– Talk to your doctor, tell your doctor. Onus is on the “your”.

That’s a good one. Which doctor ? Or, Dr. Internet. The all inclusive, universal answer to all the questions about medical procedures, medications, and often to also identify any health problems. Self-care, self-management, that is the name of the game when a government cannot come up with safe, reliable and consistent health care services for its tax payers.

Like here in British Columbia, BC, Canada. We do have doctors, but we lack access to doctors. The majority of BC residents have no family doctor. And the government which controls all medical care procedures and processes, requires that a family doctor must provide primary care. Meaning seeing patients, identifying any underlying health conditions and problems, finding the right solutions, and the right treatments and medications.

In the absence of any well-trained physicians, often nurse practitioners will fill the gap. The training for nurse practitioners, mainly because we need many more than we have, is not very extensive. [ https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/marketreport/requirements/25524/ca ]  [ https://www.bccnm.ca/NP/applications_registration/how_to_apply/Pages/Default.aspx ]

Take a Nurse Practitioner in one of our health care clinics: When is their education completed ? when does a Nurse Practitioner Family had his/her last update training ? As medical science changes daily, it should be imperative to continually update one’s education and training in order to provide safe healthcare advice and treatment.

This is not done. Most health care workers are over-worked, and spend a major part of their workday filling in forms and attending to other bureaucratic measurements, controlled by the government. Then there are all those regulations: what can be done, what should be done, what is not allowed, where does the government needs to save money. And of course the triage system. Like “flipping a coin” – who should be treated and who must wait, or die.

In those years I have been assigned to a NP, the only treatment easy to receive were X-rays (practically for any or all conditions, not necessarily bones), cremes and lotions to “heal nerve injuries and nerve pain”, and of course prescriptions to medications (no monitoring blood or other tests, which should be required to control any medication).

Why ? Because prescribing medications is a lucrative business for many health care professionals.

[ https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/pharmaceutical-drug-company-doctor-physician-payment-disclosure-transparency-1.4169888 ] [ https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/doctors-pharmaceutical-funding-1.4164625 ]

Although paying my medications out of my own pocket. despite, I cannot get regular blood tests to monitor, if those medications are any good.

Old news: [ https://www.cma.ca/sites/default/files/2018-11/the-state-of-seniors-health-care-in-canada-september-2016.pdf ]