Rex Murphy asked Klein if he had an answer to the health care crisis and Klein replied he had no solution, but he emphasized that he wants to have the best possible working conditions for doctors and health care professionals. Also, Klein reiterated that pouring more money into the health system will not cure it, and added that the major problem in health care is the obsolete mind set of the present leadership who see in health care a sacrosanct Canadian distinction which cannot be touched by anybody. Yes, I fully agree with Ralph Klein, and we have been saying this for a very long time.

This obsolete mind set calcified in the big brains of our leaders has been the cause of the health care crisis! And as a consequence of this obsolete mind set, our leaders have been mismanaging health care resources. In early 1992 I was reporting Dr. David Naylor, a Toronto's epidemiologist, saying "there is no corporation in Canada that would put up with the lack of management we have in health care" and Mr. Michael Decter, Ontario's deputy Minister of Health, stating that Health Care is "the 8th wonder of the modern world...You can produce a high quality product and it cost you less(1)" At that time, in the early 90s, I had no idea that our politicians, and then Premier Romanow as well, were getting ready for the downsizing of health care in the name of the second revolution as prophesied by Tommy Douglas(2). What a farse! And just now, after the 2 million dollar Fyke's report, we have Roy Romanow's 15 million dollar Royal Commission on Health Care. And the Saskatchewan Government rejoices as Roy Romanow sets up his shop in Regina and creates new needed wealth for the governmental city.

I reiterate that the problem in health care is the obsolete mind set of our elitist politicians and leadership, and this is why we have widespread mismanagement in our resources and our health researches.

Most of our graduating doctors are leaving the province, many doctors are continuing to leave the province, and the recent departure of two psychiatrists from Regina has prompted the remaining psychiatrists to state that these doctors " have been trying to convince the ruling elite they would very much like to stay and work in Regina, given the appropriate facilities and respect... These psychiatrists have very rightly refused to surrender the best interest of their patients. While trying to plead for that, they have been treated with disdain and labeled as money-hungry(3)."

And yesterday, a report prepared by the Health Sciences Advisory Council states that our surgical medical list system is in crisis(4). Ontario consultant Peter Glynn, chair of the report, has stated that "the situation cries out for leadership" and there were suggestions that more researches were needed to offset the growing problem with surgical waits.

So, the answer to our health care problems is a matter of leadership and research, and therefore, the problems cumulate as the obsolete mid set of our leadership regenerates itself and becomes more obsolete than ever.

References/Endnotes

Relevant political and economics articles at Ensign http://www.ftlcomm.com/ensign

1. Invitation by the Regina Health Board to comment on the Atkinson Report, by Mario deSantis, May 8, 1992 http://www3.sk.sympatico.ca/desam/paper-Atkinson-may08-92.htm

2. A Saskatchewan Vision for Health, The Honourable Louise Simard, Minister of Health, Government of Saskatchewan, August 1992. Louise Simard is presently President and Chief Executive Officer of the Saskatchewan Association Of Health Organizations (SAHO)

3. Views in editorial mistaken, response to the editorial, "Door opening for immigrants", in The Leader-Post of April 11. By Regina psychiatrists Dr. Yinka Marcus, Dr. D. Natarajan, Dr. C. Cabrera, Dr. R. Milev, Dr. S. Hamid and Dr. Abdul Rahman http://www.leaderpost.com/cgi-bin/LiveIQue.acgi$rec=3259?letters

4. Surgical wait list system in crisis, by Jason Warick, April 25, 2001, The StarPhoenix, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan