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Originally posted by 4z4z
I don't have time and energy to go fight this fraud walk-in clinic.

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Mumbai Maazi Ladki ...

Monika,
This time we did not use that Pharmacy. We used Cookstown Pharmacy (North of Hwy10 at Dundas street (reffered to us by that Indian lady doctor b'cos of low dispensing fees in that area). They have generally been good to us except this time.
We had used the Inhouse pharmacy 2 or 3 times and the rates esp. the dispensing fee has been too much + the service is very very poor.
Also regarding that walk in, We use it b'cos of the hours of operation (8:00 am to 11:00 pm, 365 days). The doctors (mostly ) have been most horrible. There are 2 Indian lady doctors (atleast were). Mrs. Jacob-Skin Specialist is very good. The other Indian doctor is OK (she gave me antibiotics the first time i went with a sore throat + fever- which is very rare with Cdn. doctors who donot prescribe any prescription medicine at the first visit). Other doctors there are hopeless. I can actually say that we have lost a couple of months / years of our natural life by going to these clinics.
I invite CD members to suggest some good Walk-In clinics which are open after hours. There is one near Rexdale mall (Rexdale and Islington). I always say to my partners/associates to go to as much clinics as possible for the same disease/ condition and then use our common sense / internet search to decide as to which prescription that we should take. Since consulting is free and since i and my partners have medical coverage, this idea is the best one to survive in Canada (if you have enough time at our disposal).
TK A

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I am a Gents and not a Ladies.

Yes, you can ask your family phy. to refer to some other specialist for second opinion. Usually family phy. don't like it, but you have to insist for it.

I also have horrible experience with a specialist doctor and ultimately my family phy. referred us to Children's hospital.

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Originally posted by Maharaj

What if someone does not want to specialist referred by Family Phy. Do Tax Payers have choice to ask for someone else after visiting couple times - and not like the attitude?

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(am just curoius ... Do we have any Agency/Board/Association Monitoring Doctors? - where we can go with Feedback. Not just for Walk-In Clinic but others as well, who sometimes just bulleys patient in name of tests & treatment.)
Normally in each country all formal complaints are made to the medical council here in canada it is college of physicians and surgeons..link given below

http://www.cpso.on.ca/About_the_College/geninfo.htm

http://www.thestar.com/News/article/142930

calling up the office will initiate the process..

there are many Walk In clinic in Medical Art Building in Malton ( 3530 Derry road east- Intersection of Derry/Goreway).

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Driller the thriller

1. There are few tips for the parents
most of the cough and cold symptoms are viral in origin, until the child has high fever
But it is a still good idea to seek attention earlier rather than later.
2. Research shows kids who goes to day care have high incidence of viral/bacterial infections.
3. Most of physicians treat the ear infections with antibiotics.
4. It is always a good idea to seek advise from your own family physician.
5. Walk in physicians are great source for population who does not have family doc, or if u cant reach ur family doc on time.
6. It is always a good idea to look for other causes of runny nose,
like environmental triggers rather than considering it infection.

If I get bad service I don't make sure to tell everyone it was from a South Asian. Am I missing why it is relevant that the doctor in either case was African? Is it that there is only one African doctor in Canada and this way we can identify him? As most people on here are well aware from their personal experience Canada does not easily accept international education and this is especially true for medicine. We give doctors lots of points for their credentials then don't recognize them and make them redo residency if they are lucky enough to ever practice. So I don't see how it can be a concern that his training is inferior because he is African. If he's an incompetent doctor it is probably a personal failing unrelated to his race or ethnicity. Updated to add: I read the second page and I see there was also mention of a Middle Eastern doctor, a terrible Chinese pharmicist family and a mix of horrible and mediocre Indian doctors. So I can see that Canada's medical system is at least multicultural in its incompetence and also that posters are just using race and ethnicity as a descriptor.

Differing diagnosis is common since much of the practice of medicine is subjective. In my evidence-based opinion doctors in Canada give out antibiotics too frequently. This is linked to negative outcomes like asthma in children as well as bacterial resistance at a population level and potetially reduced efficacy of antibiotics at an individual level. Doctors at walk-in clinics are supposed to be extra vigilent about giving prescriptions because they do not have the person's full medical history. Unfortunately, children that are taken to the doctor in Canada most frequently are given antibiotics at a higher rate than other children even when you control for their health status. Doctors know that many people think they are being ignored if they are not sent home with an Rx.

I don't think doctor shopping is the solution. OHIP billing these days won't allow the same code to be used for the same patient within a certain time period and when (if ever!) e-health is used across the province doctors will screen for those who over-use the system as they may be diagnosis shopping.

The best way to help your children is to be well informed. If they are given antibiotics ask what bacterial infection they are suspected of having. You shouldn't HAVE to do this, but self advocacy is important in the Canadian medical system.

Paluck, E., Katzenstein, D., Frankish, C.J., Herbert, C.P., Milner, R., Speert, D. and Chambers, K. (2001) Prescribing practices and attitudes toward giving children antibiotics. Canadian Family Physician March 47(3) 521-527.

http://171.66.125.180/content/47/3/521.full.pdf+html

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My prayer to you
Is that you do all the things you set out to do
And live your life the way you love

Thurston Moore, Psychic Hearts