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Our First Family Day in BC

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Powered by Mom Blog & Family had their first “Family Day” in BC!

We think everyone should have the opportunity to have a “Family Day”

Today marked the very first official “Family Day” now a statutory holiday in British Columbia. We now have joined the ranks of Alberta, Ontario and Saskatchewan who have had “Family Day” for years before us and just to be different BC of course has to have ours on a different day from the other provinces :). We are ever so grateful to have this day and to specifically earmark it to spend with our family as sometimes we all get so busy that we don’t make enough time. I couldn’t resist the picture below which is my daughter at the age of 2 (she’s now 11) on a camping trip where we gave her felts and paper to occupy her during the drive, she obviously decided the paper wasn’t the canvas she wanted to colour :).

Sian blue period

Our Family Day didn’t turn out quite the way we wanted as our daughter ended up getting sick on Saturday and she’s still recovering but we were all together and that’s what counts. In between taking care of my daughter by cozying up to watch a movie, make her hot chocolate etc… I started to think about couples (some I’ve known) who have desperately wanted children of their own but for various medical reasons haven’t been blessed. Many would like to do In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) but sadly the only province in Canada to date is Quebec that provides funding for couples wanting to do IVF.  It is an expensive procedure that very few can afford.

ivf4bc

Interestingly enough I have learned through my support of funding for IVF in BC (you can read a previous post of mine HERE also about IVF) has one of the highest multiple-birth rates through IVF.

Here are some very interesting statistics from a report released earlier this month:

  •  BC has one of the highest multiple birth rates, approximately 28%. In Quebec, the multiple-birth rate has declined to between 5-8% with the introduction of public funding for IVF treatments.
  • Multiple births are 17 times more likely to pre-term births; as a result the ensuing expense is high along with higher rates of physical ad learning disabilities which would also have high care expenses.
  • By having IVF funded as stated in the same report it would save BC $12-13 million in perinatal hospitalization costs AND $7-8 million in post-natal costs as they relate to first-year care of surviving low-birth-weight babies,
  • BC would also save $22-27 million in long-term health and social services costs as a result of permanent disabilities for pre-term births. That is simply astounding!

bc family day

I support IVF funding 100% as I believe every couple who wants to be parents should have the opportunity to experience the joys (and yes the tribulations but they’re part of the joy too) of parenthood and that the high cost of IVF should not be what prevents them to be parents. Don’t we all deserve to have a “Family Day” with our children and those we love?

What can you do to support #ivf4b? (Thanks to fellow supporting BC blogger Rants n Rascals for this idea)

  1. Tweet this post and make sure to use hashtags ##ivf4bc #bcpoli or copy & paste the title of the post which has both.
  2. Share this post on FB and Google Plus by using the share buttons at the bottom of the post
  3. Write to our government and let them know you support IVF funding

Stop by and check out the IVF website HERE (http://www.ivf4bc.ca/) and/or the Facebook page HERE (https://m.facebook.com/ivf4bc)

Here is a wonderful article from the Province newspaper that you can see HERE.

Feel free to comment and share this post even if you’re not in BC share it and let’s support IVF funding here in BC!

 

Comments

  1. It looks like she had a blast with the pain, family day is great. I also cherish ours. Thanks for the blog it’s excellent

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  2. Family Day is a great idea. I think IVF should be supported.
    What does your daughter think about the blue picture now that she’s older?

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  17. I was just wondering why its only Quebec that supports IFC? How come all of the other provences don’t?

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  18. There should be a family day in every state in my opinion. I’ll share it on twitter,fb and google.Thank you for the post. That’s a funny pic of your daughter,she looks like alittle smurf. LOL!!

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  20. I can’t believe nobody told me they had a “Family Day” stat now in BC! That is the coolest thing. Makes me want to move back to BC just for that! (And the healthcare). It gets more tempting the more medical bills I get! I know I had a family member go through IVF in BC, and it did cost quite a bit. They had a single child, and she is priceless. It’s just unfortunate that so many can’t afford it. Again…even worse here in the States I am sure.

    Very informative post for anyone looking into IVF in Canada. And my family will thank you I’m sure for once again reminding me why I should be living in Canada 😉

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  21. It would be great for the USA to have this holiday devoted to family! There is no funding for IVF either. We dont even have Government funded healthcare for ALL citizens. My husband has a family member that spent thousands & thousands of dollars to have their children through IVF . I wish there was some kind of help for ppl like them so they dont go into endless debt to have the child they so desperately want.

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  24. This is such an awesome idea! We as a family try to get together at least one weekend a month…it’s usually 2 weekends my DIL works every other weekend so we get together on her off weekends.Can’t wait for my daughter and SIL to get back from Germany so they can join us once in awhile!

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  25. I love this idea to have a Family Day!! Sadly we get so busy as families that we need that reminder!! Thanks for the post!

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  26. Great post with lots of info. I really got a kick out of the picture of your daughter. It is memories like that, that are priceless! =)

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  28. My brother and sister-in-law are going through IVF right now and they are fortunate enough to live in Quebec. It is one less stress on them not having to worry about the huge financial burden involved.

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  30. I really enjoyed reading about your Family Day. I think I am going to incorporate a “Family Day” into our lives this year.

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  31. I am in Manitoba and we too have family day which they have called Louis riel day, which is on the 18th. now having a family of my own I cherish all the days off I can get:). I also read the part about IVF and I think if at least some funding in each province for those that struggle with infertilty would be helpful. As somone who tried that route when after years of trying we failed to concieve we went that route which unfortunatly failed to help us. fortunatly though we somehow got pregnant naturally and now have a beautiful child. I too often think of all the people who out there who don’t get that chance and never take it for granted that what I have is a true blessing!

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  32. We have our own “Family Day” which I cherish, I work fulltime and so does my husband, so it’s sometimes hard to find the time, but worth it to dedicate a day to it 🙂

    Reply

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