Discover and read the best of Twitter Threads about #Abdocs4patients

Most recents (24)

Sadly, nothing has changed since this was posted 3+ mos ago. AB Health is still paying us drastically less for virtual visits than in-person, even though we still need to do a lot of virtual care to minimize risk of COVID spread.

Our clinics still pay rent, staff...1/
...wages, utilities etc. to remain functional, so using fewer tongue depressors and less exam table paper doesn't decrease our overhead costs to an appreciable degree just b/c we're interacting w/ patients by phone.

For some family docs, this means they're working as hard...2/
...as ever (in some cases harder), but only earning enough gross income to cover overhead expenses, w/ none left for personal income (i.e. to cover even basic living expenses, not talking about disposable income). Those docs are basically volunteering their time to work...3/
Read 16 tweets
If you can help @HarvestHillsYYC Please do. They're unfairly being targeted by UCP Conservative Party Trolls & are being harassed by people who are going after their organization.
They've even gone as far as demanding Jenn retract any & all statements she made in regards to being critical of the current Alberta Government.

We are indeed dealing with a cruel & heartless government.
These EVERYDAY heroes, are the very people that are stepping up & filling the GAP that our government is refusing to fill.

The @Alberta_UCP can't see the damage that is being done to the province that I & others love so much. From Doctors to Parks, Everything is being attacked.
Read 12 tweets
Kenney and Shandro are chasing family doctors out of Alberta at the same time theyā€™re scheming with UCP donors, lobbyists and property developers to push American style corporate healthcare.

#ableg #abpoli #cdnhealth #abdocs4patients Image
Its well past time for the UCP government to return to the negotiating table with the Alberta Medical Association to develop a new binding contract.
Family doctors in Alberta continue to close their practices in response to ongoing UCP hostility, and some are leaving the province altogether.
Read 3 tweets
On Sunday, Dr. Cody Thomson of Drayton Valley informed his patients he will close his practice and move to British Columbia, a choice he called ā€œincredibly difficult.ā€

#ableg #abhealth #abdocs4patients #draytonvalley #leduc Image
ā€œI never imagined I would be sitting here and writing this letter. I was born in the community and have lived the majority of my life here. I have spent the last seven years getting to know many thousands of patients and their loved ones,ā€ Thomson wrote.
ā€œThe professional reasons are specifically due to the current state of affairs in Alberta between its physicians and the United Conservative Party under Premier Jason Kenney and Minister Tyler Shandro."
Read 5 tweets
1...Albertans continue to vent their concerns regarding MOH @shandro via our online poll (forms.gle/kTULVLSwRK6gH4ā€¦).
3 days in, 1500 replies and what is the verdict so far?...2
2..98.7% or respondent Albertans say they do not trust the competency of Ty Shandro! But 97.4% of those same Albertans do trust their family doctor. Meanwhile 95.2% would prefer to see @shandro leave Alberta instead of doctors. What are those Albertans saying? Lets have a look..3
"Not only is the UCP the most deplorable Government I've seen, they are the most corrupt. When my 75 yo parents who are wildly conservative, are opposed, we, Alberta, have a BIG problem."

"They have failed and should be fired."
Read 13 tweets
Albertans: Have your say on @shandro (forms.gle/WoA5ZuVuEren3Wā€¦). <Later we will do @jkenney>. One more round of Albertan's opinions before bed. (Again, what follows are the real words of Albertans. Not my words. Unedited)
"Healthcare guarantee"

"Stop ruining our healthcare! Stop being reckless and stop mistreating and disrespecting our incredible doctors! Albertaā€™s healthcare system is in danger. "

"No private healthcare."

"Go back to arbitration."
"FIRE SHANDRO AND GET BACK TO THE NEGOTIATION TABLE"

"We did not vote for this."

"Stop using the doctors as an excuse to privatize our public healthcare."

"UCP is bad for Albertans"
Read 10 tweets
A thread about the latest way the UCP is making it harder by the day to stay and fight for my patients, our health care system, and my province.

I recently sold my farm, b/c it looked like I wouldn't be able to afford the upkeep under the current circumstances. 1/
Luckily, it sold not long after COVID hit, before many of the economic effects had shown themselves (I doubt I would easily find a buyer now if I had waited). But sold for a lot less than I paid for it.

My plan was to buy a house in the town where my clinic is located, and... 2/
... where I do hospital work. Moved into a rental temporarily while looking for a suitable house.

