feel that the quality of life of physicians in Ontario has declined in the last three yrs.
•16% of physicians are seriously considering moving their practice outside of Ontario
•23% plan to retire in the next five years
•22% are seriously considering leaving his/her practice to pursue another line of work
Survey General Facts:
•2000 telephone calls were conducted between November 19th and December 3rd, 2003
•A sample this size is accurate to within + or - 2.2 percentage points 19 times out of 20
•1007 interviews were conducted with Family Physicians
•993 interviews were conducted with specialists
Survey Demographics
•Southwestern Ontario 19%, Hamilton-Niagara 9%, Metro Toronto 27%, Central Ontario 6%, Metro Belt/905 Area 12%, Eastern Ontario 19%, Northern Ontario 8%
•Age of physician breakdown - Under 30 - 5%, 30 to 40 - 26%, 41 to 50 - 31%, 51 to 60 - 26%, 61+ - 12%
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