AMSA Study Tours

SeaCouver February 6-10, 2008 The overall goal of SeaCouver (so-called because the tour takes place in Seattle and Vancouver) is to provide participants with an opportunity to directly compare the American healthcare system with the Canadian system. Part of the tour is devoted to didactic teaching about the two healthcare systems at the University of Washington and the University of British Columbia. However, the truly unique aspect of SeaCouver occurs when medical students dressed in short white coats take to the streets of Seattle and Vancouver to interview local citizens about their perceptions of the two systems. Participants in the past have found a wide variety of perspectives during these interviews, as well as an interesting combination of misinformation interspersed with facts. In the end, participants have come away with an understanding that both healthcare systems have problems, some of which are inherent to the system, and others of which are related to circumstance. One thing remained clear, however: the Canadian system guarantees equitable access to healthcare, and the American system does not. All healthcare systems involve making tradeoffs, but AMSA believes that regardless of tradeoffs, any desirable healthcare system must have at its base a guarantee of comprehensive, affordable healthcare for all.

Seattle, Washington Vancouver, British Columbia

LOGISTICS

This year, the tour will occur from February 6 - 10, 2008. Participants must arrive in Seattle by Wednesday, February 6, and must depart Seattle no earlier than Sunday, February 10.

COST

• The participant (or their school/AMSA chapter) must be willing to fund the cost of flying to and from Seattle. Upon arriving in Seattle, there will be a designated place for participants to meet.
• The participant must also pay a $400 fee (tentative, actually fee may be lower - fee will not be higher than $400), which will cover lodging, transportation costs from in Seattle and Vancouver, and a per diem allotment for food. Alcoholic beverages, tourism/sightseeing costs, and any food expenditures beyond the per diem allotment will be the responsibility of the participant. Any leftover money from the trip will be distributed equally back to the participants.

FOOD

Participants will receive a per-diem allotment for food, which will be covered by the study tour fee.

HOUSING

The study tour group will stay in a bed and breakfast or nice hostel. Housing costs will be covered by the study tour fee. Participants should expect to share rooms with other students.

APPLICATION PROCESS

The deadline for receipt of all application materials is November 18, 2007, at 11:59 pm Pacific Standard Time. There is no limitation to the number of students who can apply from each school. The group size will be approximately 10-12 people.

AMSA SEACOUVER VIDEOS

SeaCouver 2006 Video

• Part 1
• Part 2
• Part 3

This video is a useful project for any AMSA chapter. Click here for a SeaCouver project-in-a-box, which has everything needed to show the video at an AMSA chapter.

MORE INFORMATION ON THE CANADIAN HEALTHCARE SYSTEM

1. AMSA's international healthcare systems webpage
   
   
2. AMSA Fact Sheet on the Canadian healthcare system
   
   
3. AMSA's Canadian Waiting Times Primer
   
   
4. Online links
   
   
   1. Geyman J. "Myths and memes about single-payer health insurance in the United States: a rebuttal to conservative claims." Int J Health Services 53(1): 63-90, 2005.
      
      
   2. Physicians for a National Health Program has compiled an extensive website arguing for single-payer healthcare.
   
   
   
5. Further reading:
   
   
   1. Deber R. "Health Care Reform: Lessons from Canada." 2003 Am J Pub Health Jan; 93(1):20-4.
      [A superbly written overview of the Canadian healthcare system and the current challenges it is facing].
      
      
   2. Bodenheimer T and Grumbach K. "Healthcare in Four Nations." Understanding Health Policy: A Clinical Approach, 3rd edition. McGraw-Hill, New York: 163-166, 2002.
      [An excellent health policy textbook gives an overview of Canada's healthcare system].
      
      
   3. Woolhandler S, Campbell T, Himmelstein D. "Costs of Health Care Administration in the United State and Canada." 2003 NEJM 349(8): 768-765.
      [The famous paper on administrative costs in Canada and the United States].
      
      
   4. Anderson G et al. "Health Spending and Outcomes: Trends in OECD Countries, 1960-1998." Health Affairs (Millwood). 2000 May-Jun; 19(3): 150-7. Available free online at www.healthaffairs.org
      [An overview of healthcare spending in different countries, with an emphasis on the United States]
      
      
   5. Iglehart J. "Revisiting the Canadian Health Care System." N Engl J Med. 2000 Jun 29;342(26):2007-12.
      [A brief history of the Canadian system, along with a discussion of some of the challenges it faces]
      
      
   6. Blendon R et al. "Physicians' Perspectives on Caring for Patients in the United States, Canada, and West Germany. 1993 NEJM 328(14):1001-6.
      [A cross-national survey of physician perspectives on their countries' systems. U.S. physicians in this survey were less satisfied with the U.S. healthcare system than their counterparts in other countries].
      
      
   7. McIntosh T and Fafard P. "Conference Report: The Taming of the Queu IV: New Frontiers of Wait Time Measurement, Monitoring, and Management". Ottawa: May 2007.

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