It’s not uncommon for residents of Cumberland County, N.S., to travel to Moncton, N.B., for a wide range of health services and specialist appointments, from MRI and bone density scans to pregnancy checks and elective surgeries.
“We have closer ties to New Brunswick, from the point of view of health-care and our economy, than we do to the rest of Nova Scotia,” said Dr. Janneke Gradstein, the medical site lead at the Cumberland Regional Health Care Centre.
It’s because Cumberland County is so close to the New Brunswick border.
Medical leads in both provinces have discussed ways to ensure the COVID-19 pandemic doesn’t significantly disrupt appointments for patients who live in border communities, Gradstein said.
It was initially a non-issue, she added, as long as people hadn’t tested positive for the virus and didn’t present with symptoms.
However, once the border between the two provinces closed, patients were suddenly forced to consider a two-hour trip to Halifax for certain procedures.
“People aren’t used to having to plan around that. The ER isn’t used to having to plan around that,” she said.
Rhonda Cormier is a Cumberland County resident who is deals with the challenges of having to travel several hours for care to Halifax.
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Cormier was diagnosed with cancer in April, and while she had surgery to remove a lump, she still requires chemotherapy and radiation.
Moncton is less than 30 minutes away from her home, but said her surgeon wasn’t able to send her there for treatment because of challenges at the border.
She said she doesn’t understand why a travel exemption hasn’t been made for those who need medical care.
“It’s not a feasible option for me when I could go a 20-minute drive to Moncton and have my treatment and come home and rest, but as it stands, I’m spending pretty much eight hours away from my house,” Cormier said.
According to the New Brunswick health department, Nova Scotians who were already receiving care in New Brunswick haven’t had their care interrupted with the border closing.
“Out-of-province patients are being seen if they were already under the active care of a New Brunswick physician prior to the end of March or if the needed care isn’t available in their home province,” said spokesperson Bruce Macfarlane.
Gradstein said she doesn’t blame either government, and that the pandemic has led to a lot of unforeseen obstacles that she hopes are addressed soon.
“This is a very complicated issue. I don’t think that anyone has done anything wrong, but I think it is important when the conversations are being held about what we need to do to contain this pandemic, to remember the impact on border towns and to ensure that that’s considered in the planning,” she said.
Cumberland North MLA Elizabeth Smith-McCrossin said she’s heard similar concerns from many of her constituents and hopes the province moves quickly.
“When you’re dealing with cancer diagnosis and other acute and chronic illnesses, in fairness to our patients and our citizens, we need to address this right away,” she said.
A request for an interview with Premier Stephen McNeil wasn’t immediately returned.
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