Recently I was having coffee with some co-workers, when the subject switched to Doctors, and our Public Medical services in Canada. In Canada, every citizen gets free access to Health Care. So we don't "pay" Doctors when we have to go see them... there are some costs involved, like if you want a Private Room at the hospital, or elective surgeries, etc.
But because it is "free", it is also... slow. To see a specialist could take months, or years in some cases. So the conversation quickly turned into a bitter rant of how inadequate our free health care is in Canada.
However, what I pointed out was that we have GREAT health care in Canada. For example, you can get a FREE X-Ray, Mammogram AND Colonoscopy very quickly! Just go to the Airport and try to board an airplane, while carrying a tube of 1/2 used toothpaste!
How the TSA agents manage to X-Ray hundreds of people an hour, when my Doctor's Hospital take 42 minutes to x-ray my sons chest when he can't breath, is beyond me. Good job TSA X-Ray technicians! Maybe we should just sit some medical students behind the X-Ray machine with the TSA agent, and they can do simple diagnostics while we are trying to get though security...If you feel you need a cardiovascular work out, maybe you've put on a couple pounds over the winter? No need to hire a personal trainer... just tell the TSA security guard that you have an explosive device in your shoe... and start running.
Yes sir, if you want good medical care, just head to the airport. It is *way* more efficient than the outdated Hospital system still used by the majority of Canadians.
But then this got me thinking, where else can find examples of organizations doing things better than the organizations which should be doing the things gooder... huh?
Okay, Elections Canada! Here in Canada, we get dismal voter turn out for elections.
Lets forget the fact that the vast majority of the world don't get the privilege to vote, lets forget the fact that the riots this past year were stemming from frustrated citizens who don't get to have a say in how the government treats its people, lets just forget all that, and take the right to vote so flippantly that only about 47 ~ 69% of the people actually VOTE... (and that was a GREAT year for voter turn out, one of the highest on record).How do we fix this problem? Simple! Have the Beer Companies promote the event, and have the Credit Card companies handle the voter registration! With Labatts or Molson promoting the event, you know the advertisements on TV are going to draw people in (especially the ever so important 18 to 34 year old crowd, who are the hardest to reach by politicians), it will be advertised EVERYWHERE and the actual voting booths will be rocking with loud party music, ring-girls holding big placard signs with the voting station names, and it will be THE event of the year! Heck, the political parties could probably sell ring side seats to the event...
The credit card companies, bless their little hearts, seem to find me every time I move, in no time at all! I move to a new house, and within 2 weeks, I have a credit card bill in the mail. However, the Voter registry held by the Canadian Government still has me living at an address I have not lived at for over 6 years. Even though I've filled out the "I've MOVED" card every stinking year for the past 6 years, they *STILL* get it wrong!
Yes sir... there are ways to do things "Well", and there are ways to do things "Not Well".
We have an estimated 140+million orphans in the world today. Are we doing things "Well" in trying to help solve the orphan crisis...
One good soapbox deserves another... :-)
ReplyDeleteIf it helps you feel any better, the average wait time here south of the border -- where we pay through the nose for everything -- is a mere four hours and seven minutes.
Oh, wait, that's in the emergency room -- you know, the place you go when things are already really bad and you need quick care.
And may G-d save your soul if you need long-term care and haven't been paying into the Medicare/Medicaid system, or want to hold onto any of your property to will it to your kids. (Medicaid is designed to support paupers, and is very efficient at turning applicants into such if they don't start out that way.)
Disclaimer: I work in the health care field in the USA and have first-hand knowledge of the system both from the inside looking out & the outside looking in. Enough first-hand knowledge, in fact, to have already told a number of people about the speedy medical exams available at the airports... and did I mention how much cheaper a long-stay hotel is than a nursing home (as long as you don't need skilled nursing care for specific medical conditions)...?
I'm beginning to understand why the Chinese want their kids to hang around & care for them... it's the only affordable alternative to croaking!
Haha! Good to know it's not only here in Canada we have issues. :-)
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