Some may already know from my previous diaries that my husband has had a long history of alcohol abuse that caused a stroke some 6 ½ years ago. I have detailed the wonderful care that he has received both immediately after and since his stroke. Last fall he began to really deteriorate. He fell several times, but thankfully was unhurt, but I still had to call 911 for help in getting him off the floor. The last time he was in the hospital he was told by his doctors that there was nothing they could do for him. His liver was shot no chance at a transplant because he would not get and stay sober. He was placed on palliative care. He was sent home to die.
The health care system provided nursing (RNs) and PSA (Personal Support Workers) visits three times a week. As the fall turned into winter he became weaker and weaker. Several trips to the hospital to drain fluid from his belly. Eventually he could no longer walk, and then became bedridden. Nursing was then upped to around the clock. I was never left alone to deal with him… even overnight I had an RN in the house sitting with him while I slept. They kept him comfortable with morphine, kept him turned, clean, everything, while we waited for a bed to open up at St. Peter’s Hospital palliative care unit.
On January 22, I slipped on ice and broke my right hand. I could not drive (I have a stick shift) with a cast, so I was pretty much grounded. On January 30th my husband was transferred from home to a palliative care facility. He peacefully crossed the rainbow bridge on February 2nd. His daughter, sister and I were with him…
Meanwhile my hand was still swollen and didn't seem to be healing. Finally the head of Plastic Surgery had a CT scan done of my hand. It showed a break that did not show in the X-Rays…and required surgery to fix. On the 1st of March I had two pins inserted to hold the bones together. I am hunting and pecking this diary out with a brace on my hand…. I am hoping the pins will come out on Wednesday. I’m still grounded, can’t drive…
I am not writing this to tell you all about my troubles… I am writing about the Canadian health care system. I worked in the US health care system for 16 years. I think as a duel citizen I can speak to both….
I cannot say enough good stuff about this system. Through all of this, from last fall to today, I have laid out of pocket only about $500.00. St. Peter’s is a private hospital, and they charged by the day. I gladly paid. I paid for one ambulance to take him to St. Peter’s. I’ve paid for taxis to take me where I need to go…or I have taken the bus.
I have paid NOTHING for my husband’s hospital stays or his in-home care, or his therapy or his wheel chair or other devices. NOTHING for the treatment of my hand. Yes, we do pay a lot of taxes. But our taxes are aimed at things that enhance life.
In the US 53% of our taxes goes to the Military….whereas Canada’s top tax bracket (those earning $241,549 and up) pay that same amount of their income for health-care.
Frankly, I would rather my taxes go for things that help people, rather than bombs. I cannot tell you how good it feels to NOT have some bean counter hovering around you as your loved one is being treated asking, “And how are you planning to pay for this today?” In fact, on one admission my husband was given a private room because that is all they had at the time. They ate any and all extra charges.
The Canadian system is not perfect. But no system is. But it IS better than ANYTHING I have either experienced or observed in the US. When I come down to visit family I always take out a million dollar travel health insurance policy from CCA. I figure that will get me back to Canada where I can get excellent care and relax and recover without the stress over the cost that I know plagues my fellow Americans.
We DO have supplementary health insurance. His retirement benefits includes full coverage for things like prescriptions. They pay for my glasses…they paid 25% of the cost of my husband’ $5,000+ wheel chair. The province of Ontario paid the rest.
It is possible to have this kind of health-care in the US…perhaps even better. But first, we MUST stop thinking of health care as a profit center. And perhaps the Pentagon could part with a little bit of their slice of the tax pie to ensure that all citizens are healthy.
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Post Script - It has been a bitter sweet few months. On January 4th my second granddaughter, Erin Rene, was born.... Happy and healthy thank the Goddess.