Sorry to hear about your grandma. Unfortunately these stories aren't new and we hear about it all the time.
I work for Health and have moved around to several different divisions and I could give the insiders perspective (although they discourage us from forums/blogging so I can't stray too far from the party line).
We know the system needs fixing but we can't throw anymore money at it. Our budget last year was 14 Billion. As a former Minister commented, we just can't start taking other people's (Ministries) lunch. The current Minister is a numbers guy, and has a mandate to restructure and essentially slash dead weight to speed up the acute side. As a result, we now have the super board which will try to keep RHA spending in line. Ambulances have been taken over so they have a constant form of funding. A program for rare disease and medications is in the works, as well as a Alberta Pharmacutical plan. The Pharmacutical plan is especially important as a large portion of that 14 billion is going towards drugs. There are models being developed to look at funding hospitals based on per patient or incentive level funding to creat efficiencies. The other provinces are mad at us since the last round of salary talks, our doctors and nurses are the highest paid in the country (esp in Ontario where doctors and nurses will be wanting the same deal soon).
Another major thing that needs fixing. We need to get people to be nurse aids since no one wants to do that job when they can make the same working at Tim Hortons. Nurse aids are important, but unfortunately they are at the bottom of the nursing food chain. Training is only a 2 year certificate, but in our rich province, people strive to be LPNs and RNs. In Alberta hospitals, there isn't enough nurse aids to clean, disinfect, and transfer people out. RNs and LPNs take on this additional responsibility and there are delays.
On a related note, we are entering a time when there is an increasing demand for Continuing care beds. There just isn't enough, and construction of more long term care buildings and facilities are in the works. Until then, we have people in hospitals that have to wait for such faciliy/bed. People in hospitals can't move so they occupy space for people in ER that needs to be admitted. That backs up ER for those that need to be seen. EMS can't leave patients until they are admitted into ER so they just sit there which creates a shortage for ambulances....you can see how a backlog forms.
Lastly, from a personal perspective. I spent a year working under the public health and prevention division in health. Things would be a lot better if people just took better care of themselves. The huge drain from chronic disease is largely preventable. It's just cheaper for prevention than treatment. This will get worse as experts forecast that our generation may be the first to have a lifespan lower than our parents. Cut back the drinking, quit smoking, eat a more balance diet so that you can reduce the chances of needing continuing care beds and other more advanced medical services.
1 last thing. There are common misconceptions about public and private healthcare. Most of our health care is delivered by private practice. However, it's a public system because the government will pay most of your bills from the Health premiums it collects (and soon, just out of provincial taxes). Doctors are all individual companies, in fact some of the Incorporate themselves (ie. Dr. John Smith Inc). They see you, and then put together a bill for the services and send it to the government (provided they are services provided publically by the Health Act).
Sorry for the long post, and I'm sorry again at how the system is letting people down
__________________
|