WATCH: Fraser Health Authority Surgical Program Director Peter Blair discusses hospital wait times on Unfiltered
A leaked memo from the Fraser Health Authority is once again raising the issue of long wait times in hospitals.
Documents released by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation show that last month, Fraser Health had 649 cases where the wait time had exceeded one year.
As of October 9, Surrey Memorial had 226 cases where the wait time had exceeded a year, while Burnaby General had 143.
In B.C., all surgical bookings that remain on a wait list past 52 weeks are subject to penalties from the provincial government. The memo by Fraser Health said they risked a penalty of over $2.5 million.
It also reminds surgeons at Fraser Health to book meetings with patients whose wait times have already exceeded 40 weeks.
“It is imperative for the interest of all, including our patients, that we use every available strategy to avoid penalties,” the memo reads.
WATCH: In July, the provincial government released a plan for Fraser Health Authority to deal with wait times
Peter Blair, the Fraser Health Authority Surgical Program Director, defended the memo, saying Fraser Health and the provincial government are on the same page.
“Obviously the Ministry of Health has the same priority we have in giving patients timely access to surgical resources. This is their way of reminding us that we need to get these cases done. I have absolutely no problem with this,” he said.
Blair also said the number of wait list cases going over 52 weeks has gone from about 10 per cent of cases to under 4.5 per cent in the last year.
“In some obvious cases like painful conditions or cancer, surgeons know they need to get those cases done ASAP. Other cases, it may be less obvious that they need to be done. These patients may find themselves on a waiting list waiting months and months. We’re trying to remind the surgeons,” he said.
David Jones, the former medical coordinator at Burnaby General Hospital, says the news won’t come as any surprise to most.
“We wait for tests, we wait terribly long time for things like MRIs, Canadians are very patient folk, and that helps our system work,” he said.
But he says the memo is more evidence that wait times are a problem.
“It’s not just a Burnaby problem, it’s not just a B.C. problem, it’s a problem right across the country,” he said.
“The length of time Canadians have to wait for surgery, it’s just not right.”
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