The Saskatchewan Surgical Initiative has dramatically cut surgical wait times.
In developing the SSI, Saskatchewan worked with, and learned from, other prov-inces–belying the image of a fragmented health-care system in which leadership must come from the federal government–and built upon previous Saskatchewan initiatives to reduce waiting lists. The SSI changed the way waiting lists were managed and organized, but it also fundamentally changed the culture and decision-making process in health care.
SSI improved … “wait times for elective surgery; long waits remain in other areas.”
Other areas would be not-elective surgeries? Surgeries that must-be-done? Time-is-of-the-essence type surgeries?
In that case, who the hell cares about SSI?
Number of weeks?
Jesus, I hate this country some times.
well the “nothing is good enough” trolls are out in force. If we lower waits and offload elective stuff you free up time and such for the required work.
This is good news. And shows what true leadership can do.
Not elective surgery…as in critical life saving surgery?
Sure, that’s why under the Paul Martin LIEberals they cut $35 billion in provincial health transfers and then wondered why people were falling off the apple cart in hospital corridors.
Chaoulli v. Quebec (Attorney General), [2005] 1 SCR 791, 2005 SCC 35
See: http://www.canlii.org/en/ca/scc/doc/2005/2005scc35/2005scc35.html
But hey no worries, euthanizing the patient will get a lot easier real soon!
Carter v. Canada (Attorney General), [2015] 1 SCR 331, 2015 SCC 5
http://www.canlii.org/en/ca/scc/doc/2015/2015scc5/2015scc5.html
There is a word for those who take money to kill other people:
THE ASSASSIN’S BUSINESS MODEL
Of course the budget will balance ITSELF, “True-Dope-ia” told us so!
I think I’ve heard all the drivel I can endure, about ‘Dying with Dignity’.
But of course, there is no such thing as “Dying with Dignity” except in the fevered propaganda purveyors drugged up hallucinations.
Yer, wait times may vary, but HELL does not!
Cheers
Hans Rupprecht, Commander in Chief
1st Saint Nicolaas Army
Army Group “True North”
A lot of generalized jargon about things like “inclusive decision-making” by the writer of this article. Nothing substantive reported … which makes me wonder whether all the improvements have been made “on paper” … by altering the methodology of how patients are “reported” to be on the lists. Kinda like what Obama’s VA did. Simply manipulate the statistics to make it “appear” as though the wait lists are shorter. You know … like Global Warming temperatures. Doctors and Scientists no longer need to be competent in their fields … all they need is to be really good at computer generated faux statistics.
Elective is a misnomer, it only means non urgent. You can live with crap knees, but not with a heart attack. So the heart attacks get moved to the front of line, while the crap knees wait and wait and wait. There are only so many hours available in the public operating rooms and this approach adds to those operating hours by contracting it out. Makes sense but I was listening to the CBC call in and few were pro because of a lot of misinformation and Tommy Douglas.
That is depressing. You take one part of the system, throw money at it, partially privatize it and you get better results. But the whole system is still broken. That’s like souping up the engine in a car with a broken transmission. Now you have more horsepower, but you still ain’t going anywhere.
“the health care system was dominated by those providing care and was not centred on patients” There’s your problem.
Recently Ontario meet one of their re-election promises to the parents of autistic children. The government has taken a waiting list of two years (average) some areas it is four years)for children to access to IBI Intensive behavioural Intervention, they have already cut it by a year and will further cut it down to six months. Want to hazard a guess how they did this miraculous thing with out the output of more resources? Why they arbitrarily decided to change the cut off age to 5 years old. Leaving thousands of children without access to the program. Bet you when it comes time for re-election they will boast of the shortened wait list times and unknowing people will nod their wee heads and think how they will have to vote for the liberals again because they are doing a fabulous job…… be careful what you vote for.
http://www.thestar.com/news/queenspark/2016/03/29/shorter-wait-lists-narrower-eligibility-for-autistic-kids-under-revamped-ontario-system.html
Heh, a new ‘5 year plan’…Before the communists took over, it was the patient who decided how long the wait would be…of course the medical people used to work for the patient instead of the gov’t.
Build a nanny state, then wonder why there are so many children…
“Heh, a new ‘5 year plan’…Before the communists took over,” You mean way back when not dead enough Tommy(from Saskabush BTW) intro’d “free” health care? North Korea, Cuba,Britain, and Canaduh? Who has “free” health care for 1 gadzillion,Alex.
my wait times in Saskatchewan in the last three years were: 6 weeks for knee replacement, 3 weeks for both eye cataracts, 12 weeks for bunionectomy. I don’t think these waits times are bad at all. And I am a retiree. So either you have a terrible doctor or have refused at least one appointment and get put to the back of the bus.
my wait times in Saskatchewan in the last three years were: 6 weeks for knee replacement, 3 weeks for both eye cataracts, 12 weeks for bunionectomy.
