Alberta Politics & Government Thread 3.0

[Fuzz]

Originally Posted by Mr.Coffee

But why is death the health consequence that is your arbitrary measuring stick for whether or not an ER is working?

That's what I don't understand about your position.

As pointed out by ozy there are a wide range of other health outcomes. Maybe what you mean is that the new norm of 10 hour waits is something that society better get used to.

But I disagree, I don't think Albertans should stand for that. Slava asks what can be done, here are a few of my uneducated random ideas:

1. Build another hospital (or two...) in Calgary, which has a small number now for a large population
2. Foster increased spending to nurses and doctors, figure out a way to get the money to front line workers to encourage workforce participation and retention
3. Require / strongly encourage post-secondary schools with dr / nursing / health care worker programs to bring in more applicants and lower the entry requirements a little bit. Engage with them and ask them why we are not pumping out more workers and then work with them to solve these specific problems.
4. This will be unpopular but do NOT institute masking. Masking has weakened society's collective immune systems and is contributing to a surge in non-covid related illnesses like RSV, flu, etc. We need to take the L for a year or two and get back to building up normal immune systems / stronger society. Masking was a good solution for COVID but is causing other bad health outcomes as people's immune systems are now weaker as a result of being isolated and not exposed to the various viruses that mutate and rampage through society every fall.

This is false. Not sure where you got it from, but that's not how it works.

The point of masking at this point is to reduce transmission speed which will reduce burden on the system. It's not that no one will get infected, it just reduces the active level. And we don't need constant masking, just through this period. Maybe it will have to be every fall, who knows how this plays out in the future. But for now it's pretty obvious to experts what we should do. Maybe we should listen to them.

[Superflyer]

Also as to something that we can do in the short term. I was reading about a mobile primary care clinic that the government of Nova Scotia is doing. Basically they have mobile clinics setup in vans that go around to smaller communities where they are short of doctors or locations that have long wait times and treat people for less urgent items so they do not have to go to emergency or take an appt space at their Dr.

https://www.nshealth.ca/mobileprimarycare

Types of concerns addressed at the mobile primary care clinic include:

Prescription refills or renewals (excluding prescriptions related to controlled substances)
Mild abdominal pain
Mild strains/sprains
Mild Headaches
Earaches
Sore throat
Minor infections
Skin and eye irritations
Mild asthma
Minor respiratory issues
Cough, flu, or cold symptoms
Urinary tract infections

[Street Pharmacist]

Originally Posted by Superflyer

Also as to something that we can do in the short term. I was reading about a mobile primary care clinic that the government of Nova Scotia is doing. Basically they have mobile clinics setup in vans that go around to smaller communities where they are short of doctors or locations that have long wait times and treat people for less urgent items so they do not have to go to emergency or take an appt space at their Dr.

https://www.nshealth.ca/mobileprimarycare

Types of concerns addressed at the mobile primary care clinic include:

Prescription refills or renewals (excluding prescriptions related to controlled substances)
Mild abdominal pain
Mild strains/sprains
Mild Headaches
Earaches
Sore throat
Minor infections
Skin and eye irritations
Mild asthma
Minor respiratory issues
Cough, flu, or cold symptoms
Urinary tract infections

All of these can be done by almost every pharmacy in Alberta, though the pharmacist shortage is certainly being felt acutely in rural areas too

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by Mr.Coffee

what does "immunity naive" mean?

People build immunity by getting sick. They aren’t getting more sick or sick at higher rates when the timeline is looked at over years.

Immunity naive just refers to the issue of people not getting exposure to a virus. For RSV, for example, say 5000 per year are exposed for the first time and 4000 get sick. Our capacity is designed for 4000 per year. (These are all just hypothetical numbers). What happened with COVID and masking/distancing/etc is that 5000 was actually 2000, and 1600 got sick. But those 3000 didn’t avoid it forever, they just moved forward, so now it’s 8000 exposed for the first time and 6400 sick, which puts a system designed for 4000 over capacity.

The immune system isn’t a muscle that needs exercise. Having a strong immune system is good, but most people naturally do (some people have weak ones or too strong ones, and they are generally chronically ill people). The only difference between now and 3 years ago is the timeline of exposures was disrupted and a lot of them are happening right now, all at once. But if you look at the last 3 years on average, there isn’t more of these cases than other 3 year periods, if that makes sense.

[Street Pharmacist]

Originally Posted by Mr.Coffee

But why is death the health consequence that is your arbitrary measuring stick for whether or not an ER is working?

That's what I don't understand about your position.

As pointed out by ozy there are a wide range of other health outcomes. Maybe what you mean is that the new norm of 10 hour waits is something that society better get used to.

But I disagree, I don't think Albertans should stand for that. Slava asks what can be done, here are a few of my uneducated random ideas:

1. Build another hospital (or two...) in Calgary, which has a small number now for a large population
2. Foster increased spending to nurses and doctors, figure out a way to get the money to front line workers to encourage workforce participation and retention
3. Require / strongly encourage post-secondary schools with dr / nursing / health care worker programs to bring in more applicants and lower the entry requirements a little bit. Engage with them and ask them why we are not pumping out more workers and then work with them to solve these specific problems.
4. This will be unpopular but do NOT institute masking. Masking has weakened society's collective immune systems and is contributing to a surge in non-covid related illnesses like RSV, flu, etc. We need to take the L for a year or two and get back to building up normal immune systems / stronger society. Masking was a good solution for COVID but is causing other bad health outcomes as people's immune systems are now weaker as a result of being isolated and not exposed to the various viruses that mutate and rampage through society every fall.

