LIFESAVING PICC LINES STILL UNAVAILABLE AT REGINA HOSPITALS

Failures in Sask. Party’s recruitment strategy leaving hospitals without adequate staffing according to internal memos

REGINA – Despite a leaked internal memo stating that short-staffing affecting PICC line procedures would end on Oct. 3, patients are shedding new light on the dire nature of Regina’s hospitals as failures in the Sask. Party’s recruitment strategy are still leading to chronic staff shortages. The widespread shortages specifically include interventional radiologists in Regina, who have specialized skills to insert lifesaving PICC lines or ports.

“This is a failure of the Sask. Party Government to provide vital, potentially lifesaving healthcare to the people of this province,” said Vicki Mowat, Saskatchewan NDP Shadow Minister for Health.

“The physician-shortage issue has been ongoing for years and we’ve seen no progress. More than 4,000 frontline healthcare workers left the profession last year alone and this has caused an unprecedented crisis in our hospitals and clinics.

“The Sask. Party has refused to even acknowledge the crisis and have left our healthcare in last place. We need a plan to get Saskatchewan people the healthcare they need and deserve.”

PICC and port lines are both types of central venous catheters that allow for long-term access to the bloodstream. They are used to administer medication, blood, nutrition, or fluids into the bloodstream, or to obtain blood samples.

However, despite the memo stating that disruptions would end on Oct. 3, the shortage is continuing to affect patients, patients like Lynn Robertson.

Robertson was diagnosed with cancer for a third time in June 2024. She was confirmed to have breast cancer and had a double mastectomy in September. Robertson was informed in October that she would need six chemotherapy treatments, one every three weeks. She was referred for a PICC line on Oct. 17, the day that she had her initial appointment with her oncologist, but was informed that there would be a waitlist and that “it was long”.

Robertson has undergone two chemotherapy treatments without a PICC or port line to date, at which times she has experienced chemotherapy burns and pain, due to multiple attempts at finding her veins. She was informed that there are currently no interventional radiologists in Regina to insert PICC lines or ports.

"In the midst of a cancer diagnosis and chemotherapy treatments, it is appalling to me that I have had to work so hard to advocate for myself for a PICC line or port insertion without any hope that this will happen before my treatments are completed,” Robertson said.

“My body has already been through more than enough after three cancer diagnoses. When the waitlists for PICC lines and port insertions are as long as they are in Regina, it is inexcusable that the Ministry of Health is not actively trying to reduce these wait times when there are solutions out there."

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