Barriers to Health Care
Cost
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Costs are rising due to:
• Increase in elderly patients
• New expensive techniques
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Statistics show that costs have risen
from 5.5% of Canada’s Gross
Domestic Product in the 1960s to
7.4% in the 1980s.
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In the 1990s the percentage rose to
9.4 %. Canadians are starting to
discuss what kinds of services should
still be provided.
Cost
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Many provinces have started to remove tests and
procedures have been “delisted” and are no longer free
services. In Ontario eye exams are no longer free. Home
care services have also been curtailed.
Health Literacy
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“Health literacy is the ability to
access, understand, evaluate and
communicate information as a way
to promote, maintain and improve
health in a variety of settings
across the life course.” (Canadian
Public Health Association)
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Experts have found that
treatments are far more effective
when patients understand their
ailments and their treatment
schedules.
Health Literacy
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Alejandro Jadad from the University of
Toronto’s eHealth Innovation, which
develops software for providing medical
information, found the issues preventing
health literacy are complex and varied:
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Patients don’t understand medical
language.
Doctors don’t understand how deep the
misunderstanding is.
Patients respect doctors so much that it
is difficult to question their advice.
Health literature is too explicit for some
cultures.
Minorities are rarely shown in health
literature.
Health Literacy in Canada Report (2008)
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What is health literacy?
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Why does health literacy matter?
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What determines levels of health literacy?
Facilities for People with Disabilities
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People with disabilities often face
obstacles to healthcare testing because
medical facilities are made for the able
bodied. These are architectural barriers
to health.

Another barrier is attitudinal because
there are prejudices or misconceptions
about the health care needs of disabled
people.

The largest barrier to health care for
people with disabilities is the lack of
knowledge within the healthcare
community about how disabilities
effect normal health needs.
Income
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Canadian Institute for Advanced Research found that
relative wealth had a large effect on health. The people in
the top quintile of the population were healthier than the
people in the next highest quintile.
Income
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People with income in the
lowest 5% in the years before
their retirement are twice as
likely to die before 70.
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People with high incomes live
approximately 12 years longer
than people with low incomes.
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In the United States where
there is no universal
healthcare the divisions
between low income and high
income health is even greater.
Two Tier System
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Since 1960 all Canadians have
been covered under a one tier
universal standard of health care
provided by the funding of the
provincial and federal
governments. Patients are not
charged extra fees, the taxation
system pays for everything.
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The US has a two tier system
where the poorest portion of
the population gets public health
coverage, but wealthier people
have access to private
healthcare.
Two-Tier System
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As pressures increase on the Canadian medical system
more people are discussing going to a two- tiered system.
The United Kingdom has had this system for years.
Comparing Canadian and
American Health Care
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARxjQ3IRqvg
Comparing Canadian and
American Health Care
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Which system would make us healthier?
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In which country would we live longer?
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Is basic health care a right or a privilege?