Essay Sample on Healthcare Policies in Canada

There has been an unprecedented global migration over recent years and the subsequent impact on healthcare policy reform. For instance, Canada admits approximately 200,000 international migrant workers annually on temporary job permits (Caulford & Andrade, 2012). These undocumented immigrants are barred from accessing public healthcare and other crucial services in Canada. These barriers go beyond policy because it ranges from fear of deportation, discrimination to financial limitations. The paper entails analyzing and reviewing various barriers to health care for foreign immigrants in Canada. Moreover, the article will identify mechanisms that could address these healthcare problems.

Within the past 15 years, there has been the rise of international migration because of several factors. Firstly, some nations face conflicts that force the population to migrate in search of employment opportunities abroad. Secondly, some people suffer discrimination at their previous job locations thus forcing them to seek work in foreign countries. Additionally, other people move to other countries because of lack of employment opportunities in their respective nation (McKeown, 2013). Therefore, these issues validate the high number of foreign immigrants that has made Canada have a high number of immigrants per capita worldwide.

To combat this trend, Canada among other countries such as US, Costa Rica, and European nations have developed several mechanisms aimed at minimizing illegal foreigners from crossing to their nations (United Nations, 1948). These strategies include setting border patrols, numerous security checks as well as arresting and deporting immigrants. However, these efforts have proved to be ineffective basing in mind increased immigration been observed. This forced Canada to develop health care policies that limit access to healthcare services to foreigners such as preventing them access health insurance and affordable care. The policies are designed to deny them a wide range of preventive care as well as emergency medical services to discourage illegal migration (Kuile, Rousseau, Munoz, Nadeau & Ouimet, 2007).

The country lacks healthcare policies for undocumented workers to completely discourage border migrations. Ideally, these workers are often recognized through crude names such as non-citizen, illegal or irregular and are offered low-key medical services mainly in public health facilities. In many instances, they receive low immunization rates, limited follow up for chronic diseases, and untreated mental complications. These expose them to dangerous infectious diseases, injurious and other potential health risks that may ultimately increase their mortality rates (Carrasco & Gastaldo, 2010). Although their treatment is harsh, there has been no policy in Canada that might lessen these barriers and offer them improved medical care.

Many healthcare service providers fear to offer undocumented workers with medical services for being victimized. For instance, medical insurance companies such as CAA Health and Dental Insurance as well as Blue Cross fear active surveillance of providers conducted by the government. The policies significantly targeted insurance firms because they offer cheaper access to medical services for its subscribers (Magalhaes, Carrasco & Gastaldo, 2010). Since foreign workers earn little income and cannot access insurance covers, they will be either forced to return to their respective nations or present themselves to authorities.

To access decent healthcare, these workers are forced to fulfill highly bureaucratic requirements while others face high application costs and discrimination. Moreover, the companies they work are instructed to conduct external resource constraints to further dampen health care access. For instance, work conflicts are enhanced such that medical care is offered during working hours to prevent foreigners seek time off for fear of being sacked. Secondly, the firms do not provide transportation services of workers with medical need while others offer only limited health treatment through little funding.

Women immigrants experience healthcare barriers because of immigration status. In fact, the immigrant women residing in Canada are faced with socio-cultural restrictions (due to her ethnocultural and socio-economic background) and both primary and secondary policy barriers. Women are mostly targeted even more than men immigrants because of structural gender disparities in the immigration sector and failure to acquire rights of permanent stay in Canada (Preibisch & Hennebry, 2011). Additionally, the policies target women because of their precarious immigration status that puts them under the care of the third party such as spouse or employer. Therefore, they get limited access to healthcare more than other individuals.

Individual barriers further contribute to health care barriers for the undocumented workers. Majority of the workers develop stigma, communication breakdown, financial challenges and fear of deportation. Many fear health policies thus persevere medical conditions unless they become critical to their lives for fear of being reported to government authorities. In many cases, the immigrants experience communication challenges at the hospitals because they are not conversant to Canadian language. In this case, they end up unable to express their medical concerns to providers hence causing health complications (Oxman et al., 2005).

In government-funded medical institutions, several policies are put in place to prevent undocumented workers from accessing various programs. For instance, they are barred from accessing STI and HIV screening services, HIV/AIDS counseling programs and free medical checkup. Women who want to access prenatal care first faces serious scrutiny by being asked to provide documentation to ascertain their migration status before being given medical attention. Many pregnant women end up denied this critical service thus affecting them severely.

