Rural health care under fire

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The big question being asked in my circle of friends is “are rural Albertans going to be willing to give up their health care services to help the UCP make their rich friends a lot richer?”

This is where these comments are coming from.

Over the years, we have had two retired medical doctors who had worked in a two-tiered health care system in the U.K. as part of our circle of friends. They were furious when Ralph Klein began promoting a similar system for Alberta and their reasons made perfect sense.

First off, we don’t have nearly enough doctors and nurses to make it work properly.

Secondly, our populations aren’t concentrated enough like they are in Europe, where it does work.

Their third reason was the one that concerned them the most., because it will cost some people their lives. There is no way you can keep doctors and nurses working in rural Alberta if they can make more money working in these private for profit clinics and hospitals in the cities that this scheme will create, and we are having enough trouble doing so as it is.

Over the years, I have discussed this with many other doctors and nurses, and my friends have also, and we have yet to find anyone who doesn’t agree with what these doctors have said.

This would be a horrific nightmare for rural Albertans, especially our fellow seniors, and it will definitely cost some their lives.

ALAN SPILLER

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