Private clinic performing breast cancer surgeries (and much, much more)

Sacre-Coeur hospital in Montreal has moved 6,000 surgeries to the private business RocklandMD since 2008.

Moving work to private surgical clinics, unfortunately, is becoming more common in Canada. In this case, however, the private surgical clinic is not just performing a few minor surgeries. Instead it is performing an array of more serious surgeries: breast cancer operations, bariatric surgery, orthopaedic surgery, etc . RocklandMD claims to be able to perform a broad range of day surgeries, “from the simplest to the most complex, in various specialities and within very short times.” (They also claim to have "turnover rates of less than five minutes between operations". Hmm...)

That is a new (and troubling) level of privatization. The thin edge of the wedge is usually to start with minor operations and tests. The privatizers want to go well beyond that, it seems.

The Toronto Star has noted that the Quebec Health Insurance Board reprimanded RocklandMD for charging patients fees for use of medical equipment, facilities and support staff - all in contravention of the Canada Health Act.

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