2011-02-01, 05:46 PM
Sarah Wrote:Regardless, I often hear Americans complaining about Canadian wait times as a downside of socialised healthcare when they're absolutely no different than your wait times.
It probably varies. Some hospitals have shorter waiting periods than others due to several factors.
Edit: after looking up some statistics, looks like America is faster than Canada on average:
Quote:Studies by the Commonwealth Fund found that 42% of Canadians waited 2 hours or more in the emergency room, vs. 29% in the U.S.; 57% waited 4 weeks or more to see a specialist, vs. 23% in the U.S., but Canadians had more chances of getting medical attention at nights, or on weekends and holidays than their American neighbors without the need to visit an ER (54% compared to 61%).[58] Statistics from the Canadian free market think tank Fraser Institute in 2008 indicate that the average wait time between the time when a general practitioner refers a patient for care and the receipt of treatment was almost four and a half months in 2008, roughly double what it had been 15 years before.[59http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_...ted_States
But obviously there are other factors involved and other statistics mentioned.

