Hello all: 

I was passing through the Saskatoon Airport this past week, having seen
my daughter through an emergency c-section, followed by support from the
entire system to ensure breast feeding succeeded with a baby who did not
know how to "latch" properly and a second hospital stay when mother's
lung collapsed after the late date/long size weakened the lung capacity.
All of this following the caring and unconditional support of her family
doctor, and a great community clinic that has cared for her since she
was 7 years old, and her specialist to get her pregnant when she was
experiencing great difficulty with this.

My daughter and her partner are not well off but for all this the only
thing we paid with was time.  Yet, I sat in the specialist waiting room
with her and listened to pregnant women who had to wait two hours to get
in, do nothing but complain: "why we don't have a private system so we
don't have to wait?" without recognizing the gift of the man they were
waiting to see (I don't believe he got a lunch break that day)  nor what
he would cost them if they had to pay. 

I saw in the system in Saskatchewan a concern for the mothers. My
daughter got a c-section because she really needed it (baby in distress
and only 2 cms dilated after 36 hours of labour) The anesthesiologist
at Royal University Hospital has been dedicated to developing the
walking epidural, committing time and resources to researching how to
relieve labour pain with out paralyzing the mother and destroying
natural functions (such as the push nerves centers.  I understand the
c-section rate there is the lowest in the country and way below the US.
So, if something is recommended by a doctor in Canada I am reasonably
certain I need it, not that it is going to be a profit making experience
for somebody. 

Back to the airport: In the airport gift shop was a t-shirt that read:
"Definition of a Canadian: an unarmed American with health care". As I
leave a fit and healthy granddaughter and a recovering daughter - I know
the difference between American and Canadian systems. I am reasonably
certain we could have had none of this (including the extended maternity
leave), in the states.  Why isn't the general public more appreciative
of our Medicare system and its benefits especially for those with
limited or no resources? How ever we define welfare state, Why are we so
reluctant to acknowledge the importance of a state funded system to
relieving distress?

From a proud and relieved brand new grandmother.


Theresa Healy, Ph.D.
Adjunct Professor
Dept. of Gender Studies and the School of Environmental Planning
UNBC, Prince George, BC. V2N 4Z9
email: [log in to unmask]; cell phone: 250-565-1955

"Until lions have their own historian, tales of the hunt will always
reflect the hunter." African proverb.

-----Original Message-----
From: Social Determinants of Health [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
Robert C Bowman
Sent: Monday, October 02, 2006 9:43 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [SDOH] AND RESILIENCE TO ADVERSITY IN DIFFERENT WELFARE
STATES: BRITAIN AND SWEDEN

Why are Britain and Sweden and states such as Minnesota considered
"Welfare
States" when policies tend to level out income and education and status
in
a way that benefits all citizens, not just those on welfare.

Why can't we call Denmark and other nations "Child Welfare Nations"
since
they spend 2% of GDP on age 0 - 6 and this impacts nearly all future
education and health statistics in the nation, particularly compared to
nations such as the US who spend 0.5% or less.

Americans are also very different in many ways, as pointed out in Eight
Americas and in great variations in state education and health and
economic
policies.

An area of major weakness is holding certain states accountable for
their
lack of investment in lower and middle income peoples.

How long other states will continue to prop up these dependent states,
the
wealthiest in the world, the states where the rich distance themselves
from
the poor at the highest levels, will be perhaps the major determinant
for
US recovery and a future.

Robert C. Bowman, M.D.
[log in to unmask]

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