Does Canada’s national health care system provide better patient satisfaction and access to health care than the United States’ health care system?

Abstract

The United States spends more money on health care than any other country in the world, yet there are millions of uninsured Americans. Lacking health insurance in the U.S. has many consequences such as not seeking preventative care, delaying necessary treatment, emotional stress, and financial burdens. On the other hand, Canada’s national health care system provides health care to all of its citizens who pay for the system through taxation. Canada has long been looked at as a role model for health care reform in the U.S. Methodology: The purpose of this systematic literature review is to assess whether Canada’s national health care system provides better patient satisfaction and access to health care than the current health care system in the U.S. This was done by performing a systematic literature review of articles found on the PubMed and FirstSearch databases. Results: The literature review contains 6 randomized surveys, 3 meta-analysis, 5 peer reviewed articles, 1 published book, 1 doctoral thesis, and 1 newspaper article. Conclusion: After looking at the data, evidence shows that patient satisfaction is higher among Canadian citizens than U.S. citizens. However, both systems have their own unique problems when it comes to access. The debate for the U.S. to change to a national health care system will continue and may never be resolved.