As the world enters the second wave of COVID-19, CBC News has reported on the growing strain faced by the Canadian healthcare system to address surgery and scan backlogs. The Canadian Medical Association, CMA, has found in a study that the average wait times for the six most common delayed procedures – CT and MRI scans, hip and knee replacements, cataract surgeries, and coronary artery bypass grafts – has increased by one to two months due to the first wave of COVID-19. Although procedures are beginning to rebound, CMA president Dr. Ann Collins urges that “any one of the delayed procedures could become urgent over time, especially as the second wave further delays care for people who may have been waiting since before the pandemic.”
The CMA’s report showed that more than 270,000 people had their MRI scans delayed by a national average of eight months, which is seven weeks longer than before the pandemic; and those waiting for knee replacements had to wait an average of 14 months, making wait times about two months longer than before the pandemic. This delay could make all the difference when detecting a serious disease early or giving patients their mobility back.
Dr. Collins believes that this impact on wait times is going to be the worst-ever faced by the healthcare system and calls on federal and provincial governments to develop a plan to restore backlogs to pre-pandemic levels. The study found that it would take at least $1.3 billion in additional funds and an additional 307,498 procedures to be performed over a 12-month period to tackle the backlog. More importantly, Paul-Emile Cloutier, president of the advocacy organization HealthCareCAN believes the greater concern is the human cost behind these figures, saying that “[Health-care staff] are exhausted. They’re tired. They have worked extremely hard and double shifts constantly during the first wave of COVID-19.”
