Halifax Infirmary's sterilizers to cost more than $500K with construction

It will be several months before new sterilizers at the Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre in Halifax are operational, and the cost is expected to be more than $500,000.

More than 400 surgeries have been postponed since black flecks of material were discovered on medical instruments that were inside a sterilizing unit at the Halifax Infirmary.

• Halifax hospital will get new sterilization system, Leo Glavine says
• Halifax surgeries cancelled after problems with sterilization equipment

Health Minister Leo Glavine announced Wednesday that five new sterilizers will be purchased or leased at a cost of $500,000. However, construction and plumbing work necessary to install the units will drive up the price tag, he said.

Janet Knox, the CEO of the Nova Scotia Health Authority, said 50 per cent of surgeries affected are for cataracts.

"Every day our leadership teams — which includes the surgeons and anesthesiologists — are making sure the right patients are getting the available surgery," she said Thursday.

Surgery rescheduling difficult

Knox said it is difficult to predict when surgeries can be rescheduled.

"The reason why I'm saying we can't tell everybody exactly when their surgery will be planned is because today, somebody else may become at a higher risk," she said.

"Every day we are triaging all people who have planned surgery, including the ones who have been postponed."

Darlene Worth of Cole Harbour was scheduled for surgery last week to repair a stomach hernia and esophagus tear. Her operation was cancelled because of sterilization problems.

She is facing a three- to six-month wait for the next surgery date.

"Can I wait that long? No. I was to my family doctor today. I am radiating pain from the back to the front, I'm not sleeping at night. I'm on a liquid diet," she said.

Worth said her husband had scheduled two weeks of vacation to care for her. Now, he has to try to reschedule his time off as well.

"This equipment needs to be here in less than five weeks. They need to get this in and get us going," she said.

'It has to happen here'

Worth said being operated on at another hospital, in or outside the province, isn't an option either. 

"It has to happen here. My specialist is here," she said.

Knox said the sterilizer problem was a combination of issues and there was a maintenance program in place for the machines. 

"The maintenance doesn't necessarily mean that you open the machine up and take it apart," she said. "The steam comes into the machine and creates corrosion. One of the issues … is how the steam enters."

It is expected it will be a couple of months for the hospital to be get fully operational with the new machinery.

Knox said they're doing about 75 per cent of the usual number of surgeries.