UK, US, and Canuck Health Care Systems — Has Canada Really Got It That Bad?

You remember our little discussion the other day about the differences in financial systems? Yeah, well, I’m still thinkin about the general idea of how different our cultures are. I’ve found the health care debates in the US particularly fascinating. Now, I wonder if Canada has the best idea

Health Care In The UK

The social health care system in the UK seems to be a hybrid between the US and Canadian systems. For instance, it costs them nothing to see a doctor during the day. However, if they’d like a private session after hours, the patient makes the arrangements and pays for the service. Seems fair enough to me. Oh, and like Canada, there’s often a waiting list to get in for some services.

When it comes to prescriptions, UK residents play a flat fee per medication. However, those with a low income can apply for free prescriptions (Now this is something Canada could certainly use!) This all sounds good, but not everything in terms of healthcare is free. For example, women in the UK are getting Botox injections and facelifts to look younger. And, because these are an elective treatment, the costs fall fully on the patient, but they actually aren’t that horribly expensive.

Canadian Health Care

I’ll admit that I’ve spent a lot of time going through the health care system, and I have to say that generally, it’s pretty darn good. Yes, we have a significant issue with waiting lists. And yes, there seems to be a ‘get ‘em in and get ‘em out’ attitude in some places, but I’ve never been turned away for care. Ever. Even when I panicked as a first time mom, and ran to the emergency for my son’s first cold.

I’ve also paid for elective surgeries and treatments. Unfortunately, this also includes regular, everyday items like birth control pills, even when it was for medical reasons rather than for preventing pregnancy. And like those living in the UK, I’ve considered plastic surgery such as a tummy tuck, which I’m going to have to pay for regardless where we live. It doesn’t bother me though. I mean it’s like choosing between an old Ford Taurus and a Lexus right? Not necessary. Just nice.

I do think that Canada could take a few cues from the US and the UK when it comes to private care.

What Canada Can Learn From US and the UK

In the US, the government wants to offer government run insurance, and it sounds to me like they’ll also have some government run facilities. If you can afford to buy insurance and think a private company can offer your family something better. And, as I mentioned before, doctors can work privately after hours.

Why can’t Canada adopt similar policies? If you want to get in faster, or have an elective surgery, why can’t you pay for it all? You’d get what you want as a patient, the doctors could earn extra money, and it would ease some of the strain on our health care system? Makes sense to me. If you don’t want to pay for it, or can’t afford it, you’re good.

I don’t know. What do you think? Overall, I think Canadians have it pretty good.

(This post also appears on Travel the Prairies at
http://www.traveltheprairies.com/canada/uk-us-canuck-health-care-canada/
)

How Much Are Canadians Like Their UK Counterparts — A Look at Financial Systems

It doesn’t seem to matter where you live these days, there’s a lot of complaining over high costs and how our financial systems really work. I also know the best way to learn about your world it to look at it from the outside. So, I started to wonder what the real difference is at the ground level. You know, what differences would I notice if I were to move to the UK for instance? After all, our countries can’t be that different. Right?

Canadian and UK Credit Card Deals

I figured if I were going to notice one huge difference, it’d be with my Canadian credit cards. So, I headed to the mbna website to look for the best UK credit card deal. I have to admit that their interest rate of 15.9% was better than ours, which averages somewhere around the 19% mark.

They have low APR credit cards in the UK just like we do here, and the system seems to be exactly the same. Even the application process appeared to be the same. In fact, if I hadn’t seen the little symbol for British Pounds and their phone numbers, I’d have not been able to tell that it wasn’t Canadian.

What I did find interesting, however, was the kinds of credit cards they had. For instance, they had cards that let you support your favorite football team (English football, not our football). They also offered cards that supported charity. I think these are great ideas.

With the football credit cards, you collect points for every Pound you put on the card. Then, when you get enough points, you trade them in for official merchandise and the team receives the money. Charity cards are available too and they work in much the same way.

Of course, we have this kind of thing too, but the money goes back into our own pockets, or we trade them for some cool gadget, rather than giving it to a good cause. Interesting. Does this possibly mean that Canadians are more self-serving than those in the UK?

Mortgages in the UK

It seems that the UK mortgage system isn’t a whole lot different from ours. Anyone with less than perfect credit will find it difficult to get one. And, the housing market seems to be the craps to put it mildly. House prices are falling, and yet they’re giving away fewer and fewer mortgages.

There are a few differences that don’t seem too major, but if you were going to buy a home there, it would make a huge difference. For example, it seems first time homebuyers in the UK have to have 10-15% to put down on their homes. Here, it’s still 5%. Also, those with blemished credit would find it far more difficult to get a mortgage in the UK than they would in Canada. However, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing and Canada seems to be moving that way as well.

It seems that the two countries might not be a different in this regards as I thought. But, it certainly seems to outline a difference in the two cultures. Just by looking at the two financial systems alone, it seems that the UK had cut out the needless spending (or just never started). Interesting, and definitely something to consider anyway.

(This post also appears on Travel the Prairies at
http://www.traveltheprairies.com/canada/canadians-uk-financial-systems/
)

80 Million Year Old Fierce Sea Creature Found By Canadian Fossil Discovery Centre

Fierce Ancient Sea Creature Discovered by the Canadian Fossil Discovery Centre

©2008Angie Haggstrom

In the town of Morden, Manitoba sits the very exited staff of the Canadian Fossil Discovery Centre. The source of the excitement is the discovery of an 80 million year old mosasaur no far from Miami, Manitoba. The eerie prehistoric creature is said to be the biggest find in the province in more than 25 years.

The skeleton is estimated to be between 10-12 metres long and was thought to be the king of the ocean back in the day. The creature is believed to have breathed air. In its skeletal jaw, the creature sported teeth just over 5″(13cm). Even with massive teeth like that, the mosasaur could dislocate its jaw willingly to devour larger meals. The centre’s curator believes it may be an earlier relative of the snakes, a crocodile with fins, or a Komodo dragon that inhabits the earth today.

The mosasaur, named Angus, won’t be lonely at the centre. The centre has another mosasaur named Bruce who was discovered in 1974 at Thornhill, Manitoba. Other fossils have also been discovered in the same area Angus has been sleeping for millions of years making the area a priceless find.

Perhaps most interesting about this story is the fact that the ancient monster was discovered by visitors and summer students to the center during a public dig. The Discovery Centre holds all sorts of different programs and workshops not only for children and intern paleontologists, but also for the general public. They hold digs where members of the public can accompany professionals into the field to look for real dinosaur bones and not fake ones buried in the sand like with many programs. The centre also offers trained volunteer positions to those staying in the area.

The Canadian Fossil Discovery Centre holds approximately 600 different objects from the late Cretaceous period. The centre focuses purely on marine reptile fossils although it does house many different fossil plants, minerals, rocks, and invertebrates. The centre is open from 1-5 every afternoon all year around. At the time of this post, they only charge $6 per adult, $3 per student, and $12 per family. What an inexpensive afternoon!

For more information, please visit the Canadian Fossil Discovery Centre or you can learn more about Mosasaurs on Wikipedia.

(This post can also be found here:
http://www.traveltheprairies.com/manitoba/80-million-sea-creature-canadian-fossil-discovery-centre/
)

Brandon, Manitoba, Canada: An Insider’s Guide to the City Part Two

This post can now be found here:
http://www.traveltheprairies.com/manitoba/brandon-manitoba-canada-insiders-guide-part-two/