Private clinic bans patient after fee tiff

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This article was published 09/09/2010 (5552 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A south Winnipeg clinic has banned a woman who recently criticized its policy of charging patients after her elderly mother was turned away due to an unpaid cancellation fee.

Suzanne Macduff said she has been barred from Lakewood Medical Centre just two weeks after she fought the clinic over its refusal to waive a $120 fee billed to her mother, who is in her 90s and suffering from dementia.

Last week, Macduff said her mother got a letter from the clinic’s manager saying they will waive her previous "no-show fee" but she must book her own medical appointments and find someone other than her daughter to accompany her to the clinic. The letter, dated Aug. 30, states Macduff is "no longer allowed to attend Lakewood Medical Centre."

Macduff said the clinic is punishing her for speaking out against its policy of charging for missed appointments.

Clinic manager Daisy Michasiw sent an email to the Free Press saying the patient in question was discharged after she violated the clinic’s policy prohibiting violent or abusive patients and visitors. Michasiw’s statement said "she was well aware of our clinic policies and was in clear violation," and was unable to elaborate further due to privacy concerns.

Macduff denies being violent or abusive, and said "I just spoke up on my mother’s behalf."

Two weeks ago, staff at Lakewood refused to let Macduff’s mother see a physician due to an unpaid fee from a previously cancelled appointment her mother was too ill to attend. Macduff claimed she wasn’t told about the hefty fee when she first booked the appointment and thought the clinic would waive it due to her mother’s worsening dementia.

The issue ignited a debate over the ethics of charging patients, and prompted the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Manitoba to remind doctors to consider the circumstances and the patient’s ability to pay before issuing a penalty fee.

"I’m being punished. I acted as an advocate for my mother and now I’m being denied access to my own doctor at the clinic," Macduff said, noting her family doctor also practises at Lakewood. "There are no other children, I am the only child. There are no other cousins or friends who are going to phone and book their appointments."

Macduff called the situation "ludicrous." She filed a second complaint against the clinic with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Manitoba. College deputy registrar Dr. Terry Babick said he thinks the clinic acted appropriately by waiving the cancellation fee, but could be struggling over how staff felt about the disagreement with Macduff. He said private clinics must have a good reason for banning people.

"It would be optimal, I think, if there could be some form of resolution and mutual respect so as not to interfere with the provision of care for this lady," Babick said.

jen.skerritt@freepress.mb.ca