There is a\nnotion of \u201cfree health care\u201d in Canada. That is far from the reality for many,\nour system remains well beyond the reach of various demographics, particularly those\nliving below the poverty line and the working poor. We do, indeed, have a more\nopen and accessible health care system and there is much to be said about our\nsystem but all too often the costs of health are overlooked with the idealized\nnotion that everything is free. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It is\nextremely frustrating for people with chronic health conditions to see medical\nprofessionals who suggest products and services without thought to cost. Much\nof what is suggested is unaffordable except to a select few. Some patients\nwould rather not even hear about the options that could improve their quality\nof life than know they exist but that you cannot access them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are\nso many costs associated with our medical system it can quite overwhelming.\nEven before you get into a hospital, you have to pay for parking, and that\nalone is a deterrent to getting the help you need. Then when you see a doctor,\nthey make suggestions without the knowledge of what it costs. Often, when one\ntries to talk to a medical professional about the barrier of affordability,\nthey get responses of judgement and being told that they just aren\u2019t prioritizing\ntheir health or don\u2019t want to get better, neither the truth. The problem with \u201cprioritizing\nyour health\u201d when you live in poverty is that there is no savings, whatever you\nuse for medical issues is taken from other necessities like house, food, or\nmedications; this leaves you stressed, with poor nutrition, and\/or inadequate\nhousing, all of which worsen chronic health conditions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This\ndisconnect between the reality of the financial abilities of patients and what doctors\nand specialist suggest needs to be improved. Poor health is not fixed by will\nalone, there needs to be services and products but there also needs to be\naffordability. For those who are working poor, the stress is increased because\ngetting the proper medical care can actually cost them money; they have to take\ntime off work to make appointments, losing money to see medical professionals who\nthen expect them to pay for therapies and supports. Some don\u2019t seek out the medical\ncare they need because they know they can\u2019t afford it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
One of the\nkey tenets of accessibility is options. We need to have a medical system with\noptions. Currently there is some government funding, but doctors have to fill\nout forms, which costs money, so we once again get stuck in a cycle of not\nhaving money to pay for what is needed. Doctors should be aware of the costs of\nwhat they are suggesting and know cheaper options. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Our health\ncare has a lot of issues to address and affordability is one of the important\ntopics, but it is very rarely discussed. Money is an uncomfortable topic;\npeople don\u2019t want to talk about living in poverty in case it affects the care\nthey receive. Experiencing poverty bias is real and frustrating and keeps some\nfrom trusting or turning to medical professionals when in need of help. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Medical\nstudents should be taught that there are many intersecting identities that they\nwill encounter: sexuality, gender, religion, income level, race, disability,\netc. They should be given lessons and basic information about the various demographics\nof their patients and learn how to interact with those patients. Health care\ndoes not start and stop at the body, brain, and senses, we need to consider the\nentire person, their environment, and their financial limits. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It is estimated\nthat one in 5 Canadian have precarious jobs. Not only does this affect one\u2019s\nfinances, it affects their health, their stress levels, their mental health.\nBeing given medical solutions or suggestions that further stigmatize and stress\npeople in poverty, or working poor, is not the answer. Being more mindful and\nrespectful about finances and how that affects a person\u2019s ability to access\nhealth care is one step we can take towards a future where patients aren\u2019t\noffered hope only to have it snatched away when they see the price tag. Medical\nprofessionals becoming aware of the costs of therapies, medications, support,\netc. is another step that is vital to bridging this gap. Doctors should ask\npatients whether their medical decisions will be reliant on what they can\nafford, and if that is the case, it should be marked in their chart. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are\nways we can work to support both patients and medical professionals in being\nmore aware of the costs of our medical system and how that affects those in\nneed. Poverty, unfortunately, is shamed, and many are not comfortable talking\nabout it, but dialogue is vital. Thank you for reading this. Please continue\nthis conversation where you can.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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There is a notion of \u201cfree health care\u201d in Canada. That is far from the reality for many, our system remains well beyond the reach of various demographics, particularly those living below the poverty line and the working poor. We do, indeed, have a more open and accessible health care system and there is much\u2026 Read More »<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-542","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-chronic-pain","category-disability"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4glPx-8K","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/canbc.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/542","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/canbc.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/canbc.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canbc.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canbc.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=542"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/canbc.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/542\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":543,"href":"https:\/\/canbc.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/542\/revisions\/543"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/canbc.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=542"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canbc.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=542"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canbc.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=542"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}