#3 is entirely funding related. The reason the post-secondary institutions have such high admission requirements is because they have so few spots, which is because it's so expensive. Training more Doctors now doesn't necessarily fix anything for at least 5 years, and takes about 2-3 years to implement, which means a decade or so away. Also, can't have #1 without #3 or you just have empty rooms.

[Johnny Makarov]

Originally Posted by Locke

Can we punt these Clowns yet?

Yoho should have been gone months ago...

[IliketoPuck]

Frankly I'm completely embarrassed by our government and their management of our public health care systems.

Ostensibly, we live in one of, if not the, wealthiest provinces in Canada. Which, on a global basis, makes us one of the wealthiest places on the entire planet in which to live. Where else but here can it be done right?

Our wait times and system strain for care are so bad that the health authorities are closing PEDIATRIC PALLIATIVE CARE FACILITIES!!!!!!!!

What the actual ****. Completely unacceptable. We've spent three years grinding our health system into the ground through COVID to the point where sick kids with terminal illnesses are not being provided with the most compassionate care possible. But Danielle Smith sure found a couple bucks in the kitty to provide Ralph Bucks 2.0.

Get the **** out of here with that. This government needs to get their **** together. Absolute farce.

[Muta]

By the way, how's the War Room doing? Are we building new pipelines and owning the Libs yet?

[Looch City]

Originally Posted by Muta

By the way, how's the War Room doing? Are we building new pipelines and owning the Libs yet?

It's actually now called War Against-Woke-Culture Room.

[DoubleF]

Originally Posted by Yoho

https://twitter.com/user/status/1599860061966372886

Some balanced journalism from the herald.

Is anyone else looking at this pic and getting blue steel vibes?

I tried to read the article, remain objective while doing so, and the only damn thing I'm walking away with, is Ben Stiller's stupid face bouncing in my head.

[Yoho]

https://twitter.com/user/status/1600168347122933761

Bravo getting things done.

[RedHot25]

Alright, I'm to leaning to AI bot now.

[Superflyer]

Originally Posted by Yoho

https://twitter.com/user/status/1600168347122933761

Bravo getting things done.

So it is not an approved drug for Canada and not manufactured yet. Once it (hopefully) gets approval, then it will be about a month before it is on shelves.

The medication still needs to be manufactured. Then, Copping expects Health Canada's approval to import the medication will take two to three weeks, with shipments to Alberta starting soon after that.

"We're going to be working very hard at that and, again, have had conversations with the federal government to fast-track the approvals, so the good news is this is not an unknown entity to Health Canada," Copping said of the medication supplier. "They've already provided the certificates on that and again, pleased to be working with the federal government to move this as quickly as possible."

[Ozy_Flame]

Did anyone see the press conference for this today?

Looked to me like a disaster.

[Yikes]

Originally Posted by Yoho

https://twitter.com/user/status/1600168347122933761

Bravo getting things done.

Hopefully not bought from China...

[TorqueDog]

Originally Posted by RedHot25

Alright, I'm to leaning to AI bot now.

Does the A stand for "Absenting"?

[Muta]

Originally Posted by Yoho

Bravo getting things done.

From that article:

The Alberta government is expecting to pay a premium for the drugs and will subsidize the cost so that pharmacies can sell them "at the average retail price."

Hey Yoho, what do you think about this socialist/left-wing/commie/woke/Trudope/Nutley/Singh/Librtard policy? Is it a waste of money to buy these goods at a premium, or is it perfectly okay because Smith is in charge?

[Ozy_Flame]

Originally Posted by Muta

From that article:



Hey Yoho, what do you think about this socialist/left-wing/commie/woke/Trudope/Nutley/Singh/Librtard policy? Is it a waste of money to buy these goods at a premium, or is it perfectly okay because Smith is in charge?

The best part is that masking could have reduced the need/demand for children's medicine and the volumes required, as spreading viruses is the main culprit for this 'dog-chasing-car' governing.

Danielle Smith always waxes about preventative medicine. I guess it's better to prevent wearing masks than it is to prevent catching viruses.

I feel so sorry for the kids who are being subjected to this healthcare crisis brought on by the UCP and the healthcare workers who have to endure the pains of their policies.

[Slava]

Originally Posted by Ozy_Flame

The best part is that masking could have reduced the need/demand for children's medicine and the volumes required, as spreading viruses is the main culprit for this 'dog-chasing-car' governing.

Danielle Smith always waxes about preventative medicine. I guess it's better to prevent wearing masks than it is to prevent catching viruses.

I feel so sorry for the kids who are being subjected to this healthcare crisis brought on by the UCP and the healthcare workers who have to endure the pains of their policies.

Let me take a stab...no kids? Like the toddlers and little kids who are being stricken with the viruses going around at this point aren't going to be wearing masks all day. We went through a pile of those medications when my kids were young, not because of the government of the day, not because we were terrible parents or whatever. Kids get sick, and that stuff works to alleviate the symptoms.

[Ozy_Flame]

Who said cough medicine doesn't help? That's completely not what's being discussed here.

Masking would help alleviate some of the transmission of viruses and potentially improvement the dire situation in Alberta. Not doing so is missing a huge, low-cost, proven method to reduce stress on the system.

I mean, kids in Japan and Asia mask regularly. I've been there enough times to know that it's just a regular thing kids do when they're sick or when they're told to do so. Are North American kids really that different?

Also, were your kids in the middle of a pandemic?