P.E.I. improves wait times for key health services

P.E.I. had some of the shortest wait times in Canada for certain health services in 2015, according to a national report.

Wait times for knee replacements for Islanders were the second best in the country, the report by the Canadian Institute for Health Information shows. Only Saskatchewan fared better.

Wait times for hip replacement and cataract surgery were third and fourth best, respectively, in Canada, and tops in the Maritimes.

• Ultrasound wait times shrinking in P.E.I.
• Charlottetown methadone clinic lauded for improving wait times, reducing crime

All provinces are performing well in meeting the benchmark wait time for radiation therapy treatment. In P.E,I., 98 per cent of cancer patients who require radiation therapy are receiving the treatment within the four-week benchmark

That's up from 90 per cent last year, said Health and Wellness Minister Robert Henderson.

"The addition of a radiation oncology fellow last year has helped to improve access to specialist consults and treatment," he said.

National benchmarks

The percentage of Island patients receiving treatment within national benchmarks increased in 2015 in several other areas, according to the report.

• 91 per cent of patients waiting for knee replacements received treatment within the 26-week benchmark, up from 78 per cent the previous year. This was the second best in the country after Saskatchewan.
• 87 per cent of patients received cataract surgery within the 16-week benchmark, up from 51 per cent the previous year, the best in the Maritime provinces and fourth best in country.
• 87 per cent of patients received hip replacements within the 26-week benchmark, similar to the previous year. This was the best in the Maritime provinces and the third best in the country along with Ontario.
• 77 per cent of hip fracture repairs were performed within the 48-hour benchmark, up from 63 per cent the previous year.

Hip fracture repair has been identified as a priority for Health PEI's Wait Times Steering Committee to review, said Dr. Alexander Gillis, head of the QEH Department of Surgery

"Our department has made it a priority and worked hard to decrease surgical wait times for our patients," he said. "I am pleased with the progress made so far."

In 2004, Canada's first ministers agreed to reduce wait times in five priority areas: cancer treatment, cardiac care, diagnostic imaging, joint replacement and sight restoration. In 2005, evidence-based benchmarks for medically acceptable waits were established for some priority procedures.

The Canadian Institute for Health Information is mandated to collect wait-times data and monitor provincial progress in meeting these benchmarks.

• MORE P.E.I. NEWS | Boy baby boom on P.E.I. in 2015
• MORE P.E.I. NEWS | Borden-Carleton mayor concerned about truck parking during bridge closures