Calgary case typical of the sort of medical discrimination which the disabled face in Canada
A Calgary boy who suffers from Down Syndrome will finally get a chance to have a lung transplant.
However, the number of hurdles and the amount of animosity that he and his family had to overcome to get on this list provides vivid insight of how Canadian society views the disabled.
The dispute began in July last year when 17-year-old Terry Urquhart was refused placement on a lung transplant list by the University of Alberta Hospital.
Urquhart’s lungs, badly scarred by a congenital heart defect, needs a transplant but the hospital’s policy that only persons of “reasonable intelligence” be accepted for the procedure kept him off the list.
Due to pressure from Urquhart’s family and from disabled groups, the hospital finally agreed to change its policy and remove the “reasonable intelligence” clause.
Those promoting Urquhart’s campaign, felt that this policy clearly discriminated against disabled persons.
“Terry will now be treated equally and for that we are pleased,” said the boy’s overjoyed mother, Kathy Urquhart.
However, there are many who are not sharing in her son’s victory. A number of Albertans felt that a transplant would be “wasted” on Urquhart and that the organs should go to people who would be “productive” members of society. Some radio phone-in callers said they were prepared to tear up their organ donor cards to protest the hospital’s decision.
Bruce Uditsky, executive director of the Alberta Association for Community Living was not surprised by these sentiments and was distressed that “the health care system would consider these views as legitimate.”
For now, Urquhart has won his battle but many more disabled Canadians face discrimination concerning medical treatment. At present, the Ontario Human Rights Commission is investigating a complaint by a Hamilton couple who say that their son was denied a heart transplant because he suffers from Down Syndrome.
