Comments on: HEALTH SPENDING: It Ain’t What You Spend, It’s The Way You Spend It http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2006/10/19/health-spending-it-aint-what-you-spend-its-the-way-you-spend-it/ The Policy Journal of the Health Sphere Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:04:42 -0500 hourly 1 By: Judy Frabotta http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2006/10/19/health-spending-it-aint-what-you-spend-its-the-way-you-spend-it/comment-page-1/#comment-96 Judy Frabotta Sun, 22 Oct 2006 17:17:11 +0000 http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2006/10/19/health-spending-it-aint-what-you-spend-its-the-way-you-spend-it/#comment-96 As a recent newcomer to British Columbia, I've had the privelege of observing the health system here at close range -- from various patients' points of view and as a consultant to the senior executive team at the Vancouver system. The system is certainly not without its problems, but I just learned that British Columbia males have the longest life expectancy on the planet. I'm impressed with the ready availability of primary care, the responsiveness of the palliative care system for hospice patients, and the ability of the system to target population-driven issues -- tuberculosis and diabetes in the aboriginal population, for example. Infectious disease is another problem that is more effectively dealt with when you have access to the entire population at risk. And if we weren't losing all the orthopedists to lucrative U.S. practices, people wouldn't have to wait so long to have their knees or hips replaced. The limitations in the Canadian system appear to be mostly about manpower shortages -- a problem that would not really be improved by privatizing the lucrative bits. As a recent newcomer to British Columbia, I’ve had the privelege of observing the health system here at close range — from various patients’ points of view and as a consultant to the senior executive team at the Vancouver system. The system is certainly not without its problems, but I just learned that British Columbia males have the longest life expectancy on the planet.

I’m impressed with the ready availability of primary care, the responsiveness of the palliative care system for hospice patients, and the ability of the system to target population-driven issues — tuberculosis and diabetes in the aboriginal population, for example. Infectious disease is another problem that is more effectively dealt with when you have access to the entire population at risk.

And if we weren’t losing all the orthopedists to lucrative U.S. practices, people wouldn’t have to wait so long to have their knees or hips replaced. The limitations in the Canadian system appear to be mostly about manpower shortages — a problem that would not really be improved by privatizing the lucrative bits.

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