>but I wouldn't trade what we have for anything else. I would trade it for the same system that worked more smoothly. Just one ferinstance: In our area, there are only THREE psychiatrists who are treating new patients. The ONLY way to get to see them is with a medical referral. But this is jargon for "you have to have a nervous breakdown and get admitted to emergency." You can't go to the doctor KNOWING that you ARE going to freak out and tell them that. Even if you have a history of mental health problems, you can't get referred by a family member who KNOWS that you are about to lose it. They have to take you to emergency and from there, you MIGHT get to see a psychiatrist in 2 days -- unless it's the weekend and then forget it. Like I said, I'm glad I live here with this system because it saved my life -- basically for free -- but the hassle is INCREDIBLE to get routine things done. The bullshit THREE YEAR LONG runaround that I encountered for testing BEFORE I had open-heart surgery was 10 times worse than the actual surgery and rehabilitation. It shouldn't be this hard. They (the people who 'run' the health care system) have successfully discouraged people from seeking medical attention for anything but serious afflictions. If you are just sick, forget it. It's less of a problem to stay and home and tough it out for a few days. Paul ########## Paul Stone pas@xxxxxxxx Kingsville, ON, Canada ------------------------------------------------------------------ To change your Lit-Ideas settings (subscribe/unsub, vacation on/off, digest on/off), visit www.andreas.com/faq-lit-ideas.html