Tuesday, January 15 - 03:35:27 PM
Shane Bigham/Jim Goddard
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) - Most Canadians believe hospital wait times are a burden on the economy because sick workers who are waiting for medical attention are less productive, or miss work completely. The Ipsos-Reid survey says nearly 80% of us blame hospital wait times for lost productivity.
Mike Colledge with Ipsos-Reid says many of those people are speaking from experience. "Many Canadians have seen thier own costs go up so they've had out-of-pocket expenses that they can point to that relate to wait times. Or, they've lost income because they've missed work due to a wait-time issue."
The Canadian Medical Association says wait times for just four procedures: joint replacement, sight restoration, cardiac bypass surgery and MRI scans, cost Canada $14.8 billion last year and lowered government revenues by $4.4 billion during the same period.
The president of the BC Medical Association, Dr. Geoff Appleton, believes the poll results are accurate and reflect the real cost of waiting lists. He says while both the federal and provincial government recognize the importance of trimming wait times, they could do more to tackle the problem. "We do need more MRI machines to speed diagnostics along. We need more nurses, O.R. nurses and technicians."
Dr. Appleton says Work Safe BC, formerly the WCB, has long recognized waiting for a medical proceedure costs money. That's why it uses the private health care system to fast track injured people so they can return to work as soon as possible.
http://www.news1130.com/news/topstory/article.jsp?content=20080115_183527_1708
Your thoughts??
Shane Bigham/Jim Goddard
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) - Most Canadians believe hospital wait times are a burden on the economy because sick workers who are waiting for medical attention are less productive, or miss work completely. The Ipsos-Reid survey says nearly 80% of us blame hospital wait times for lost productivity.
Mike Colledge with Ipsos-Reid says many of those people are speaking from experience. "Many Canadians have seen thier own costs go up so they've had out-of-pocket expenses that they can point to that relate to wait times. Or, they've lost income because they've missed work due to a wait-time issue."
The Canadian Medical Association says wait times for just four procedures: joint replacement, sight restoration, cardiac bypass surgery and MRI scans, cost Canada $14.8 billion last year and lowered government revenues by $4.4 billion during the same period.
The president of the BC Medical Association, Dr. Geoff Appleton, believes the poll results are accurate and reflect the real cost of waiting lists. He says while both the federal and provincial government recognize the importance of trimming wait times, they could do more to tackle the problem. "We do need more MRI machines to speed diagnostics along. We need more nurses, O.R. nurses and technicians."
Dr. Appleton says Work Safe BC, formerly the WCB, has long recognized waiting for a medical proceedure costs money. That's why it uses the private health care system to fast track injured people so they can return to work as soon as possible.
http://www.news1130.com/news/topstory/article.jsp?content=20080115_183527_1708
Your thoughts??
