Achi news desk-
Patients in every state are waiting longer for hip and knee replacements, cancer surgeries and other priority procedures than before the COVID-19 pandemic, national data shows.
A report released Thursday by the Canadian Institute for Health Information says that’s true even though more people had those procedures between April and September 2023 compared to the same months in 2019.
The organisation’s latest data looks at waiting times for hip and knee replacements, hip fracture repairs, some cancer surgeries, as well as radiation therapy.
The data shows that 66 per cent of hip replacement patients underwent surgery within the recommended time frame of 26 weeks compared to 75 per cent in 2019, although the number of procedures rose by 18 per cent.
In terms of knee replacement surgery, 59 percent of people had the operation within that time frame, compared to 70 percent before the pandemic.
Only 21 per cent of patients in Prince Edward Island had knee replacement surgery within 26 weeks, the lowest rate in the country. That figure was 37 per cent in Newfoundland and Labrador, and 38 per cent in New Brunswick and Quebec.
Patients in Ontario waited the shortest time for almost all of the treatments. The data shows that 76 percent of patients in that province had knee replacement surgery within the recommended time frame, while 57 percent of British Columbia surgeries met that benchmark.
In Alberta, 49 percent of people had the knee replacement surgery they needed within the recommended time frame.
Prince Edward Island was also at the bottom of the list for hip replacement surgery, with 39 per cent of people having that surgery within 26 weeks, while Ontario was again at the top with 79 per cent.
Emergency surgery for hip fractures was carried out within the recommended 48 hours for 82 per cent of patients last year, compared to 86 per cent in 2019.
In terms of radiation therapy, 94 percent of patients across Canada received the treatment within the recommended timeframe, compared to 97 percent in 2019. But again, there were differences among the provinces.
While all Manitoba patients and 99 percent of Ontario patients received radiation therapy within the recommended time frame, that figure dropped to 57 percent for Newfoundland and Labrador, the lowest in Canada.
Although there are no established benchmarks for breast, bladder, colorectal and lung cancer operations, the report notes that median waiting times for those procedures have increased from two to four days, from compared to 2019.
The publicly reportable waiting time benchmarks were set by the country’s health ministers in 2004 for joint replacement, vision restoration, cancer treatment, cardiac care and diagnostic imaging.
Separate data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information shows record high percentages of hip and knee replacement surgeries meeting benchmarks were recorded back in 2010, and average wait times have risen for the most treatments over the years.
Dr. Pierre Guy, a Vancouver surgeon and president of the 1,200-member Canadian Orthopedic Association, said people who need hip and knee replacements usually have arthritis and suffer from daily pain.
“They need to take pain medication, sometimes narcotics. Or maybe they need a cane and their daily activities would be very limited.”
Although the data shows the number of procedures completed, Guy said it is important to note that many more people are still waiting for an operation that would improve their quality of life.
“I fully recognize the importance of the data, the importance of the metrics, as long as hospitals and various health authorities don’t just focus on hip and knee replacements to make the numbers look good.”
One solution is to discharge patients on the day they have had surgery, when appropriate, to free up more hospital beds, he said.
That would require a team of anaesthesiologists, nurses and physiotherapists coordinating follow-up care, he said, and making sure the patient has everything they need at home after the operation.
Almost 17 per cent of hospital procedures were day surgeries in British Columbia between 2021 and 2022, compared to just one per cent in 2018, but that could be further improved, he said.
Guy would also like to see more physician assistants employed to work with surgeons in operating rooms.
“We should start thinking more broadly than the simple model of just doctors and nurses.”
This report was first published by The Canadian Press on April 4, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage is supported through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
