The absolute passive aggressive shade being thrown here in an attempt to shame people who lead complex, busy lives into compliance

I mean. The use of the word "taxpayers" alone has me giving this pamphlet a strong side eye. Firstly, EVERYONE pays tax, whether GST, PAYE, WHT etc. We are all taxpayers, incl beneficiaries. Being a taxpayer doesn't give you extra human rights or additional queue jumping power

Secondly, this is in a pamphlet for shuttle buses running from outlying towns into Hamilton. Maybe, just a thought, the hospital COULD RUN CLINICS IN THESE TOWNS INSTEAD OF FORCING SICK PPL TO TRAVEL LONG DISTANCES

Hosp depts who do this have a far greater uptake, better attendance, better outcomes for their patients etc etc. Having day clinics outside of Waikato Hosp works real well for reducing "did not show" numbers, and reduces inequities of access to healthcare

However, some have to constantly fight an admin that sees these clinics as additional costs, and would rather blame and shame individuals who find it difficult to travel 3 hours in a car and wait an hour for a 30min appt before travelling home again.

Petrol/travel costs. Taking time off work costs. Food costs. Having a family member take you means they have to carry those costs. Shuttles won't take family members, but it is isolating and hard going on your own (which is why I'm here with MIL ranting abt this lol)

Shaming the very people you are meant to be serving is a really terrible way of encouraging ppl to use your service and merely alienates those already finding it hard to make appt times

If DHBs are truly serious about reducing health inequities, then a) don't refer to people as taxpayers, b) don't create a false dichotomy between people who attend (presumably "good" and not expensive patients?) and people who don't (bad/costly?), c) stop individualizing access

And by c), what I mean is, people don't attend their appts not bc they don't care, but bc the hospital is set up in such a way as to be inaccessible. This includes issues such as transport, $$ costs, busy difficult lives, institutional racism, transience, working, caregiving...