One of the scariest things about ESIA is how we, as clients (isn't is an insult to call us clients, by the way) are 100% reliant on a doctor to not only understand our needs but to be willing to write endless letters about them. If you can't get a doctor interested in your situation, you're out of luck.

The loss of the $66 can be attributed to the apathy of one doctor, compounded by the extreme strictness of ESIA. ESIA won't give you anything unless a doctor says exactly what you need and why. The fact that three previous doctors said it was a need was irrelvant. The government pounced on the useless doctor's word for all it was worth.

What a disaster. Infuriating!

Many years ago, a caseworker said I could get extra money for green leafy vegetables if my doctor wrote a note about it. I told my doctor this. She scribbled a one-sentence note on a prescription form: "...needs to eat vegetables." The note was useless because it did not specify what kind of vegetables. I had to ask her to do it up again. She was very annoyed. More recently, I foolishly trusted my doctor to tell my caseworker that I needed iron supplements. I told him the note was supposed to state the brand name (because of cost), the duration, and the reason/medical condition. His note said: "Needs iron supplementation, 3 months." It was rejected and I had to get him to do up the letter again with all the needed details.

I've had many problems with irritated doctors who just don't get how important these letters are and how precise the details have to be. I have a long-standing policy of typing up the letter exactly as it should read, handing it to them to read, and if they agree, to get an identical or near-identical copy typed up by the receptionist, and have the doctor sign it. As long as the doctor agrees with the entire content of the letter and signs it, this is what all clients of ESIA should do if they have the cognitive skills to compose rock-solid letters. Never trust a doctor to tell ESIA exactly what they need to be told. One still may lose money off one's cheque at the yearly review, but at least you have the best shot at getting every penny you can if you supervise the process every step of the way.

Wrtie down exactly what needs to be said, leaving no detail out, hand it to the doctor, stating that every word of the draft letter must be included. Do not allow letters to be sent directly to ESIA. Check it first, and if anything is not right, insist it be redone.

As for why I lost most of my transportation allowance despite the letter from my doctor stating that there were issues with Access-A-Bus: because he did not explain those issues to the tune of what would have been a three page dissertation on the Access-A-Bus service. I didn't ask him to include several more pages on Access-A-Bus because he has no knowledge of the service, nor is it a medical issue. However, at the appeal, I was told that my doctor should have written a long letter detailing all the issues with Access-A-Bus.

And that's the other scary thing: ESIA wanting documentation from doctors for non-medical issues. When I asked if I could get some money as I was in desperate need of clothing, I was told they would give me $150 if I got a note from my doctor. Ridiculous!