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Charter Health Crowd

Why is ThinkHealthBC.ca closed? Twitter account deleted!

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Say goodbye to the ThinkHealthBC.ca site which was suddenly closed, shut-down, deleted and removed from the internet. The BC Ministry of Health's open public forum on healthcare is not only gone, it's as if it never existed... Harry Potter magic-cloak-style.

Our very own web team has suggested to us that wizard-like actions may have been taken to ensure the content would no longer be accessible online. Is the government preparing another report? Maybe. But why remove the content?

Strangely, even the slightest mention that such a site ever existed appears to be missing from the govTogetherBC website, which is where users are auto-forwarded when they try to access the few remaining dead links on Google.

As if that weren't enough, the Twitter account handle @ThinkHealthBC has been deactivated and all history hidden. What is going on here? Do they really need to hide their previously public dialogue with citizens? In doing so, whether intentional or not, the voices of Canadian patients are being silenced.

@ThinkHealthBC Twitter Deleted

Our original plan here at the Charter Health Project was to send patients over to ThinkHealthBC.ca to voice their concerns. Thankfully this did not happen, as our supporters' voices would have been swept away along with the others which have been lost to date.

On the upside, following the deletion of ThinkHealthBC, we have taken steps to offer a voice to at least some of you. For the time being we are focused specifically on shortening waiting lists and improving access to healthcare, however, we are calling upon all Canadians, not just British Columbians. If your story is related to this topic, please submit your story here. For all you others out there, we mourn the loss of your voice, and can only wonder why the Ministry of Health has done this. Do you have any ideas?

3 Comments

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M, Burnaby, BC wrote 10 years ago

If you ask the @govTogetherBC Twitter account why they closed the site they won't say but instead will ask you to contact them via private email. I did so exactly 2 weeks ago and received no reply. Sounds about right.


Sandy, Richmond, BC wrote 10 years ago

am I dreaming or did this really happen? there's NO valid reason for this kind of behavior by our own ministry of health. @John is right. bigtime #foulplay.


John, Vancouver, BC wrote 10 years ago

The site was closed and content removed because the content was critical of the system. It is obvious that they were not expecting to hear the truth. The following is extracted from the now closed ThinkhealthBC website:
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WAITING TOO LONG FOR SURGERY!
Submitted by Bob Local

1. There should be a 6 month wait time guarantee for all surgical procedures.
2. Hospitals should be funded per procedure so there is an incentive to do more not fewer surgeries.
3. Hospitals should receive an incentive if targets are met rather than penalties for not meeting impossible targets."

----------- 5 COMMENTS -----------
These waiting times are absurd. Of course we don't want the outrageously costly American system, but we can look to several European countries for solutions amenable to both the medical profession and their clientelle. I am on a long-term waiting list for hernia surgery; the costs in lost productivity and human suffering are unacceptable in a supposedly democratic society. And my discomfort pales by contrast to the excruciating pain or life-threatening conditions of many who wait, and wait, and wait...and wait.
By Jim Martens / Sep 17th 2013
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I waited 12 months to have my hernia fixed and had to take a lot of time of work while I was waiting because of pain. Why couldn't I pay to have it done sooner then I wouldn't have lost so much time off work? I pay taxes and didn't get the service. I want my money back.
By Anon / Jun 29th 2013
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Another idea is to give patients a voucher once their surgeon determines they need a surgery that they can "spend" at whatever hospital or private clinic they want. This then increases competition to keep costs down and shortens wait lists by giving patients more options than sitting on a wait list in a underfunded system.
By BC Surgeons / Jun 29th 2013
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Why can't I pay or buy private health insurance if the government can't guarantee reasonable access for surgery? Six months is too long to wait for anything. We are the laughing stock of the world and yet so smug about our health care system.
By P Lincoln / Jun 29th 2013
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Many countries have universal health care and control costs by allowing private insurance. In Australia, you have a choice to pay higher taxes or buy private health insurance. Why reinvent the wheel and use what works in other Western countries to shorten waitlists and fund the health care system as a whole.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_health_coverage_by_country
By Hamish Hwang / Jun 20th 2013


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