A similar case is observed in Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP). Although this funded health care service is available for a large number of population in Ontario, specific particular groups do not access these services. These individuals include undocumented inhabitants, refugees, and persons holding temporary visas. These groups are the denied some essential medical needs like newborn care and obstetrical among other children health requirements that have both short and long-term impacts (Simich, Wu & Nerad, 2007). However, the Board of Health has requested the Ministry of Health to increase community health funding especially for areas with uninsured residents, fund critical services for youth and children and establish programs that promote health services for uninsured individuals.

Furthermore, some recommendations need to be implemented by Canadian health authorities that address undocumented workers plights. These proposals touch on insurance options, the growth of safety net, encouragement for policy change, better care and education for immigrant individuals. Firstly, legal change is required to enable service providers to deliver a certain level of public health services to immigrants. In addition to that, the laws need to be changed to allow delayed deportation of unauthorized persons until their treatment is completed. Another policy change concerns the need granting legal status to some undocumented workers after a certain period for them to enjoy full access to medical care.

Insurance option is another area that requires changes. Over a long-time, the undocumented immigrants have been denied basic insurance for health services. However, this culture can be changed by offering them the option to access state-funded insurance plan and other available low-cost insurance plans. To enable this to happen, these foreign workers are required to contribute financially to insurance options that support their healthcare (Wu, Penning & Schimmele, 2005). Ultimately, the majority of undocumented people will access good healthcare plans for their families in Canada.

Education and outreach is another crucial part that needs change. Many immigrants do not have necessary education skills that could enable them to understand and facilitate their utilization of healthcare services in Canada (Wu, Penning & Schimmele, 2005). Additionally, the majority of them do not understand policies relevant to them concerning access to medical care. However, with little education and outreach, they will quickly maneuver through several bureaucracies within the health sector and obtain necessary medical need.

Training of providers is also a significant factor. Canadian medical providers need thorough training on how to handle medical issues for undocumented workers. They need to focus on cultural competency which is essential in improving existing health services and development of other services (Magalhaes, Carrasco & Gastaldo, 2010). The other reason for the need of training is the fact that they have little knowledge of current policies and may end up turning away undocumented workers based on false information. Therefore, they need to be trained and brought up to speed on current laws touching on immigrants.

Lastly, the safety net of the immigrants needs to be expanded. Over an extended period, the undocumented immigrants have been accorded with a limited safety net to satisfy their health needs. They have limited access to treatment of chronic diseases such as HIV/AIDS, STIs, and tuberculosis as well as lack of access to public hospitals and free clinics (Caulford & Andrade, 2012). In this instance, they need to be allowed access these services and get a healthy education that is government-funded.

Conclusively, the paper has enumerated and analyzed several health barriers that are faced by undocumented workers in Canada. We have seen how policies are used to prevent access to medical attention for this immigrant as a measure to control their illegal immigrant. Although some policies are genuine, some are harsh and needs to be abolished.

References

Caulford, P., & DAndrade, J. (2012). Health care for Canadas medically uninsured immigrants and refugees: Whose problem is it? Canadian Family Physician, 58(7), 725727.

Dr. David McKeown. Medical Officer of Health. Medically Uninsured Residents in Toronto. April 15, 2013. Toronto Public Health. http://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2013/hl/bgrd/backgroundfile-57588.pdf.

Kuile, S., Rousseau, C., Munoz, M., Nadeau, L., & Ouimet, M. (2007). The universality of the canadian health care system in question: Barriers to services for immigrants and refugees. International Journal of Migration, Health, and Social Care, 3(1), 15-26. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/17479894200700003

L., Carrasco, C. & Gastaldo, D. J Immigrant Minority Health (2010) 12: 132. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-009-9280-5Magalhaes, L., Carrasco, C., & Gastaldo, D. (2010). Undocumented migrants in Canada: a scope literature review on health, access to services, and working conditions. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 12(1), 132.

Oxman-Martinez, J., Hanley, J., Lach, L. et al. J Immigrant Health (2005) 7: 247. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-005-5122-2Preibisch, K., & Hennebry, J. (2011). Temporary migration, chronic effects: the health of international migrant workers in Canada. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 183(9), 1033-1038

Simich, L., Wu, F., & Nerad, S. (2007). Status and Health Security: An Exploratory Study of Irregular Immigrants in Toronto. Canadian Journal of Public Health / Revue Canadienne De Sante'e Publique, 98(5), 369-373. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/41994958United Nations. Universal Human Declaration of Rights. De...