You forgot the most important part…somebody else was forced to pay for it. From the payers point of view, euthanasia is a lot cheaper.
“the whole system is still broken.”
More broken than many would think. I have a number of close relatives who work in the local health region and the horror stories are plentiful. Layer upon layer of management positions, many of which overlap. Waste and misuse of supplies that would not be acceptable in the real world of business. Workers demonstrating sloth and insubordination and supervisors and managers too terrified of the union to take disciplinary action. No attempt at streamlining any process or eliminating redundant paperwork largely due to laziness and incompetence of managers or, once again, fear of running afoul of the union. Promotion of employees, not as the result of performance, but for being in the “system” for a certain period of time. The whole system is rotten to the core yet we wonder why wait times are unacceptably long.
I paid for these operations through my provincial sales taxes, my federal taxes and my gasoline taxes.
Where I’m at in Alberta, it’s 6 months minimum wait for an MRI if it’s for a non-life threatening injury. Permanent disability without immediate treatment is still a “non-life threatening injury” and, well, they can’t really do a lot of treatment without first getting the MRI. After getting the MRI results, you get referred to a surgeon, but they’re hopelessly backed up as well so it will take another 6 months. From the time you’re injured until treatment actually begins is one year. Expect to adjust your lifestyle to accommodate having a permanent limp, partial use of your arm, bad back, etc. “Free” health care that you pay 3x as much into per year as the premium private plans down South. I suspect the official wait times for treatment in Alberta is something completely fictitious like 24 weeks. Hopefully Sask’s reported wait times, and the improvement to them, are real. Alberta could use a good example to follow.
That’s right Tim.
Like all of our dysfunctional, publicly run systems today, namely, health, education, and gubermint service, they no longer serve the original ‘customer’ (patient, student, taxpayer) as the PRIME need or function.
These systems exist to serve the UNIONS and ADMIN FIRST. Patients, students and taxpayers are just necessary evils to be tolerated so that those golden paycheques, benefits and pensions can be paid out
I worked in one of those private clinics for four years. We did hundreds of knee and shoulder scopes and many ACL reconstructions for the Health District. We had 2 fully staffed and equipped ORs that added capacity to the government system. All with well paid non union staff. You’re welcome…
One of the NDPs arguments against private MRIs is that the private facilities will ‘poach’ staff from the public system and leave them short staffed.
If that logic holds true for other sectors of the economy, should we be opposing the new potash mines because the new mines will ‘poach’ employees from the existing mines?
No more new grocery stores because the new stores will poach staff from the existing stores?
Socialist economic logic can be a real head scratcher sometimes.
I paid for these operations through my provincial sales taxes, my federal taxes and my gasoline taxes.
Including all the lead up medical visits, and post-op care following the actual surgery? That’s doubtful.
I worked in one of those private clinics for four years. We did hundreds of knee and shoulder scopes and many ACL reconstructions for the Health District.
Workin’ for the gov’t, not the patient…he who pays, calls the tune. Crony capitalism…who was the owner friends with in the health district?
“Socialist economic logic can be a real head scratcher sometimes.”
The so-called “poaching” of staff is merely a socialist red herring, nothing more. The truth of the matter is that socialists simply cannot stand the thought of health care of any kind being provided by other than the public system. Sure …. the patient may receive the required care in a more timely manner but someone, somewhere might make a buck or two from the transaction. And that sticks in the craw of any socialist.
Your post @ 7:48 is bang on. My daughter is a home care nurse and from her conversation over the years would agree with everything you said.
I always get a kick out of the hospital emergency wait time billboards in floridia. 5 minutes, 8 minutes, 12 minutes. Canadians who think our medical care is less expensive than the US have a lot to learn. in Ontario 46% of the provincial budget is supposed to be used for healthcare. despite that huge amount hospitals and various diseases are constantly fund raising and never seem to have enough. if we spent every single tax dollar in health care it would still not be enough. government is the problem, not the solution. bureaucrats do not deliver medical services.
Why don’t you just come to a not-yet socialized country like your southern cousin’. I see the wait times in Canada is about 18 weeks, with Sask now down to 14 weeks. Here in the US, my experience is you wait maybe two weeks, unless you are bleeding out. The two weeks is necessary for the medical staff to schedule everyone and get the government paperwork in. If I read or hear one more librul puke extolling the virtues of the Canadian health system, they are going to need it if I meet them in a dark alley. I’m tired of the Canadian and librul lies about this!
Have you ever noticed that 5 year plans are always put forth by governments with only a 4 year mandate?