Surgery wait times not improving with Sask. Party
The Sask. Party touts for-profit clinics as a solution, but Saskatchewan’s grades have not improved in any category compared to the last two years. In knee surgery wait times, Saskatchewan gets a ‘D’ from the well-respected physicians’ organization.
“A ‘D’ in knee-surgery wait times is unacceptable,” said Cam Broten, NDP health critic. “This is a quality of life issue for Saskatchewan families and they deserve much better.”
Broten was also disappointed with the ‘C’ grades given in cataract and hip replacement surgery. In both of those categories, Saskatchewan has moved farther away from target wait times in the last two years.
“Revenue is high and government spending is higher than ever before in Saskatchewan,” said Broten. “It should be a top priority of government to get health care right, but we're not seeing results under the Sask. Party's plan. Instead of re-directing dollars to the for-profit sector, we should be building capacity in our public system. We know this is a problem because as we've seen in the past months, existing operating rooms in the Regina Qu'appelle Health Region have actually been sitting idle.”
The WTA annual report grades provinces on their wait times compared to standard benchmarks. Saskatchewan’s grade on hip replacement surgeries has dropped to a C in 2012 from a B in 2011. The province’s grade for cataract surgeries has also dropped to a C in 2011 and 2012 from an A in 2010. Other grades are unchanged compared to the last two years.
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