Wasting Away: The Undermining of Canadian Health CareCanada's health care, which comprises a myriad of institutions and practices, is often referred to as Canada's best-loved social programme. This support is not surprising, given that it has been one of the most accessible health care systems in the world and has played a significant role in prolonging the life of many Canadians. In recent years, however, it has come under attack from a variety of sources. Every jurisdiction in the country has initiated far-ranging reforms aimed at reducing costs and has introduced strategies developed for lean and mean production in the private sector. This book will examine how most of these reforms fail to address the fundamental problems in the system. Many of the provincial reports justified cutbacks by agreeing with critics of the system that the focus should be on health, rather than illness, and that health is determined not only by individual lifestyles but also by social conditions. With such an approach, it could be argued that part of the solution to rising costs is prevention and another part is to send care, in the words of one report, "closer to home". Although there is talk of "client-oriented" care, total quality improvement, employee empowerment and community support, reform has primarily meant less of the same within institutions and more unpaid work for women in the home. The basic problems with institutional care remain largely untouched or even exaggerated while fewer and fewer people have access to good care. |
Other editions - View all
Wasting Away: The Undermining of Canadian Health Care Pat Armstrong,Hugh Armstrong Snippet view - 2003 |
Wasting Away: The Undermining of Canadian Health Care Pat Armstrong,Hugh Armstrong No preview available - 2010 |
Common terms and phrases
allopathic approach assumptions beds Canada Health Act Canadian Health caregivers cent choices cleaning clinics CLSCS costs Council on Health cure cutbacks decision-making defined determinants of health developed disabled doctors drugs elderly elimination employees ensure expenditures fees focus for-profit formula funding Globe and Mail groups Health Canada health care system health care workers health promotion Health Services hospital improve increase increasingly individual institutions interviews less mainly means medical model medicare medicine ment Ministry of Industry Montreal Moreover non-profit nurses Ontario Ontario Nurses Association organizations Ottawa paid part-time patients physicians practices Premier's Council problems provinces Quebec reduce reforms responsibility result risk Saskatchewan Science and Technology scientific skills social spending staff Statistics Canada strategies tasks teams tion Toronto Star total quality management treated treatment women Women's College Hospital