Patients upset over losing doctors to private clinic
25.09.2008 19:04
Health
- Source: cbc.ca
 Copeland Healthcare Centre opened its first location in Vancouver in 2007. (CBC) Two family doctors have closed up their practices and joined Calgary's newest private medical clinic, angering some of their former patients. The Copeman Healthcare Centre opened on Monday and among the health-care staff of about 40 people are doctors William Halliday and Cindy Mitchell. "It's just totally, morally wrong," said Helena Grant, one of Halliday's former patients. "It's the haves and the have-nots." For a fee of $3,900 the first year and $2,900 every year after, patients at the Copeman Healthcare Centre get access to a range of uninsured services at the downtown centre. They also receive a specialized health plan designed by a team of doctors, nurses, registered dietitians and kinesiologists. Chris Nedelmann, the centre's general manager, said Halliday was forced to move his practice because the property is being annexed for the west leg of the light rail system, while Mitchell was in the process of shutting down her practice because it was no longer economically viable. "[Mitchell] has never been a high volume physician, and as such her overheads were pretty comparable to her revenues and we were able to keep her in the public system," he said. 'Catering to people who are rich 'Two of Halliday's former patients say that while they could afford to follow him to the Copeman Healthcare Centre, they won't. "Our family thought about it, but it's wrong," said Grant, who is losing a family doctor for the second time. "One to the United States and now in this case. So we were kind of shocked, and I was kind of disappointed and kind of angry a little bit … he could have still probably opened an office somewhere else rather than opening up a private health-care clinic." Jill Rathje, her husband and two young children scrambled and successfully found a new family physician, but her father-in-law is still hunting for a new doctor to replace Halliday. "My family, luckily, are in the position that if we wanted to we could probably afford to go there, but just in principle we are against it. I feel that it is just catering to people who are rich and it is starting to bring in two-tiered health care." Nedelmann said the centre is focusing on bringing home Canadian physicians who have been practising in the United States, recruiting overseas doctors and hiring physicians working in the private sector, such as for pharmaceutical companies. Story Tools: E-MAIL | PRINT | Text Size: SMLXL | REPORT TYPO | SEND YOUR FEEDBACKRelatedInternal LinksAUDIO: CBC Radio's Jeff Collins speaks to clinic manager Chris Nedelmann (Runs 7:43)Calgary clinic owner defends health-care feesPrivate clinic to offer care for $2,900 per yearExternal LinksCopeman Healthcare Centre(Note: CBC does not endorse and is not responsible for the content of external sites - links will open in new window) Health HeadlinesMothers of disabled children juggle work schedules: StatsCanThe parents of three out of five children with disabilities said their added responsibilities affected employment, and it was mothers who overwhelmingly said they adjusted their hours, Statistics Canada reported Thursday.Eating fish in infancy may help reduce eczema risk: studyFeeding infants fish before they reach nine months of age may help reduce their risk of developing eczema, a Swedish study suggests.Food recalls grow in Chinese tainted milk crisisFood recalls expanded in Europe and Asia on Thursday as an industrial chemical linked to the deaths of four babies turned up in candies and other Chinese-made exports that were quickly pulled from store shelves. Surgery for clogged carotid a waste if no stroke signs: studyThe vast majority of patients with narrowed carotid arteries but no warning signs of a stroke can avoid plaque-removing surgery and be treated instead with lifestyle changes and intensive drug therapy, researchers suggest.Family angered by man's ER deathFamily members of a wheelchair-bound man who died in a Winnipeg emergency room say they are shocked and angered he was ignored by hospital staff for more than a day. Health FeaturesHEALTHMultiple sclerosisHigh rates in Canada and around the worldIN DEPTHSafetyText messaging becomes a road hazardHEALTHPain pillsPros and cons of three popular pain relieversHEALTHExerciseFitness boot camps: Cross-training pulls in recruitsMEDICAL RESEARCHBrain banksCrucial for research, clamouring for donorsHEALTH & FITNESSPeter HadzipetrosZorba the obesePeople who read this also read …
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