Last Saturday at the pharmacy, something happened that's left me deeply troubled. A young child "M", who I've cared for since her arthritis diagnosis, can no longer receive medication from us. The reason? A shift in insurance practices that's impacting patient care deeply. When M first came in, carried by her father, both were in distress. She was in so much pain, the poor thing couldn't walk. We were facing a shortage of pediatric liquid pain meds, but I couldn't let them leave without helping.

🏥After administering thousands of vaccines over the past few years, we've made the tough decision to conclude our vaccine season, & possibly for all future seasons for publicly funded vaccines. The vaccine rollout this year has been the worst we've experienced, raising questions about how the ministry of health operates. @ONThealth

It’s a lesson that I taught many of my students. Even though your patient may seem frail, unaware, and at times difficult, never belittle or patronize them. Because behind the medical condition is a person with a story. I tell them about Mr. M, a man I treated early on in my career. He was in his late 80’s, had a heavy British accent, and I would have to repeat myself 6 or 7 times so he could understand me. Not long after our first few interactions, he was diagnosed with dementia.

I performed this test on a child with autism in front of the pharmacy today. His mother wanted him tested because "he had a cold". This child has COVID. This child could have infected his whole class had his mother not PAID for this test. This child could have caused his school to shut down, infections leading to hospitalizations, or worse.
#rapidtests cost around $1 when purchased in bulk, they can save countless lives, and prevent school and business shut downs. We've known this for over a year.

A young lady, double vaccinated and completely asymptomatic, drops by the pharmacy for a rapid test. She explained that she has to look after an immunocompromised relative so she wanted to do the test as an added precaution. I completed the test and got this: I advised her to get a confirmatory PCR and to isolate immediately.

But this situation made me question a lot of things.
What if this is a true positive? (Highly likely)
What if she never got tested and infected her relative?
Why the hell does she have to pay for the test?