MILLIONSMISSINGCANADA Quick Easy Action for All Canadians! Ask our Heath Officials to adopt the recommendations for ME, FM and ES/MCS right away! A report containing excellent recommendations that will benefit all sufferers with these illnesses was released 6 months ago by the Ontario government. Why haven't they been adopted? The Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care set up this Task Force on Environmental Health specifically to come up with recommendations. Now we want them put into action... right away! Ontario can lead by example by implementing these measures. Over 550,000* people in Ontario are affected. This isn't only a health care issue - it's a human rights issue. All Canadians are urged to push these recommendations forward paving the way for other provinces to follow. Large, organized actions are shown to be effective. The greater the participation, the greater the impact. The instructions below are simple and will take only a couple of minutes to complete. Please take a few moments now to send off the letter below. Honourable Helena Jaczek, Minister of Health MPP ________________ (Your MPPs Name Goes Here) On September 29, 2017, the Ministry released the report “Time for Leadership: Recognizing and Improving Care for those with ME/CFS, FM and ES/MCS”, prepared by the Task Force on Environmental Health for the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. The report found that throughout the health care system and in society at large, there is: • a lack of recognition of the seriousness and severity of these conditions • a profound shortage of knowledgeable care providers • a dearth of clinical tools to support and guide care • a discouraging shortage of services and supports for people living with these conditions • an absence of support for family caregivers Statistics from the CCHS survey of 2014 revealed that over 550,000 people in Ontario have one or more of these illnesses and the numbers are continuing to rise. Too many people with these chronic, complex and disabling illnesses are completely excluded from and neglected by our health care system, while others with illnesses of comparable severity and prevalence receive a high standard of funding and care. As a voter whose life has been significantly impacted, I am deeply concerned about the lack of progress, as human rights continue to be violated on a daily basis by systemic barriers in both health care and in society. The Task Force called for immediate steps to be taken. Among the first steps are recommendations to: 1. Change the conversation and increase understanding. 2. Develop a common clinical understanding. 3. Lay the foundation for a patient-centred care system. 4. Increase the availability of providers who understand ME/CFS, FM and ES/MCS. These steps of recognition, funding for research and education, and transforming attitudes and health care spaces would lay the foundation on which a new and inclusive approach to care can be built, resulting in saving both lives and money, where people with these disabling illnesses can finally begin to receive the care and services that are needed. The Ontario Human Rights Code protects people from discrimination and harassment because of past, present and perceived disabilities. Organizations and institutions operating in Ontario have a legal duty to take steps to prevent and respond to breaches of the Code. Therefore, I respectfully request that the Minister of Health and the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care begin the process of ending the systemic discrimination against people with ME/CFS, FM and ES/MCS, and start removing the systemic accessibility barriers in health care and in society, by immediately adopting the recommendations made in the Task Force on Environmental Health's Interim Report. I ask that my Member of Provincial Parliament support me in calling for the Minister of Health and the MOHLTC to take the above mentioned actions without further delay. I look forward to your response. Yours truly, (Your Name) (Your Full Address Including Postal Code) (Your Telephone Number) OHRC Code Grounds > Disability 2.2 Non-evident disabilities "The nature or degree of disability might render it “non-evident” or invisible to others. Chronic fatigue syndrome and back pain, for example, are not apparent conditions. Other disabilities might remain hidden because they are episodic. Epilepsy is one example. Similarly, environmental sensitivities can flare up from one day to the next, resulting in significant impairment to a person’s health and capacity to function, while at other times, this disability may be entirely non-evident. Sometimes, a person’s disability may be mislabeled and misunderstood." ~ OHRC Policy on ableism and discrimination based on disability. https://tinyurl.com/ycncguyy *** INSTRUCTIONS *** Simply: 1. Copy and paste the letter into an email. 2. Enter - your MPP's name in the space provided at the top - your name/address/telephone at the bottom - 'Accommodation for People with Disabilities' in the subject line 3. Send it to the Ontario Minister of Health. Honourable Helena Jaczek hjaczek.mpp@liberal.ola.org Ontario residents, please copy your MPP. To locate your MPP: 1. Enter your postal code at this link to find your electoral district. 2. Look up your electoral district by sorting this listing alphabetically to get the name of your MPP. Thank you so much... TOGETHER STRONGER! *** FOR REFERENCE *** Details on the Community Engagement Day March 20, 2018: RSVP by Monday March 12th See special instructions inside. The Task Force Interim Report #MyalgicEncephalomyelitis *2014 CCHS
