Aero-Linx!

Scouring the information super airways can sometimes be a tough, if educational, task for the Aero-News staff... but it also allows us to check out some truly neat and exciting sites, so it's not that bad a gig. On any given day, we may check dozens (and often hundreds) of different sources for story ideas, and facts confirmation. And, as is the nature of our business, much of this is done on the Internet.

The ANN gang decided we probably shouldn't keep some of the neat sites, info resources, and organizations we've discovered to ourselves... so we decided to bring you Aero-Linx. These are the sites that WE check out -- when we need added perspective, a new spin on a day's topic... or just want to escape into cyber-aero-space for awhile.

Look for some of our favorite sites, coming each day to ANN via Aero-Linx. Suggestions for future Aero-Linx segments are always welcome, as well.

Aero Linx: Hope Air

For many Canadians, a trip to see a medical specialist is usually a short car or bus drive away. But for thousands of Canadians (over 20% of the population), who live in small and rural communities where specialized medical care is not available, a trip to see a medical specialist might involve an 16 hour car or bus ride.  Healthcare coverage starts at the door of the doctor’s office. How you get to the doctor and any related travel costs fall to you.  For patients living in small and rural communities, travelling long distances to their specialist medical appointments comes at a cost of time and money. Low-income families can afford neither. This lack of access to specialists and other medically necessary services can also lead to delays in treatment and poorer health outcomes. Access to medical care is a real and relevant problem for many Canadians. 
 
Enter Hope Air - a unique and essential component of Canada’s universal healthcare system. Hope Air is Canada’s only national charity providing free flights to low-income Canadians who must travel to medical care that does not exist in their communities. Hope Air exists to bridge the distance between low-income people living in small and rural areas of our country, and the medical care they need. In a recent survey, when asked what would happen if they could not rely on Hope Air to access their medical specialist, 29% of patients reported that they would cancel or postpone their medical treatment, while 20% of patients stated they would travel 8-12 + hours each way by bus or car to reach their medical appointment. The burden of time and money is further exacerbated when expenses are incurred for overnight accommodations or lost income from time off work, for them or their caregivers.

FMI: https://hopeair.ca