Growing Patients Wait Times in BC a Growing Cause for Concern

B.C wait times to see a doctor are among the longest in Canada, Specialist’s prescreening patients could help decrease the backlog of patients to see.

Penticton, Canada - March 2, 2020 /PressCable/ —

Everyone dreads going to the doctor, but patients in B.C. may loathe it more than anyone else.

Wait times to get in to see any doctor are among the longest in Canada, according to recent reports from Global News.

Out of six provinces that were looked at (B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, and Nova Scotia) B.C. had the second longest average wait time at 50 minutes in the waiting room. Nova Scotia was in the lead at 69 minutes.

Different specialists have different wait/referral times. It takes much longer to see an orthopedic surgeon than it does to see an oncologist, though many would say that if you need to see an oncologist, you’re likely a very high priority patient, as opposed to the one needing an ortho surgeon.

Getting in to see a dermatologist for something not considered serious can take months. For less serious skin conditions, the skin analysis machine from Observ can be used at home, but seeing a specialist in advance would help them get set up in how to use it. Using a skin analysis machine can help patients document their progress without going to the dermatologist’s office and causing more backlog.

Wait times for certain surgeries in B.C., such as knee replacement and hip replacement, are among the highest in the country, with only a portion of patients getting their surgeries within the benchmark time.

Wait times have long been a source of frustration for patients, especially those that need referrals for special treatment. Being able to see a specialist, regardless of the type, is a necessary step in getting the health care people need. Waiting for months or even years for what isn’t considered an emergency, but still debilitating, can wear a person down.

In 2019, B.C. had shown some improvements, thanks to government funding, but still has a ways to go yet.

For more information, visit observ-diagnostic.com

Contact Info:
Name: Rene Serbon
Email: Send Email
Organization: Observ Diagnostic
Address: P.O. Box 1106, Penticton, BC V2A 6J9, Canada
Website: http://www.observ-diagnostic.com/

Source: PressCable

Release ID: 88948327