Cancelling non-urgent elective surgeries leaves patients depressed, in pain: Ontario NDP health critic

Hospitals in northern Ontario have been directed by the province's medical officer of health to cancel non-urgent elective surgeries.

The order comes as hospitals in northern areas have started taking COVID-19 patients from hospitals in hot-spot zones, where intensive-care units are being pushed beyond capacity. 

Hospitals in southern Ontario were already directed to cancel non-emergency procedures earlier this month.

An infectious disease specialist working at the Sault Area Hospital says the situation is frustrating.

"I think the worst part about it is we've seen a lot of this ahead of time," said Dr. Lucas Castellani.

"We kind of predicted a lot of this would come if the restrictions were lifted quickly and if things didn't get more controlled earlier on in 2021."

Castellani said he understands the reason for ramping down procedures, but worries it will have a negative impact on people's quality of life as they wait for surgeries.

Nickel Belt NDP MPP and health critic France Gélinas expects to get a lot of calls from frustrated constituents in the coming days.

"People have been waiting for their surgery for a long time. Some of them have a date and many of them live in pain, and now they don't know when the surgery or the procedures will take place," she said.

"I was hoping that the Doug Ford government would listen to public health and to the medical experts telling him what to do to gain control over the spread of COVID. The No. 1 thing that he refuses to do — and everybody tells him to do — is to have paid sick days."

The province, which reported another 4,212 cases of COVID-19 and 32 more deaths linked to the illness on Wednesday, confirmed that "enhancements" are coming to the federal paid sick leave program.

She said most of the community spread happens in essential workers who are not feeling well but still go to work because they cannot afford to take time off. If the premier had put a paid sick leave plan in place a week or two ago, the province would not be shutting down all non-emergency surgery, added Gélinas. 

The stories of people in pain are getting harder to hear, she said.

"We have a backlog of a quarter of a million Ontarians who are in pain waiting for surgery and procedures because of delays," she said.

"It plays on people's trust in the health-care system. A lot of them got very depressed and not seeing a light at the end of the tunnel, having lost faith that the health-care system cared about them."

Stress on health workers, families

Castellani said he can give many examples of surgeries being cancelled that negatively impact people's quality of life. He also feels some anxiety around caring for patients who aren't from the district.

"Our hospital and our front-line workers have to navigate that," he said.

"It's a totally different thing where we're navigating patients that are not from where we are, in very vulnerable situations. So it'll certainly be a change for us. There's a lot of emotions, let's just say, for sure."

Gélinas said health-care workers are all telling her the same thing — they have never worked this hard in their lives.

"They need a break and there is no break coming. Right now, we're bracing to have very sick people transferred against their wishes and against their family wishes to a hospital in northern Ontario."

She said she thinks of a grandfather who's gravely ill in intensive care in southern Ontario and loved ones who are being told he's suddenly being moved 400 kilometres north for treatment.

"And you don't have a car and we're in lockdown. You cannot imagine the stress on those families."