Here's the definition of kickback: a percentage of income given to a person in a position of power or influence as payment for having made the income possible: usually considered improper or unethical. In other words, if a doctor managed to prescribe a drug enough so that a pharmaceutical company made $100,000 profit, the company would then give the doctor some of the $100,000 as a "reward" for making them so much money. Trust me, there really isn't a way for pharma companies to track that information. I think what people here are referring to is pharma companies *bribing* doctors to prescribe drugs. The definition of a bribe: money or favor given or promised in order to influence the judgment or conduct of a person in a position of trust. Those pens and pads of paper and the odd lunch aren't bribes--it just isn't worth that much. Those pens and pads of paper are promotional materials--my bank hands out pens, my hair salon hands out pens. Are you taking a bribe when you receive or use a pen with your bank's name stamped on it? My sister-in-law is a doctor. She's in family practice. She spends at least one week every year taking continuing education courses in order to stay current in her field. She spends more time at home, reading medical journals and doing other research to help her patients. Her first child was born with multiple birth defects--dislocated joints, really messed up vertebra that caused a spinal cord injury which resulted in quadriplegia, floppy trachea requiring a trach and a ventilator. At birth, they gave him less than 24 hours to live, based on everything that was wrong. My nephew spent his first six months in NICU at the area's best hospital. His doctors, and my SIL knew who the best doctors were, could not figure out what the problem was. They treated the symptoms because that was all they could do. They were calling colleagues all over the country, trying to figure out what was wrong. A new doctor was recommended to them. When he saw the MRIs and CT scans and X-rays, he had the courage to tell them he couldn't help my nephew. But he referred them to yet another doctor, 500 miles away, at a major Children's Hospital in another state. Just before his second birthday, they got a diagnosis of the syndrome that Nephew was, and a plan of attack on how to treat the 13 different birth defects that he was born with. It's a rare disorder. And Nephew has some of the more rare symptoms and is missing one of the most common. There are many, many rare disorders and it is not possible for doctors to know them all. But it is possible for them to seek out help in finding out what a patient has. It can take a long time, though, until you find a doctor who can lead you to another doctor who has the knowledge you are seeking.

