Originally posted by graphicgr8s Question about Canadian Health Care for you. How long of a wait if you just need a regular/follow up appointment?
Honestly it depends for what...
We have some medical domains where we have a serious lack of personnel, so in those domains it takes a lot of time.
In others there is barely any wait.
I had a problem a few years ago where I paralised my left arm. I was heavily into bodybuillding and just went too far. Woke up one morning and my arm wasn't working anymore.
I went straight to a local walk-in clinic and was seen by a doctor within 2 hours. He refered me to a sports medecine specialist 2 days later. That specialist couldn't figure out the problem and refered me to a neurologist the next day. I started physio that same day. Ended up being pinched nerves.
The only time I had to pay for anything was the psysio because I chose to go to a private physio clinic near my home and didn't want to go to the government run place downtown (which would have been free).
Now I've had mostly good experiences with the health system here, but it doesn't mean the system is perfect. Many procedures (especially elective and cosmetic surgeries) have long wait times, and some categories of specialists are in short supply.
On the other hand, we do have a parallel private system where we can go for faster service. I can choose to go see a private doctor, specialist or technician, I can choose to have tests and some surgeries done in a private clinic. All for pay of course, but thats why we have supplemental medical insurance at work.
Pat