Can Quebec afford dialysis for every 80-year-old patient?
After the Quebec Hospital Association began stoking the province’s health care fires this fall, separatism was no longer the only issue creating heat in the province. The 135-member organization stated publicly that difficult and unpopular decisions affecting patients’ lives have to be made in a climate of restricted government spending. Long waiting lists and reduced access to health care led the association to pose some tough questions. Now President Marie-Claire Daigneault-Bourdeau and Vice-President Daniel Adam want a public debate involving both federal and provincial governments to supply the answers. Should we develop a role for the private sector in Canada? Can we afford to offer all services to everyone on an equal basis? “Should we put a pacemaker in an 82-year-old patient?” asked Adam. “Should we accept giving dialysis treatment to an 80-year-old patient? This is the type of debate we should carry out.” Many people find this kind of thinking unethical and unacceptable. “They
