By PAN Founder, Sarah Pump
I have a chronic, degenerative illness. I am on provincial disability (PWD).
One of my specialist doctors feels strongly that a specific type of physiotherapy would help with my mobility challenges and chronic pain. He thinks I would need up to eight sessions to see meaningful results.
PWD offers supplemental MSP coverage for therapies such as physiotherapy, chiropractic, massage therapy, and podiatry. They cover $23 per session for ten sessions annually.
The actual cost of the physiotherapy sessions is $155 for the intake appointment, and then $125 per regular session after that.
I receive approximately $1900 a month from PWD to support myself and my son. While I do try to supplement our income with some work as a virtual assistant, as I have gotten sicker, I have been forced to cut my hours. I have also stopped all in person meetings for PAN, and increasingly depend on our 18 wonderful volunteers for our service delivery. I feel stuck in a cycle of illness.
To access physiotherapy, I would have to somehow figure out how to carve almost $1000 out of my incredibly meager income. It feels especially impossible in the face of rising grocery prices while feeding my growing 15 year old son.
It’s infuriating to see social media posts from our local MLA Sheila Malcolmson, who also happens to be the Minister of Social Development and Poverty Reduction. Her posts showcase countless ribbon cuttings and funding announcements for bright and shiny new programs. Meanwhile, a foundational provincial program such as PWD remains criminally underfunded with shamefully low fee guides for medical treatments.
I could contribute so much more to our community. I WANT to contribute more. Instead, I’m kneecapped, mostly housebound, fighting to maintain some quality of life.
Poverty Advocacy Nanaimo 