Ryo: “Doctors warn fallout from Bill 2 will force family clinics to close(Allison Haynes, November 12)
My family doctor is a member of the Santé Mont-Royal Medical Center. I have read that this clinic will likely close on April 1st unless additional funding is found. My GP has provided me with excellent care and I am concerned about what will happen if this clinic closes.
My doctor organized an examination, which resulted in a diagnosis of stage 4 bladder cancer. I was subsequently placed in a clinical drug trial at the Jewish General Hospital. Three years have passed and I have no signs of cancer. My recovery would not have been possible without the support and guidance of my GP who saved my life.
If the Quebec medical community is unanimously opposed to Bill 2, then there is something fundamentally wrong with this legislation. The government must change course and address the doctors' concerns. Blaming them for the shortcomings of Quebec's medical system is reprehensible.
What options do we as citizens have to force the government to listen to doctors and ensure continuity of care for patients? I believe we are in danger of having our medical system dismantled if this bill goes through.
Alan Marriott, Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville
Elephant in the waiting room
Ryo: “Goals are impossible: doctors(Newspaper, November 19).
To ensure quality, timely health care for all Quebecers, the CAQ government needs to increase medical staff and resources, rather than expecting doctors to do more with the same resources and punishing them if they can't.
However, no one has convincingly explained how the governments of Quebec and Canada will fund additional medical staff and resources, given the large budget deficits both governments face.
The reality is that since the creation of Medicare in 1966, the overall average life expectancy of Canadians has increased from approximately 71 to 83 years, resulting in increased demands on the medical system and old age pensions.
So unless richer people and profitable corporations are willing to pay more taxes, and/or people work a little longer, governments may not have enough money to give us the Medicare we need without creeping privatization.
Which political party has the courage to tell people this sober truth?
Robert Hadjali, Montreal
Consult with all frontline workers
Ryo: “Goals are impossible: doctors(Newspaper, November 19).
Quebec's health problems appear to be systemic in nature and require a holistic approach to address them.
The Quebec government should ask every frontline health worker what it can do to help them improve the quality of their services.
Attacking one specific group, in this case doctors, is counterproductive.
Michael Pfeffer, Cote Saint-Luc
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