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KEEPING HEALTHY IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY
The number one priority for Canadians was supposed to be all about health care. Take a walk around the mall food courts or super markets and observe the very fat shoppers and you would sure have some doubts. It seems that the vast majority of rounded people are content to let it all hang out.
The stats for Canadian adults shows that one in four are obese with like numbers for our children.
Sure we cry when we are sick but sadly we are not pro-active enough to take care of our selves. We don’t want to look into the mirror to see our nude reflection staring back at us. Poor diet and lack of exercise has sure taken it’s toll on Londoner’s.
Our Emergency Room waits to see a doctor in the London Health Science two hospitals are up to 8-10 hours.
Recently, the administration has asked us not to go to the hospital unless there is a true emergency.
The Ontario Ministry of Revenue projected numbers for the Ministry of Health shows for March 2013 to March of 2014 the cost will total $127,588,000. This accounts for 52% of the provincial budget.
I called Marek Kubow, Communications Consultant, of the London Health Science Centre to see how we are coping.
"The average Emergency Department (ED) visit cost for fiscal 2012/2013 was $267.93. The price for staying in a ward can cost $1,840.00 per day for hotel and nursing care."
Heart surgery it seems is looked on as one of one of the more common surgeries to-day. "The average cost of bipass surgery costs you the taxpayers of Ontario $18,334.00."
Our citizens should be made aware of the financial/personal costs associated to being treated at the hospital. Perhaps, they should be sent a statement marked paid-in-full by OHIP, The Ontario Health Insurance Plan, after they return home?
The huge cost of health care has a price. Ontario women now have to pay for their annual Pap test screening to detect cervical cancer. Under the new rules the province will cover the cost of the test every three years instead of yearly check ups to be able to save $6.1 million tax dollars for 2013/14.
The quality of health care is not the issue but rather the lack of personal interventions that we the public take to stay fit. It is amazing what people do to themselves willingly. Self discipline/willpower defines our lives.
We need to adopt a philosophy of life emphasizing prevention and encouraging Londoner’s to try and stay healthy and be responsible for their own health care.
Stop looking for the politicians, medical professionals to have a magic pill to cure all of our ills. Throwing more and more money at the problem doesn’t seem to help.
Make some wise decisions. Lose the fat, stop smoking, exercise. Join the Boys and Girls Club of London. to get into shape.Chris Harvey, Chief Executive Officer, kindly sent along the fee structure for people over age fifty -five. For those earning $30,000. or less the annual membership is a bargain at $70.00. Take a minute to compare the low cost of your membership benefits with a package of twenty-five cigarettes at $12.00. Check out the web pages via www.bgclondon.ca to access family membership information.
The solution is in our hands. Remember the warning. "You can pay me now or you can pay me later. Later is always more expensive."
Len Lesser