http://www.mombian.com/2007/04/28/a-walk-through-the-education-sections/ Sustenance for Lesbian Moms Thu, 09 Feb 2012 20:39:45 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 http://www.mombian.com/2007/04/28/a-walk-through-the-education-sections/comment-page-1/#comment-38233 exiled to canada Sun, 29 Apr 2007 15:33:50 +0000 http://mombian.com/2007/04/28/a-walk-through-the-education-sections/#comment-38233 Universities are definitely not ready for primetime when comes to dealing with families in general, not just moms. The university my wife attends here in Canada has daycares affiliated with it but no guaranteed spots for the children of students which meant a waiting list and a lot of juggling the first 8 months after we moved here. The health insurance covers pre-natal visits but the Student Health Centre does not provide any pre-natal, obstetric services or care, they also do not provide pediatric care. So we are still looking for a pediatrician and we have had to do some real work to find out where my wife can get care when she becomes pregnant with the next child. There is a family resource centre, and they are very helpful but they don't have the resources to help find child care, medical professionals, provide advice about how to maneuver through the "universal" care system here (you need referrals for everything except very basic care and some things aren't covered at all, like prescriptions), or help student families understand their tax benefits and obligations. The only two buildings with family housing have wait lists that are over a year long and the apartment sizes are tiny (approx. 800 sq ft for a two bedroom apartment) and only allows two children due to the small size of apartments. Both buildings are high-rises in the middle of a major metropolitan area with no playground area on site. So universities in Canada definitely have a long way to go when it comes to student families. Universities are definitely not ready for primetime when comes to dealing with families in general, not just moms. The university my wife attends here in Canada has daycares affiliated with it but no guaranteed spots for the children of students which meant a waiting list and a lot of juggling the first 8 months after we moved here. The health insurance covers pre-natal visits but the Student Health Centre does not provide any pre-natal, obstetric services or care, they also do not provide pediatric care. So we are still looking for a pediatrician and we have had to do some real work to find out where my wife can get care when she becomes pregnant with the next child. There is a family resource centre, and they are very helpful but they don’t have the resources to help find child care, medical professionals, provide advice about how to maneuver through the “universal” care system here (you need referrals for everything except very basic care and some things aren’t covered at all, like prescriptions), or help student families understand their tax benefits and obligations. The only two buildings with family housing have wait lists that are over a year long and the apartment sizes are tiny (approx. 800 sq ft for a two bedroom apartment) and only allows two children due to the small size of apartments. Both buildings are high-rises in the middle of a major metropolitan area with no playground area on site. So universities in Canada definitely have a long way to go when it comes to student families.

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