“I wake up at night crying because the pain is so bad,” says Tina Moffatt of Hamilton, Ontario, who has been waiting since February to meet with a surgeon to set up an appointment for hip replacement surgery.
The 55-year-old woman suffers from osteoarthritis and likely needs surgery on her left hip, according to her family doctor.
She has to take opioids for pain and can no longer work. In fact, she rarely leaves the house because of her deteriorating physical and mental condition, she says.
It’s terrible.
She says she is willing to travel outside her region if she can have an operation more quickly. She even contacted her MP for help.
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Tina Moffatt had surgery on her right hip in 2008. She says she suffers from after-effects on a nerve after waiting months for the operation.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Samantha Beattie
10 months of waiting in Hamilton
In Ontario, the average wait time for a first consultation with a clinician for hip surgery is 77 to 86 days, depending on the severity of the situation, indicates the provincial portal (New window).
The patient must then wait 87 to 123 days on average for the operation.
In total, the average wait in Ontario is 6.5 months, slightly longer than the national average.
In Hamilton, the total wait can be as long as 10 months for some patients. Waiting times can also exceed the provincial average in Sudbury, in particular.
Ontario fights back
Hannah Jensen, spokesperson for Health Minister Sylvia Jones, points out that the province has increased funding for diagnostic tests and operations, whether in the public network or in private clinics, to help reduce waiting times.
We are not satisfied with the status quo.
However, according to the CEO of the Arthritis Society of Canada, Trish Barbato, the backlog of surgeries since the pandemic still constitutes a “crisis” situation across the country. She urges the provinces to invest more.
There are so many effects [négatifs] related to waiting, including mental health [des patients]
she notes.
A centralized system?
St. Joseph’s Hospital in Hamilton has received tens of millions of additional dollars from the Ford government to reduce wait times.
We prioritize hip and knee replacement operations because they affect patients in situations that can be disabling
says Dr. Bobby Shayegan, head of surgery at the Hospital. But to be honest with you, there were long wait times even with COVID, especially for hip replacements.
The hospital center could do more operations if it had funding for weekend surgeries, he said. He said a centralized system to direct patients to hospitals with the lowest wait times could also help reduce the backlog.
Ms. Moffatt considered getting a $30,000 loan to have surgery at a private clinic in another province, but she said it would be “unfair to jump in line.” It goes against my values
she says.
Based on information provided by Samantha Beattie of CBC News
