Alberta Politics & Government Thread 3.0

[Faust]

Smith Just Exploded Alberta Health Care. What Comes Next?

https://thetyee.ca/Analysis/2023/11/...a-Health-Care/

[Faust]

Nate Pike

I work in healthcare.

The number of people I’ve spoken to in the last few days who also work in healthcare and who are actively exploring exit strategies because of the announced changes to Alberta Health Care are stunning.

The UCP have no idea what they’ve done.

#abpoli

https://x.com/natepike/status/1724483384007938391?s=61

[PsYcNeT]

We should have some sort of betting pool on which UCP cronies make the most money from this in the next 5-10 years

[Yoho]

You can bet many of the other Provinces are watching intently.

[Fuzz]

Originally Posted by Yoho

You can bet many of the other Provinces are watching intently.

For an easy way to recruit workers from Alberta? Ya, probably.

[Ozy_Flame]

We're checking back with colleagues in Alberta regularly, various WhatsApp chats. Lots of people looking at this bureaucratic boondogglery as the 'last straw'.

Hell, even on Jespersen today they had a fam doc in Hinton announce he was shutting down his practice in Hinton. 35 years old.

[Yoho]

It would be interesting to see the pay structure for private practitioners.

I’d love to see the stats on things like sick and accident benefits and the amount of people off on things like PTSD in private settings. Overtime ect…

[you&me]

Originally Posted by Yoho

It would be interesting to see the pay structure for private practitioners.

I’d love to see the stats on things like sick and accident benefits and the amount of people off on things like PTSD in private settings. Overtime ect…

It's not exactly the same, but I read something last week about a surgeon in Toronto that was poached by a hospital in Houston. His income in Canada was roughly $700,000, which is nothing to sneeze at. However, the hospital in the US was offering US$7mm (/~CA$10mm!) a year and a US$4mm signing bonus, all for spending about 25% less time in the OR and spending half the amount on housing, etc.

Regarding things like PTSD & overtime in private settings, I don't know about a medical practice, but anecdotally, there's a world of difference in the disposition of teachers that teach privately vs. the one's I know that teach in the public system and it surely comes down to work load, environment, and job related stress.

[Mr.Coffee]

Race to the bottom.

Taxpayers only have themselves to blame. One day the province will wake up and be willing to pay more tax, at that point many things will be irreversible.

[rubecube]

Originally Posted by Mr.Coffee

Race to the bottom.

Taxpayers only have themselves to blame. One day the province will wake up and be willing to pay more tax, at that point many things will be irreversible.

I honestly don't understand how people can watch this and not think it'll happen at the federal level if the CPC get a majority.

[iggy_oi]

Originally Posted by Yoho

It would be interesting to see the pay structure for private practitioners.

I’d love to see the stats on things like sick and accident benefits and the amount of people off on things like PTSD in private settings. Overtime ect…

It would be interesting to see the pay structures across all private industries be made public.

[Mr.Coffee]

Originally Posted by rubecube

I honestly don't understand how people can watch this and not think it'll happen at the federal level if the CPC get a majority.

Maybe, but I’m also pretty hateful of the corruption on display, and which actually carries the risk of destroying more than the UCP ever will. Like the entire ####ing country. And we’re headed down that path now, thanks to the decades of federal corruption that is increasing in scope creep regardless of party but then in this latest version blown way the #### open.

Any government that campaigns on transparency, audit powers, independent audits / reviews, restricts the federal govs ability to cockblock committees etc, when in power- gets my vote. It’s the most important issue this country faces.

[edslunch]

Originally Posted by Yoho

It would be interesting to see the pay structure for private practitioners.

I’d love to see the stats on things like sick and accident benefits and the amount of people off on things like PTSD in private settings. Overtime ect…

If you’re implying that private facilities would have a better working environment, you’re probably right, since they can cherry pick specific services. Public facilities are stressful because they are overwhelmed with work and understaffed, not because they are public. If every health care worker and patient gets a sweet private health care experience you’d better double the health care budget. Then again, double the health care budget and the public system will run like a well-oiled machine too.

[Muta]

One of the biggest problems with letting public healthcare fail 'by design' and then having private care 'come to the rescue' after the collapse, which is likely the UCP's gameplan, will be the actual hospitalizations and deaths that will inevitably result from the fallout during this transition period. There are literally Albertan's lives on the line here with this plan. But I suppose that is of no concern to this governing party, as long as someone is getting paid somewhere.

[iggy_oi]

Originally Posted by edslunch

If you’re implying that private facilities would have a better working environment, you’re probably right, since they can cherry pick specific services. Public facilities are stressful because they are overwhelmed with work and understaffed, not because they are public. If every health care worker and patient gets a sweet private health care experience you’d better double the health care budget. Then again, double the health care budget and the public system will run like a well-oiled machine too.

What is leading you to assume that a private facility would have increased staffing?

[edslunch]

Originally Posted by iggy_oi

What is leading you to assume that a private facility would have increased staffing?

If you are performing a single type of surgery you can likely have a more efficient practice. Your practice will be paid a certain amount per procedure, likely with some guaranteed amount, and probably a premium if Ontario is any indication. So you can resource properly, as compared to a public possible where staff are stretched thin. That’s what I meant by cherry-picking. That’s not a model that can scale up to cover all the services of a hospital without a shipload of extra money.

All of the above assumes that you can enough health care workers which is obviously difficult unless you offer premium wages and working conditions. Which can only happen if you get a premium from the government or can do a ton of direct paid extras.

[iggy_oi]

Originally Posted by edslunch

If you are performing a single type of surgery you can likely have a more efficient practice. Your practice will be paid a certain amount per procedure, likely with some guaranteed amount, and probably a premium if Ontario is any indication. So you can resource properly, as compared to a public possible where staff are stretched thin. That’s what I meant by cherry-picking. That’s not a model that can scale up to cover all the services of a hospital without a shipload of extra money.

All of the above assumes that you can enough health care workers which is obviously difficult unless you offer premium wages and working conditions. Which can only happen if you get a premium from the government or can do a ton of direct paid extras.

If you’re running a private for-profit business your primary focus is likely going to be maximizing profits, in which case there’s little reason to hire more staff than necessary to provide the service.

[edslunch]

Originally Posted by iggy_oi

If you’re running a private for-profit business your primary focus is likely going to be maximizing profits, in which case there’s little reason to hire more staff than necessary to provide the service.

Sure, but full staffing is better than understaffing. But could only happen with sufficient and dedicated funding, something the public system is being denied

[iggy_oi]

Originally Posted by edslunch

Sure, but full staffing is better than understaffing. But could only happen with sufficient and dedicated funding, something the public system is being denied

The point on funding being denied in the public system is fair but in my experience dealing with private long term care homes I have no reason to believe other privatized healthcare facilities will see a staffing increase compared to their public counterparts.

[GordonBlue]

bet you all that UCP is going to do exactly what Ontario is doing.

It just came out that the province is paying for profit clinics more than public hospitals to do the same surgeries.


Doug Ford government paying for-profit clinic more than hospitals for OHIP-covered surgeries, documents show

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toron...tals-1.7026926

That discrepancy raises questions about the government's imminent plans to expand the volume and scope of surgeries performed outside of hospitals, including the potentially lucrative field of hip and knee replacements.

Ford and his health minister have pitched this expansion as a cost-efficient way to get more surgeries done and reduce wait times.