Another story from a client of our great health care system

"Here's yet another positive story, after last week's story from Mofi about the Canadian Health care system:"

"Two significant things happened to me last week. I turned 39 and I found out I need total hip replacement surgery. These are two things that I never dreamed would happen within a decade of each other, let alone a week.

I've had some issues with my right hip most of my adult life, but never imagined that I had osteoarthritis and that my hip joint was deteriorating out from under me. My dad had both his knees replaced, but that didn't happen until he was in his late 60s.

Finding out that you need this kind of surgery is a shock at first. I felt a little embarrassed to be so young and need something like this. After some research, however, I realized more and more young people are having the surgery.

Former U.S. Olympic gold-medal winning gymnast Mary Lou Retton had her hip replaced at the age of 38. And world-famous tennis champion Jimmy Connors had his hip replaced at 52. Both athletes reported being debilitated by their pain and then regaining their full quality of life after the surgery.

So, now that I am beyond the shock and embarrassment, I find myself in a state of amazement at just how far we have come in medicine and how great Canada's health system is. Had I been born in my grandmother's era, I would be facing a life of pain and the inevitability of a wheelchair. Now, just like something out of the 1970's Bionic Woman series, they tell you "we have the power to rebuild you." Maybe not better or faster than I was before, but with much less pain and much more mobility.

I know we all get frustrated with our wait times, but if we compare our system with those around the world, we have one of the best. Two things always enter my mind when I am accessing our health care system: the incredible care givers I have, and the cost of my care.

My family doctor is Dawn Edgar. She has been caring for me for about 12 years and knows everything about me, so my health care is personal and focused and I realize how lucky I am to have her.

As soon as my hip acted up she got me in to see Reginald Yabsley. He was the first orthopedic surgeon to do hip replacements in Nova Scotia. How lucky we are to have someone like him in Halifax.

His bedside manner is second to none. He has a no-nonsense, pragmatic approach that completely put me at ease. Through the entire appointment I felt informed and respected as we figured out my next move.

My feelings of comfort and joy stem not only from being in the hands of these two excellent doctors, but from not having to ask the question: How much will this cost?

I know that while I will wait for the surgery, I will be able to have it based on my need, not on what I can afford. So this holiday season I will be saying an extra prayer for all those care givers in our system who help us maintain our quality of life and for a system that is based on need, and not greed."

Candy Palmater for HFXNEWS