Have just heard from the mortgage broker that I didn't get approved for the house I put an offer on. Asked him if I could get approved for a smaller amount, like $195K for a... 3/
Read 10 tweets
We need to start talking about the real problem with #AlbertaHealthcare and why @shandro and @jkenney plans will not work, will harm patients, and will cost the system more while delivering less. MDs leaving (and they are) is not the primary problem. 1/x
The biggest issue, is that we started with too few.
I have worked all over this province, and from day one there has been a massive shortage of MDs. Where I work (rural and remote AB) the problem is most apparent. Large % of people unable to get a FM doc. 2/x
Many others driving upwards of 4 hours to see one. Those that are lucky enough to have one? Wait lists are up to 7 MONTHS. The incredible rural docs serving these communities work tirelessly. Routinely > 100 hours a week. But they are human, and can only do so much. 3/x
Read 10 tweets
Further analysis and consultation by the NDP Opposition confirms the UCPā€™s so-called Health Statutes Amendment Act, will set the stage for profit-centered, American-style healthcare.

cc: @shandro

#abpoli #ableg #abhealth #cdnhealth #abdocs4patients Image
The legislation currently before the House:

ā€¢Allows for-profit corporations to contract for insured health services, even at demonstrable detriment to the public health system, and at the expense of Albertans...
ā€¢Allows billing for health services directly between Government and for-profit corporations.
Read 5 tweets
That income which is earned:
-on-call (eves, weekends) at least 40 days/year in addition to my daytime work (shout out to my dear colleagues who are on call >180 d/yr with their specialized and rare skillsets)
-only after having completed 10(+) yrs post-secondary education.šŸ”»
That gross income from which:
-30% (avg) is deducted for overhead, which includes paying my staff, rent and equipment.
-I create jobs in my community
-I support my community and invest in it, and so do my colleagues and our employees
šŸ”»
That gross income from which:
-I save for my retirement (no pension!)
-I pay for my maternity leaves, sick leave, and holiday time.
-I pay for my extended health benefits and disability insurance.šŸ”»
Read 8 tweets
The NDP Opposition is backing Alberta doctors as they launch full-page newspaper advertisements to correct a long record of UCP lies designed to discredit their profession and clear a path to American-style, profit-centred health care.

#ableg #abpoli #abhealth #Abdocs4patients
Todayā€™s ads call on Health Minister Tyler Shandro to return to the bargaining table after he tore up the provinceā€™s previous deal with the Alberta Medical Association.

#cdnhealth
The ads also state that doctors put forward meaningful proposals to control costs in February, March and July, even while Kenney and Shandro were smearing numerous doctors in public and he went so far as to berate one doctor outside his home in front of his wife and children.
Read 5 tweets
Your heavy handed tactics wonā€™t play in your favour. We WANT to compensate physicians for saving our lives.

What Albertans want to see, Mr. @shandro, is the ā€œsunshine listā€ of big UCP donors, accountability for your asinine War Room funding & other propaganda. #abpoli #ABhealth
What we WANT to see is the list of your salaries & the salaries of your issues manages & secretaries compared to other provinces.

Why so high?! Yaā€™ll arenā€™t saving lives here. (In fact, youā€™re attacking the educational & health structures that would.) #ableg #ABdocs4patients
What weā€™d LIKE to see, mr. @shandro, is exactly how much your family will financially benefit from increased need for health insurance when your wife runs a *checks notes* company that provides health insurance. #ableg #abpoli calgaryherald.com/news/politics/ā€¦
Read 9 tweets
Albertaā€™s NDP Opposition is calling for an emergency debate in the legislature in response to the news that almost half of the provinceā€™s doctors are considering leaving.

#ableg #abpoli #abhealth #abdocs4patients
ā€œItā€™s truly alarming that almost half of Albertaā€™s doctors are seriously considering leaving due to the attacks of Premier Jason Kenney and his Health Minister Tyler Shandro.ā€
- @RachelNotley
Other provinces are actively recruiting Alberta doctors to move to a place where their provincial government respects their profession. Communities like Pincher Creek are staging protests in the street over doctor losses.
Read 3 tweets
GLOBAL NEWS: "Up until very recently, Alberta was a great place to practice medicine. The provinceā€™s approach is making it unsustainable for many of them."

cc: @shandro

#ableg #abpoli #cdnhealth #abdocs4patients

globalnews.ca/news/7162354/aā€¦
Many Alberta physicians have ā€œreached a breaking pointā€ and are looking to practice medicine outside of the province, according to a new survey by the Alberta Medical Association.
ā€œPhysicians have reached a breaking point,ā€ AMA president Dr. Christine Molnar said. ā€œIā€™m deeply troubled by where this is going and what itā€™s going to mean for medical practices and patients in the coming months.
Read 3 tweets
From @DShepYEG on the news that almost 1/2 of Alberta's docs are thinking about leaving the province:

"Iā€™m deeply troubled to see thousands of doctors are preparing to resign, retire, or move out of Alberta altogether, but I canā€™t say Iā€™m shocked."

