do me a favor CanadaJohn tell or local lefties forum lackeys who makes the health care decision like what urgency you are, and what treatments you can receive, when can you see a doctor, in Canada's socialist medicine
That's a tough question to answer in a simple post - there are a lot of complications involved.
Firstly, the government contracts with doctors for the fee schedule to be paid for various services, what services will be covered, and the number of patients any doctor can serve in a given year. The doctors' association is like a union in that regard. There are limits placed on the number of "visits" any one doctor can charge to the system in the course of a year. In some locales, where there are a limited number of doctors and lots of patients, doctors either have to shut down their offices late in the year if they've passed their threshhold, or they have to see patients without claiming a fee. Some professions, like Optometrists, asked for and were granted the ability to opt out of the system because the fees the government was willing to pay for their services wasn't keeping up with the costs associated with their business model to deliver those services. As a result, everyone except senior, young children, and those on welfare, pay for their eyecare needs directly or through private or employment insurance coverage.
Secondly, you can see your doctor whenever you can arrange an appointment with him/her, but there are many people who don't have a family doctor because there's a shortage of general practitioners available. There has been an increase in the opening of clinics here where a number of doctors practice and don't have a particular clientelle, they simply see whomever walks in the door on the particular day/time they're in the office. When my family doctor died, this is the option I chose and I like it just fine - I'm not particular about who sees me and advises me and I seldom go except for flu shots, etc. but there are many people who feel a need for a one on one relationship with a doctor they trust and like and that can be hard for them to find.
Thirdly, when it comes to specialist services and/or hospital care like surgeries, it really depends on where you live and how much access you have to the specialists/surgeons. Where I live, in Toronto, there's obviously much more access but then a far higher number of people to serve. In more remote and northern communities, people often have to travel to Toronto or another large city to see a specialist or have an operation. As well, many services that people may need are just not readily available in Canada and the government will pay for a patient's care in a facility in one of the northern states in America. But in the case of care in the US, it is entirely up to a government agency that determines if the government will pay for that out of country care.
Finally, I'd say in a general sense that it is the doctor(s) caring for a patient who, inconsultation with the patient, determine what care and treatment the patient will receive. But very clearly, technically, with the government funding the care and treatment to a very large extent, the amount of money government puts into the system will determine level and type of access given to patients.
That's not comprehensive, but hope it gives a bit of a response to your question.