In a video that has gone viral, a Nova Scotia cancer patient is daring the premier to meet with her and tell her there is no health-care crisis in the province.
“I dare you to take a meeting with me and explain to me and look into my eyes and tell me there is no health-care crisis in my province of Nova Scotia. I dare you,” says Inez Rudderham in the video.
Rudderham posted the video to her Facebook page Tuesday. It has since gone viral, garnering more than 4,000 comments, more than 50,000 shares, and more than a million views.
In the video, the tearful 33-year-old mother says her anal cancer went undiagnosed for two years because she didn’t have access to a family doctor.
Rudderham says she went to three different ERs, but was brushed off each time. When she was finally diagnosed, she says her anal cancer had already reached stage 3.
“And I fought. I fought for my life, but there’s no health-care crisis. Three ERs I went to before someone would listen to me.”
Rudderham says the 30 rounds of radiation have left her “barren and infertile” and her body is in menopause as a result.
“At 33 I am in menopause because when my tumour was a polyp I did not have access to a family doctor and the ERs wouldn’t help me,” she says.
Rudderham also addresses the issue of accessing mental health services in the province. She says she has been trying to book an appointment since January, but has recently been informed she won’t be able to see someone until mid-July.
“This is the face. This is the face of the health-care crisis in Nova Scotia. And I dare you to tell me otherwise,” she challenges Premier Stephen McNeil again at the end of the video.
Inez's aunt, Terry Rudderham, says she's incredibly proud of her niece.
“She's really an amazing young lady,” Terry Rudderham said. “She's got such a great character I think. She's kind and she's strong, and she's caring.”
To help ease the financial burden that Inez's family is facing, Terry launched a GoFundMe page for Rudderham when she was first diagnosed with cancer last summer.
This week, the page started getting more donations and had raised more than $10,000 as of Thursday afternoon.
“It's been so difficult financially, they had to sell their home, and that just happened a few days ago,” Terry Rudderham said.
“You can imagine my surprise this morning when I woke up and I had this email from GoFundMe saying that they were sending me $1,000. I was like, ‘Whoa, what's that about?' Then I found out that the video had gone viral.”
Nova Scotia has been plagued by problems in its health-care system, from a shortage of family doctors, to emergency room overcrowding and closures.
McNeil told CTV Atlantic Thursday that he has watched part of the video and has asked representatives from the Nova Scotia Health Authority to reach out to Rudderham.
McNeil admitted there are challenges with the health-care system, but stopped short of saying there is a crisis.
“I've asked the department to reach out, to be in contact with her, to find out the issues that she has and how can we best ensure that she gets the appropriate treatment and also the appropriate supports," he said.
Family members say Rudderham is now in remission.
Terry Rudderham says her niece is overwhelmed by the response to her video and they are grateful to everyone who has contributed to their GoFundMe campaign.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Natasha Pace.