Beerball Posted June 27, 2009 Posted June 27, 2009 McMaster's NICU is closed to new admissions about 50 per cent of the time Hope the kid is OK.
Rubes Posted June 27, 2009 Posted June 27, 2009 how can this be? I just read this.... I'd like to hear your explanation of how one is related to the other. Or, for that matter, what the first story has to do with health care reform.
The Poojer Posted June 27, 2009 Posted June 27, 2009 how's this for starters, from the article I linked, i think they are somewhat linked...perhaps i am wrong though, wouldn't be the first or last time. And I believe they are linked to health care reform because alot of people in charge refer to the single pay type of system of health care they use in canada and how we should move to something more along those lines....again....i could be mistaken Myth: There are long waits for care, which compromise access to care.There are no waits for urgent or primary care in Canada. There are reasonable waits for most specialists' care, and much longer waits for elective surgery. Yes, there are those instances where a patient can wait up to a month for radiation therapy for breast cancer or prostate cancer, for example. However, the wait has nothing to do with money per se, but everything to do with the lack of radiation therapists. Despite such waits, however, it is noteworthy that Canada boasts lower incident and mortality rates than the U.S. for all cancers combined, according to the U.S. Cancer Statistics Working Group and the Canadian Cancer Society. Moreover, fewer Canadians (11.3 percent) than Americans (14.4 percent) admit unmet health care needs. and from the original article linked Hamilton's neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) was full when Ava Isabella Stinson was born 14 weeks premature at St. Joseph's Hospital Thursday at 12:24 p.m. -and- A second area mom has also been separated from her children since being turned away from McMaster's NICU, which is closed to new admissions about 50 per cent of the time. -and- Dr. Peter Fitzgerald, president of McMaster Children's Hospital, said he's in discussions with the Ministry of Health about getting more beds for the NICU, which is already the largest and most modern in Ontario. Fitzgerald is hoping to add around five more beds to the 47-bed NICU and another five beds in the Level 2 nursery where babies go once they're well enough to leave intensive care. But he doesn't know when or if it will happen. "It's tough on the families," he acknowledged. "We will get the babies back to the region as soon as we can." But that can take anywhere from days to months.
Beerball Posted June 27, 2009 Author Posted June 27, 2009 how's this for starters, from the article I linked, i think they are somewhat linked...perhaps i am wrong though, wouldn't be the first or last time. And I believe they are linked to health care reform because alot of people in charge refer to the single pay type of system of health care they use in canada and how we should move to something more along those lines....again....i could be mistaken Dr. Peter Fitzgerald, president of McMaster Children's Hospital, said he's in discussions with the Ministry of Health about getting more beds for the NICU, which is already the largest and most modern in Ontario. That's the point that makes me uneasy Rubes. We MUST get our health care costs under control and at the same time find a way to insure those who don't currently have coverage, but the thought that a hospital here would have to go to the government to increase the size of a NICU is not one I ever want to see here. You're on the 'inside'. How do you fix this mess?
Rubes Posted June 27, 2009 Posted June 27, 2009 how's this for starters, from the article I linked, i think they are somewhat linked...perhaps i am wrong though, wouldn't be the first or last time. And I believe they are linked to health care reform because alot of people in charge refer to the single pay type of system of health care they use in canada and how we should move to something more along those lines....again....i could be mistaken Sure, I can see your perspective. But let's not confuse 'wait times for care' with the fact that a hospital intensive care unit, which is quite large, is full. The concept of wait times for care has to do with getting an appointment to be seen, whether for an outpatient visit or for a particular surgical procedure. This is a different beast than the issue of a hospital being overloaded with patients -- which happens, I would say, as often here at my hospital than at any hospital in Canada. NICU's are a particular problem because (a) more and more babies are being born prematurely, and (b) length of stay in NICUs can be very very long, much longer than patients in other ICUs. For a large hospital in a metropolitan center to have their NICU full a large percentage of the time does not surprise me, nor does it lead me to believe it has much to do with who is paying for care or how. As for the issue of the hospital discussing an expansion with the government -- that is also a separate issue from our health care reform discussions, which are focusing on who pays for health care, not who owns the hospital or pays for hospital construction. Our hospital is part of a state university, and is undergoing a major expansion. The government sure did kick in some money for that. I don't recall anyone really having much of a problem with it.
WWVaBeach Posted June 27, 2009 Posted June 27, 2009 Maybe I'm way off-base here but to me this is all about securing the borders (which I fully support). Sometimes common sense really should prevail. I mean what are the odds that these parents are trying to cross the Peace Bridge because they're terrorists? Has the local Buffalo media picked up on this case?
Rubes Posted June 28, 2009 Posted June 28, 2009 Maybe I'm way off-base here but to me this is all about securing the borders (which I fully support). Sometimes common sense really should prevail. I mean what are the odds that these parents are trying to cross the Peace Bridge because they're terrorists? Has the local Buffalo media picked up on this case? What are you, the poor man's version of crayonz?
WWVaBeach Posted June 28, 2009 Posted June 28, 2009 What are you, the poor man's version of crayonz? I wasn't trying at all to be sarcastic. If I came across that way then please accept my apology. I was serious about my question. The article wasn't really addressing the full NICU as much as the fact that these parents couldn't get across the border.
Rubes Posted June 28, 2009 Posted June 28, 2009 I wasn't trying at all to be sarcastic. If I came across that way then please accept my apology. I was serious about my question. The article wasn't really addressing the full NICU as much as the fact that these parents couldn't get across the border. Hehe...sorry about that. Guess I completely misinterpreted your post.