Susieque, I am surprised too that Jasdip;s neighbour doesn't even have a clinic doctor. but they may live in an area where there are not many clinics. The Province of Ontario's health care mandate is that everyone should have access to a doctor. I am not absolutely positive but I think they wanted Doctors to devote some of their time to clinic hours so that everyone has access to a doctor that does not have a family physician. In the community where I live I can count more than 3 walk in clinics less than a mile from my house, some are even open nights and weekends. Kathleen, I am sorry you experienced bad health care.Do you live in an under service area. Where I live there seems to be a medical clinic every frew miles and we are a city with a population of just over 200,000. I guess my family and friends have been fortunate. I haven't heard of any horror stories personally but I don't doubt there are problems. I guess until you experience it you don't know how bad it could be. My family members and some friends have had some severe medical issues and have had nothing but wonderful care. My sister was telling me today her one prescription is $700 a month and the senior plan does not cover it but the cancer clinic pays for it. For all the prescriptions she has she only has to pay $4 co pay per prescription. I was at my Doctors just last week for a bug and infection I picked up. Last week I went to the clinic where my Doctor works and was seen immediately. I didn't have to wait 5 minutes. They took my health card number and I was in. My Doctor examined me and arranged for an ultrasound for the next day. After the ultrasound it wasn't even a week before I got the results and was called by my Doctor's office to come in that day but I couldn't so I went in the next day. Thursday I went to my Doctor's office in the same building as the clinic since he was in his office that day seeing his regular patients. Again, I didn't have to wait more than 5 minutes to get in and then got the results and was given a batch of tests to have done. One of the tests is for a mammogram and that is next Thursday - I have never had to wait more than a week to get a mammogram although I know some areas where the wait is longer. Some women are referred here from other cities because of the shorter wait time. My blood tests and x-rays I can just drop in down the street at another clinic to have them done at the same time although I am not looking forward to the blood tests. No appointment is necessary. The other test I have to have done is a mail in test haha not looking forward to doing that one either. One of my family members does not have a family doctor and is a long term patient with one of the doctors at a clinic. I don't have a drug plan so I pay for my prescriptions. If I do need something that is expensive or long term like when I had to take prescription meds for my acid reflux my Doctor;s nurse arranged for the drug rep to drop off boxes of medication for me and I would pick it up once a month. I don't have need for them anymore. I know someone who has degenerative disks in her back making it hard for her to walk. One day it got so bad she went to see the Doctor and she got into see a neurologist right away which was surprising. She was sent for an MRI. After the MRI when she was ready to leave they told her she couldn't go they were sending her for surgery right away. She was shocked at this and wanted time to think so had to sign a waiver to go home. They told her if it gets any worse to come back to the ER and they would get her right into surgery which is what eventually happened. No waiting. Just told to come in. Now I must admit that is a bit unusual but some people are lucky haha As far as foreign doctors from other countries. They just can't come in and start practicing. They may be wonderful knowledgeable Doctors in their own countries but when they come to Canada they have to have the same qualifications that Canadian doctors do. They have to pass Board examines and get their Canadian medical license Sure there are a lot of problems with our medical system but isn't there in other places as well. I have heard of long wait times in American ERs just like here. I just watched ABC's Nightline the other night where a charitable organization set up an outdoor medical clinic in Virginia where some people waited in line for days to see a doctor, dentist, many types of health care because they don't have access to medical care of doctors or can't afford to go. I think we are fortunate none of us in Canada has to do that. If you have the money the US will welcome you with open arms. Many people here take the 15 minute trip across the border for surgery because they have the means to do so. Sometimes OHIP will even pay for needed medical care across the border. Often people in Windsor are sent across the border to trauma centres. I guess we are lucky we can have the best of both worlds. In every walk of life you meet rude people, people do lose patience especially those that have to deal with the public and are over worked. No it is not good to be on the receiving end when you are ill and there is no excuse for it but it happens. If I was so bothered by it I would find somewhere to complain, there are ways to do that. Hospitals have boards, then there is Health Ontario. If the doctor was incompetent I would go elsewhere. I like to know that I can live in a Province that if I or any of my family or friends get sick, we can get health care without worrying how much it is going to cost us or if we can afford it or if we have the right insurance to cover us.. Sure the time will come as it already has that some services are not free anymore like physiotherapy or mole removal but that is a small price to pay for what we do have. Sherry I hope your friend gets the help she needs from a good doctor. Sometimes if you live in a small community it is good to get a referral to a bigger medical centre like London.

I still don't have a clue how the hospital found out that I needed the test -- that baffles me. But they knew at the time they called to schedule that the insurance would cover it, and by the time I showed up for the test, they had an estimate ready for my co-pay. All of this before the doctor's office even bothered to call me back to tell me that I could schedule the test myself. Honestly, I'm getting the feeling that this nurse just does not like me. She doesn't follow through in a timely manner with anything the doctor orders for me, avoids speaking to me when she can, and is downright frosty when she's forced to interact. I think the idea of writing everything down is a good plan. I'm going to do that, then bring it up to the doctor the next time I see him face to face. I worry that he might "take her side", but then I think it's ridiculous that there ARE sides. I'd hate to lose a good doctor over this but, at this point, I am almost eight weeks into trying to find out what is wrong and I feel like his nurse is compromising my medical care -- so what do I really have to lose? Thanks for your help and support.

Many task forces both nationally and internationally say our use of mammograms are not proven to improve survival any more than skin checks. Our country mandates so many “popular” screenings because the industries that profit by the testing are allowed to lobby for it. our gold standards are based only on how much gold they can make. All other countries independently use data and facts collected by unbiased professionals to support their choices rather than might and money. Our screening recommendations are lobby based and political not anything to do with result based rational. We cure less breast cancer with our early screening than the uk, with out using aggressive screenings, do. Same with colonoscopy recommendations. read my link above. Emotions and money rule our medical screening not science. . edited to add, our preventive schemes are a big reason our country will likely never offer universal health care. Insurance companies know this, drug and testing industries know this and politicians know this. universal health care can not afford to sustain screening with unproven benefits and our American mentality erroneously believes they are needed by all to save lives when that is proven to be false.