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Why I don’t believe Premier David Eby and the BC NDP have what it takes to fix the health care system
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Dr. Zafar Essak, MD - Vancouver, BC - November 29, 2024
I don’t believe Premier David Eby and the BC NDP have what it takes to fix our health care system and government. He hasn’t earned my confidence and there are more reasons to doubt.
After the election, Premier David Eby said he heard the voters and has learned; they need to do better, and they will. Was he just repeating lines to sound good or did he really get the message? Just look at his first actions.
Why is our health care system and government broken? Part 4.
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Dr Zafar Essak - Vancouver, BC - October 10, 2024
Part 4 in a series covering different aspects of our health care system and government. Let’s apply our thinking to the problems and solutions.
Part 4. No consent called "passive consent" as BC elementary and high school students are presented survey questionnaires.
First, you may not even realize that in BC elementary and high schools, students of all ages (early years, middle years and youth) have been presented with surveys to complete. This has been done without requiring parental consent or even awareness.
The BC NDP Government refers to it as "passive consent". Teachers are providing children with tablet computers to answer questions about themselves, their families and others living in the household. Children who are reluctant and don’t know if they should do this are reassured it is all fine, they can trust this is all okay.
Some children may be too young to realize that it’s like talking to strangers. These days we should all know the dangers are worse with computers online. So, why would we be teaching young children to reveal information into a computer? (1)
Furthermore, who is PopDataBC and what do they do? Who funds it?
Why is our health care system and government broken?
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Dr. Zafar Essak, MD - Vancouver, BC - October 6, 2024
I decided to write a series of posts covering different aspects of our health care system and government to help us apply our thinking to the problems and solutions. We need a change in our expectations of professional leaders, government leaders and how government works if we are to save our publicly funded health care system and our democratic rights.
Part 1. How health care administration over took funding for doctors.
Part 2. Early closure of debate erodes our parliamentary democracy.
Part 3. The importance of open dialog and informed consent.
Stay tuned for more to come.
Why is our health care system and government broken? Part 3.
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Dr. Zafar Essak, MD - Vancouver, BC - October 9, 2024
Part 3 in a series covering different aspects of our health care system and government. Let’s apply our thinking to the problems and solutions.
Part 3. The importance of open dialog and informed consent.
Open dialog is the foundation for informed consent and trust.
We expect informed consent to be upheld in all interactions with medical and health professionals along with other professionals and individuals in our lives including teachers, lawyers, paramedics and others.
Would we allow medical treatments to be given to us and our children without our informed consent?
For informed consent we need open dialog, assuring that the interaction is entirely open and transparent and the provider conducts themselves confidentially and ethically without conflict of interest. Information must not be withheld, delayed or obscured. This is the foundation of trust.
Have our political leaders, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and BC NDP Premier David Eby, failed to uphold the importance of open dialog and informed consent?
Why is our health care system and government broken? Part 2.
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Dr. Zafar Essak, MD - Vancouver, BC - October 6, 2024.
Part 2 in a series covering different aspects of our health care system and government. Let’s apply our thinking to the problems and solutions.
Part 2. Early closure of debate erodes our parliamentary democracy.
Early closure of debate is important to health care because it was used by the current BC NDP government to push through the Health Professions and Occupations Act (HPOA) in 2022, with changes to the licensing of doctors and other health care professionals.(1) Early closure of debate was also used by the BC NDP to push through three additional far reaching pieces of legislation.
So, what is early closure of debate and why does it matter?
Why is our health care system and government broken? Part 1.
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Dr. Zafar Essak, MD - Vancouver, BC - October 6, 2024.
Part 1 in a series covering different aspects of our health care system and government. Let’s apply our thinking to the problems and solutions.
Part 1. How health care administration over took funding for doctors.
Every day we hear reports that our health care system is broken and having difficulty keeping up with the health needs of patients and people throughout BC and across the country. Politicians say it’s a lot of unexpected circumstances, they’re doing the best that can be done; they're following what the experts are telling them, and we should trust them to carry on with it.
Are these unexpected circumstances or are they foreseeable outcomes?
Delegation to Campbell River City Council on concerns arising from HPOA
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At the Campbell River City Council meeting on February 29, 2024, a delegation of physician Dr Anna Kindy and retired naturopath Dr Ingrid Pincott discussed the Health Professions and Occupation Act, HPOA, and the serious concerns it raises for health professionals, patients, and people living in and around Campbell River. Like most City Council meetings in BC it was streamed live and recorded and can be watched on YouTube. City councillors asked questions and expressed the view that these concerns are important and that they would like to ensure it is discussed when the UBCM meets this year, on September 16-20, 2024.
Sign up to see the BC College of Physicians hearing on Dr. Charles Hoffe
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Dr. Z. Essak, MD - Vancouver, BC – February 11, 2024.
If you are a doctor or a patient who is concerned about health care in BC, there are only a few days left to sign up to see the BC College of Physicians hearing on Dr. Charles Hoffe. This will be an opportunity to see how the College of Physicians disciplinary hearing works. Is the College sincere about seeking the truth and ensuring doctors provide proper medical care for the benefit of patients? Or is the College focused on control of doctors and to endorse government policies?
If you are interested in the online Zoom meeting, you may have to register by the end of this week, February 16, to ensure your opportunity to view the hearing from March 4 to 15, 2024. Instructions on how to register are provided below.
Judicial Review of Dr. Bonnie Henry’s Orders begins in BC Supreme Court on Monday, November 20, 2023.
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Update: The Judgment was released on May 10, 2024 and is available on the BCSC website: Hoogerbrug v. British Columbia, 2024 BCSC 794 – 2024/05/10
Dr. Z. Essak, MD - Vancouver, BC - November 19, 2023.
Finally, an opportunity for everyone to hear a BC Judicial Review of the ongoing orders of Dr. Bonnie Henry, Public Health Officer, and the BC Government that, since November 2021, have impacted the livelihood of thousands of health care workers in BC who are unvaccinated, prohibiting them from working in health care. BC and Nova Scotia are the only jurisdictions in the world that have not allowed unvaccinated health care workers to return to work. Orders and actions that have caused severe division even among health professionals and workers; where nurses, doctors, paramedics, porters and others are not sure who is safe to talk to if they disagree or think consent for vaccination is paramount.
Starting Monday, November 20, 2023, the BC Supreme Court will begin the Judicial Review of Dr Henry’s orders and the October 2023 amendment perpetuating them.
What loud bells will wake BC doctors and the public to the dangers of Bill 36, the HPOA?
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Dr. Zafar Essak, MD - Vancouver, BC - November 6, 2023.
There is a sleeping sickness throughout our land. It has found its way into health care and affected all the doctors. It is not some esoteric thing happening in some small political arena or lawyers club. This impacts all of BC and all of us: the ability of doctors to practice medicine the way they were taught and trained, according to their conscience and oath for the benefit of patients.
The significance of Bill 36, the Health Professions and Occupations Act, is profound and the association, Doctors of BC, should be ringing alarm bells. Instead, they are subduing the importance of it, convincing all doctors to move on to the regulations, like lemmings over the cliff. Not only is this unhelpful to doctors, it is actually dangerous for doctors with their purpose and professional obligations to deliver health care to patients. Bells need to ring everywhere, and the association should be dissolved.
