As a relative new-comer to Canada who is seeking medical attention here, I’m always looking for clues on how best to proceed. I took a trip to the Mississauga Library recently and picked up some books about the medical system here.

One of the co-authors, Michael Decter, according to the fly leaf, is a Harvard-trained economist with three decades of experience in senior public and private sector positions. He served as Deputy Minister of Health in Ontario…found[er] of the Health Council of Canada, a national organization “committed to monitoring progress made by governments to improve health care delivery.” The other, Francesca Grosso has been involved in health care communications for 10 plus years. I confess I do not know what is meant by “health care communications” but I imagine some kind of public relations/marketing/policy wonk. Her list of “bonifides” is just as long as Mr. Decter’s.

A Google search of the author’s names yields some interesting stuff and I have to tell you, I’m pretty disgusted. That these two people wrote a book giving me advice on how to “navigate” the health care system is something akin to the Wily E. Coyote advising Roadrunner on security. These are among the people responsible for the state of the health care system–particularly here in Ontario. I am appalled.

I confess that I did not read the first section of the book which deals with the “early” years–pregnancy, childbirth, and child-rearing. I don’t need to know about these things.

I was very interested in reading the other sections though: the section on the middle years gives the usual platitudes on healthy eating and etc, ad nauseum. It does give one good piece of advice–it suggests we each assemble a “health record” due to the fact that our records are so widely scattered–among doctor’s office, pharmacies, and other testing sites or hospitals. I had begun to do this on my own–in self defense so as to keep track of what is happening to me.

There is information within the pages on how to find a family doctor. There is even a “Tip” which acknowledges that some people might have trouble finding a doctor and that some people won’t have a choice as to which doctor they get. Gee thanks for the news flash.

..to be continued….