ExiledInIllinois Posted June 28, 2009 Posted June 28, 2009 I wasn't trying at all to be sarcastic. If I came across that way then please accept my apology. I was serious about my question. The article wasn't really addressing the full NICU as much as the fact that these parents couldn't get across the border. I agree the main idea/theme to this article is the passport hooey. I am glad some people actually took 4th grade English WWVaBeach! I sympathize... Yet, come on. Anybody living remotely near the border should have gotten a passport. I live in Illinois and knew this passport crap was coming down the pike. My wife and I have had passports for a long time... Knowing that our children need them to cross into Canada, we applied for theirs a while back. Now I agree, the passport stuff to get into Canada is stupid... But come on, almost everybody knew this was coming. My children's passports came in around 2 weeks... And that was standard processing.
ExiledInIllinois Posted June 28, 2009 Posted June 28, 2009 Hehe...sorry about that. Guess I completely misinterpreted your post. WWVaBeach should be commended, he actually read the article and processed it right! Knowing that, I read it too BEFORE getting sucked into a bogus health care rant. And Beerball... People actually think I reach at straws!
ExiledInIllinois Posted June 28, 2009 Posted June 28, 2009 And here in lies the problem: In the meantime, the priority is getting Paquette and Stinson reunited with their baby. The Canadian consulate in Buffalo is providing advice and guidance to the first-time parents. Hamilton Centre MP David Christopherson is working to arrange emergency passports but that will take until at least Monday afternoon. The situation is made more complicated by the fact the baby's dad has a criminal record.
BuffaloBill Posted June 28, 2009 Posted June 28, 2009 I'd like to hear your explanation of how one is related to the other. Or, for that matter, what the first story has to do with health care reform. The first story points out that that Canada has had to ration specialized care to keep the system costs down. It is well known that other countries (as compared to the US) have much better gerneral care. It is also generally agreed that when it comes to specialized care or access for those who can afford it the US is considered the best system in the world.
Live&DieBillsFootball Posted June 28, 2009 Posted June 28, 2009 I agree the main idea/theme to this article is the passport hooey. I am glad some people actually took 4th grade English WWVaBeach! I sympathize... Yet, come on. Anybody living remotely near the border should have gotten a passport. I live in Illinois and knew this passport crap was coming down the pike. My wife and I have had passports for a long time... Knowing that our children need them to cross into Canada, we applied for theirs a while back. Now I agree, the passport stuff to get into Canada is stupid... But come on, almost everybody knew this was coming. My children's passports came in around 2 weeks... And that was standard processing. I live 20 minutes form the border but don't have my passport yet. I haven't been to Canada in the last 2 years and have no urgent plans to do so. But I never thought about what would happen if one of the kids or other family was hurt in Canada and was in a hospital. Better get off my ass and get one just in case. I guess I can justify it as supporting the arts...I can use it to go see the ballet.
Beerball Posted June 28, 2009 Author Posted June 28, 2009 WWVaBeach should be commended, he actually read the article and processed it right! Knowing that, I read it too BEFORE getting sucked into a bogus health care rant. And Beerball... People actually think I reach at straws! Don't think I reached, I extrapolated information from the article and made it relevant to me.
BuffaloBill Posted June 28, 2009 Posted June 28, 2009 That's the point that makes me uneasy Rubes. We MUST get our health care costs under control and at the same time find a way to insure those who don't currently have coverage, but the thought that a hospital here would have to go to the government to increase the size of a NICU is not one I ever want to see here. You're on the 'inside'. How do you fix this mess? Sad reality is that if healthcare consumption is relatively level across the currently uninsured group of americans when and if they become insured there is going to be a severe shortage of primary care physicians.
Rubes Posted June 29, 2009 Posted June 29, 2009 Sad reality is that if healthcare consumption is relatively level across the currently uninsured group of americans when and if they become insured there is going to be a severe shortage of primary care physicians. I would argue that there already is a severe shortage of primary care physicians. I'm not convinced that the first article argues that Canada has had to ration specialized care. I think the issue is far more complicated than that, and I see precisely the same issues in our hospitals here without it having anything to do with rationing care. I would also argue that it is not generally agreed that our system is considered the best in the world, even for those who can afford it. A lot also depends on what exactly you mean by "the best".
ExiledInIllinois Posted June 29, 2009 Posted June 29, 2009 I live 20 minutes form the border but don't have my passport yet. I haven't been to Canada in the last 2 years and have no urgent plans to do so. But I never thought about what would happen if one of the kids or other family was hurt in Canada and was in a hospital. Better get off my ass and get one just in case. I guess I can justify it as supporting the arts...I can use it to go see the ballet. IMO, this passport stuff is a money grab... Then there is the USPS. What it cost for my children's passport (Book... Card is cheaper, but the card is only good in parts of the western hemi) was: About 200 bucks for both. Here is how it breaks down: 15 bucks for the picture 60 dollar passport fee 25 bucks to the USPS for processing Now times that by two... And children under 16, their passport only lasts for 5 years... Not 10 like adults (+16).
Zona Posted June 29, 2009 Posted June 29, 2009 NICU's are a particular problem because (a) more and more babies are being born prematurely, and (b) length of stay in NICUs can be very very long, much longer than patients in other ICUs. For a large hospital in a metropolitan center to have their NICU full a large percentage of the time does not surprise me, nor does it lead me to believe it has much to do with who is paying for care or how. Let me ask a a question. Is it possible that the reason there are more premature births is because of less pre-natal care due to longer wait times?
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