Health-care talk by the numbers

Thank you for your coverage of our Feb. 22 conversation with Doctors Nova Scotia and for your attention to the comments from the staff at the Digby Health Services Centre.

Dr. Manoj Vohra, of Doctors Nova Scotia, did make reference to Goderich and the successful recruitment efforts in that Ontario town. Curious, I had a closer look at data from two reliable sources: the 2016 Statistics Canada census and the Canadian Institute for Health Information.

Dr. Vohra was being kind not to point out that the Digby area is not at all like Goderich. By the numbers, some things favourably compare. For example, in Goderich about 30 per cent of the population is over 65. In the Municipality of Digby about 31 per cent of residents are over 65. There are two Tim Hortons in each town.

However, by the numbers, things quickly look different when income comes into play. Goderich has a mean total household income of $60, 103 whereas the Municipality of Digby has a mean income of $47,202 and about half that in the Town of Digby. In other words, apples and oranges are in the air here.

The wealth difference alone means that, in all probability, folks are generally healthier in Goderich than in Digby County. There is a strong and positive correlation between income and overall health and access to care. By the numbers, according to cost of living studies, it is less expensive to live in Goderich than in rural Nova Scotia. A living wage in the Goderich area is $17 per hour whereas in rural Nova Scotia it is $19 per hour. Simply stated, the poorer the population the less healthy that population is, which is why income or wealth is said to be a social determinant of health.

By the numbers, there is more. In Goderich there are 50 or so in- dividuals with degrees in medicine, including veterinary medicine. In Digby there are 10. This means an individual and her pet is much more likely to have access to care in Goderich than in Digby. In the DRHS theatre where the session was held, a show of hands revealed more than 50 per cent of those present lacked access to a family doctor.

And by the numbers, there is one other thing we must acknowledge. The smiling doctor in Goderich is being paid in the order of $340,000 before taxes, and work-related expenses whereas in Nova Scotia, for the same services, a doctor is being paid $258,000, again before taxes and expenses. The gaps are glaring.

The shadowy back room boys and the wooden-eared politicians running Nova Scotia constantly tell us we should and must do more with less. These people are dreaming, or they simply do not care about our health or access to care. By the numbers, our citizens must demand the government of Nova Scotia close these gaps.

I trust these comments about the numbers are helpful in terms of further shedding light on our conversation with Doctors Nova Scotia. Tony Kelly, Co-ordinator for the Digby Area Health Coalition