Wait Times In P.G. Vary
Prince George, B.C.- While the Fraser Institute’s report on wait times for treatment of medical issues indicates wait times have increased across the Country ( see previous story), there is no simple way to compare that report’s findings with the wait lists for treatment in Northern Health or for treatment at the University Hospital of Northern B.C.
According to the report, in British Columbia, the median time for treatment from the time of the first appointment with a specialist to the time treatment is received is 14.5 weeks. That is based on 12 specialty areas.
The statistics for Northern Health are more detailed than the umbrella categories provided in the Fraser Institute’s report. What can be said is that among the all elective surgeries performed in B.C. between August 1st and October 31st of this year, 90% of the cases had received treatment within an average of 31.1 weeks of waiting.
It is safe to say that among the 74 different types of surgeries offered within the Northern Health region ( not all specialties provided in the region), the average wait time to have a case completed was 25.19 weeks.
The chart below compares a select number of specialty surgeries and the weeks 90% of patients waited to have their condition treated at the University Hospital of Northern B.C. with rates for Northern Health and the Province of B.C. The cases were completed between August 1st and October 31st:
While Northern Health would seem to have a long wait for hip or knee replacement, you would wait longer for those procedures if you lived on Vancouver Island. The stats indicate that 90% of the hip replacements completed in that Health Authority during the same three month period, had been waiting 62.5 weeks. On the opposite side of the scale, the shortest time to treatment was in the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority with 39.9 weeks.
Knee replacement in the Vancouver Island Health region saw 90% of completed cases during the three months noted, having waited 69.7 weeks, and again, Vancouver Coastal had the shortest period at 43 weeks.
It took longer for a patient to receive a breast biopsy in the Vancouver Island Health Authority (9.2 weeks) while the Interior Health region had the shortest wait time for that procedure at 5.1 weeks.
As for cataract removal, Northern Health had the lowest wait time at 17.2 weeks, and once again Vancouver Island had the longest at 45.1.
Comments
Sounds like the statistics being thrown out here, are from the Provincial Wait List Website?? I personally have no idea why this site exists, except to make people think that elective operations are being completed sooner than actual. It shows a 3 month average, at the end of each month. This figure takes in ALL operations IE emergency surgeries etc. After 40 weeks wait, the website showed my surgeon as 90% of his patients having had their operations at 26.4 weeks. Your surgeon puts your name forward to OR booking and sets a priority for your procedure, so if the surgeon feels that you are not in much pain, you will wait the longest, so it is up to the patient to ensure that the surgeon knows the pain you are having!
As reported on other sites .
The fraser institute survey was completed by only about 20% of medical people .
That should have gotten it thrown in the trash to begin with.
Slinky..carrying on from other post.. I was up and walking the same day…doing stairs the next then home the following. I had to pay $2000 out if pocket to upgrade my hip to last longer as our provincial government will only pay for the cheapest one.
My wife was told 9 months for shoulder replacement if she is lucky after waiting 6 months to see specialist and lucked out on that with a little help.She cannot even feel her had or do anything with arm. I think it is time for a change somewhere here.
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