THREAD #abhealth #ableg
ā€œPremier Jason Kenney and Health Minister Tyler Shandro are at war with Alberta doctors: tearing up their contract, cutting their pay, and imposing hundreds of pages of new paperwork in the middle of a public health emergency."

2/ #abhealth #ableg
"Kenney and Shandro have smeared Alberta doctors at every turn, suggesting they are lazy, greedy and dishonest. Itā€™s despicable.

This week, Shandro introduced Bill 30, another attempt to weaken family doctorsā€™ practices & replace them with corporate clinics." 3/ #abhealth #ableg
Read 7 tweets
A new survey of Alberta doctors reveals that 42% are considering leaving the province or have already made plans to do so. More than a third are considering early retirement, clinic closure or resignation from their local hospital

#ableg #abhealth #cdnhealth #abdocs4patients
ā€œIā€™m deeply troubled to see thousands of doctors are preparing to resign, retire, or move out of Alberta altogether, but I canā€™t say Iā€™m shocked."
- @DShepYEG
According to the survey, commissioned by the Alberta Medical Association, fully 87 per cent of doctors are planning to resign, retire, reduce their hours, lay off staff or leave Alberta.
Read 5 tweets
ā‡ļøShandemic: Thread of Two Tiersā‡ļø

There once was two firefighters.
Dr. Oru and Dr. Eye
They both worked for Alberta Health
But only one would go buh bye....

#AbLeg
#patients4abdocs
#ABdocs4patients
Tyler took away their masks šŸ‘©ā€šŸš’
Tyler took away their hazard pay šŸ§Æ
Tyler ripped up their contract šŸ§Ø
Tyler fought their union in every way šŸš’

Tyler yelled on their driveways,
Tyler called them at night;
Tyler said they got paid too
much, and that wasn't right.
Then along came CoronašŸ¦ 
A deadly arsonist to fight,
Burning down hospitals,šŸ”„
Doctors worked all through the night.

But STILL Tyler took away their masks.
Again Tyler took away their hazard pay
Tyler kept their contract ripped up,
Tyler fought their union every day

#COVID19
Read 9 tweets
Bill 30 is another step in Jason Kenneyā€™s rush to bring a failed American-style model of healthcare to Alberta.

#ableg #abpoli #abhealth #cdnhealth
#abdocs4patients
Jason Kenney is deliberately weakening the public healthcare system that Albertans rely on ā€¦ by moving ever-more surgeries, tests, and other procedures into the private sector.
Jason Kenney isnā€™t satisfied to give a $4.7-billion handout to corporate shareholders, now he wants those shareholders to profit off injured and sick Albertans.

Itā€™s the wrong path for Alberta.
Read 3 tweets
8 doctors followed through on their plans to resign their privileges at the #Sundre Hospital in response to the UCP tearing up the provinceā€™s contract with Albertaā€™s doctors.

cc: @shandro

#ableg #abpoli #abhealth #cdnhealth #abdocs4patients Image
ā€œI feel like we are settling in for a siege, and between COVID and the UCP, we are just going to try to survive and wait them both out."
- Dr. Michelle Warren
The departure of the #Sundre doctors from their hospital comes the day after residents of #PincherCreek rallied in their cars to raise the alarm for their own community.
Read 3 tweets
#abpoli: A thread. Imagine your boss, who has been harassing and intimidating you for months, suddenly rips up your contract. 1/#abdocs4patients
He then makes huge cuts to your pay, and when he occasionally gives back a small part of what he took away, he lies and boasts about how he is giving you the most generous incentives in the country. 2/ #abdocs4patients
He frequently decides on a whim to stop paying you for some of your work, and this happens regularly. Sometimes you donā€™t find out until your next paycheque. 3/ #abdocs4patients
Read 7 tweets
@BarackObama Dear sir, I am a family doctor, trying to organize my colleagues towards action against a trumpist provincial government. This is occurring in Alberta Canada. I am texting you on the off chance you might follow me. Occasionally we (#abdocs4patients)will release...2
2... media content about Alberta healthcare tragedies and how to change this. Would you consider following us and retweetinf/hearing it when you feel it on target with your own sense of moral correctness? John
It seems fitting that the most followed twitter account in the world is generally seen as owned by a person renowned for social justice
Read 3 tweets
1/ Although it feels like 10 years ago, it was actually only 8 weeks ago that the Health Minister gave notice that Alberta radiologists would have their contract terminated next year, after the radiologists took a retroactive 12% pay cut during binding arbitration.
2/ I know itā€™s hard to keep track of everything the UCP has done to health care, but this seems particularly egregious, especially given that they will almost definitely give the next contract to whoever feels they can do it the cheapest.
3/ I think all physician specialties, nurses, dietitians, allied health professionals and AHS employees are important to our health care system, but it is difficult to put into words how much I depend on our radiologists on a day-to-day basis for expedited tests, advice,
Read 6 tweets

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