Sunday, November 29, 2009

The world has something like 6.8 billion people in it. According to the stuff I have been able to glean, less than 10% of the world’s population has access to anything that one would reasonably call decent cardiac care.
And if a Martian (they live in tunnels under the surface of Mars – check it out) came to earth, gorged himself on poutine for 15 years and suddenly needed bypass (their hearts are like ours but have an extra chamber to make up for living underground – check it out) , where would you send them? Latvia? Argentina? India? These are countries that have some level of cardiac care. Of course we all know the real answer, the US, Canada, Australia, the UK, Japan, some of Western Europe.
I am so damned lucky to be living in a country where there is not only a high level of care in general but to be involved with the Ottawa Heart Institute, which is as good as any heart clinic in Canada.
What really blows me away is this – the expense so far in a) about four visits to my own doctor, b) one normal stress test, c) one echo cardiogram, d) one colonoscopy, e) one myocardial perfusion scan with stress test, f) one visit to a cardiologist’s office, g) about 6 normal cardiograms, h) blood tests, blood tests, blood tests, and i) one angiogram has been a) $40 for parking, b) $20 for Tim Horton’s (mainly for my wife) and c) say $20 for gas. I would shudder to think what this would have cost me in the United States.
I also shudder to think what this would have cost in Canada if we did not have Medicare. (and I have perhaps only begun to spend) . Most Canadian’s know that Tommy Douglas was the force behind “access for all” in Canada. Mr. Douglas is buried in the Beechwood National Memorial Centre (I got it right!) right next to my wife’s parents. His burial monument has one of his sayings on it “Courage, my friends; ‘tis not to late to build a better world.” I often reflect on that while at Beechwood. In fact, if you are reading that little statement and lift your head up and look beyond you see the Peace Tower and Parliament itself. It is almost as if he is throwing the gauntlet down to the men and women there today.
Tommy Douglas combined vision, courage, and action back when I was just a child, to help push through what I have today. I will thank him personally the next time I am at Beechwood.
When someone is standing by Stephen Harper’s grave in 2050 (hey, I am making nice to the man!) I do wonder what Mr. Harper’s greatest legacy will be?

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