Canadian troops better cared for in Afghanistan than in Canada

08/12/08 Canwest: Wounded Canadians getting better care in Afghanistan than back home
Canadian soldiers wounded in Afghanistan may be receiving better health care and rehabilitation services in military facilities overseas than they get upon returning home, a Senate report released Tuesday said.

Defence minister pledges help for wounded soldiers
Juliet O'Neill, Canwest News Service
Published: Tuesday, August 12, 2008
OTTAWA - Defence Minister Peter MacKay says the government will do anything it can to eliminate shortcomings in the health care and rehabilitation of injured military personnel returning from Afghanistan.

He made the comment in an interview Tuesday in response to a Senate defence committee report which said injured Canadian soldiers should be getting first class health care and rehabilitation when they get home from Afghanistan.

The report cited uneven treatment across the country and singled out the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital in Edmonton as a top-notch facility that should serve as a national model.

At least 280 Canadian soldiers have been wounded and nearly 400 others have suffered non-battle injuries, including stress disorders, since the Canadian mission in Afghanistan began in 2002.


"We take these recommendations very seriously," MacKay said in an interview with Canwest News Service. "We're constantly working towards improving and continuing to upgrade the health care system as it applies directly to Canadian soldiers who have served.

"It is unacceptable, in my view, to have a disparity of treatment that leaves a soldier feeling as if his or her country or government is not responding to their needs," MacKay added. "So if that requires further investment, we're looking at that. If that requires hiring more health care professionals for a certain niche area, like mental health, we are doing that."

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