Province Wants to Sell Surgeries to Saskatchewan
Parties spar over whether the plan will allow BCers to get operations faster.
New reason to visit British Columbia?
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Campbell cuts surgeries for British Columbians, offers them to Saskatchewan
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Campbell hints at further cuts to education and health care
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Why Wait? Small Town Operating Rooms Are Empty
Bulkley Valley offers a waiting list cure: Bring surgeons to rural hospitals where operating rooms stand idle.
People from Saskatchewan may soon be coming to British Columbia for surgery, if negotiations between the two provincial governments are successful.
B.C.'s health minister, Kevin Falcon, said selling surgeries will bring money into B.C.'s system and help British Columbians get care sooner. But New Democratic Party health critic, Adrian Dix, said the plan makes no sense when health authorities are already cancelling surgeries for British Columbians.
"We'd obviously have to do the homework on how we would do it," said Falcon. "The principle would be that we'd charge a premium for the service that would allow us to not only cover our costs but use the additional revenues to then allow British Columbians to get their procedures done sooner and quicker." The Tyee reported Monday on the plan, after the Canadian Press reported that Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall mentioned it. "If people have been waiting for 15 months, do they care if [their surgery] happens in Saskatoon, Regina or Surrey? I'm not sure they do," the story quoted Wall saying.
Close to an agreement
Discussions are in "early stages," Falcon said, but added the two provinces are close to signing a memorandum of understanding that would have 400 orthopaedic surgeries done for people from Saskatchewan in British Columbia's public hospitals over two years.
He identified the UBC Centre for Surgical Innovation and St. Paul's Hospital as places which could likely be used for the plan.
During question period Wednesday Falcon said Saskatchewan is just one of the provinces that have turned to B.C. for help reducing surgery wait lists.
Asked in the legislature hallway about the comment, Falcon said, "I don't want to speculate on other jurisdictions except to know we've had lots of interest in what we've been doing on the surgical innovation side in British Columbia."
Waiting for surgery in BC
The move comes while health authorities are cutting the number of surgeries they provide, said NDP critic Dix.
The Fraser Health Authority has said it will cut as many as 9,900 surgeries because of budget constraints and the Interior Health Authority has cut 428 orthopaedic surgeries before the end of the fiscal year, he said.
Across the province, there are 15,000 people waiting for orthopaedic surgery, Dix said. The figure is confirmed on the province's waitlist website.
"They cancel 10,000 surgeries for us and they offer up those surgeries to people in Saskatchewan," said Dix. "When you offer up spaces to people from other provinces, then those are spaces that could and should be taken by the people who paid for those hospitals, paid for those operating rooms, paid for that capacity, and that's the people of British Columbia."
Dix disagreed with Falcon's assertion that people from B.C. will still be given priority in B.C. hospitals. "He's clearly wrong," he said. "They're not taking precedence. How do we know they're not taking precedence? Because he's cancelling surgeries for British Columbians and offering them to people in Saskatchewan."
Record levels of surgery: Falcon
Falcon said it is "nonsense" to say offering surgeries to people from other provinces is only possible because of the cancellations. "We will still be undertaking record levels of surgical procedures in British Columbia," he said.
Falcon said the B.C. government has reduced surgical wait times since 2001. The median wait for a knee replacement in 2001-2002 was 25.4 weeks, according to a chart provided by a ministry official. By 2008-2009 that was down to 13 weeks. The wait time for hip replacements decreased over the same period from 18.7 weeks to 10 weeks.
Similarly, Falcon said, the number of hip and knee replacements done in the province has doubled over the same period.
Bringing in people from Saskatchewan won't slow access to surgery for British Columbian's, he said. "Obviously I wouldn't do it if it was going to slow down the wait list."
Offering surgical spaces for sale while British Columbians are waiting is a bad precedent for public health care, said Dix. "The order of surgery in our public hospitals should be based on medical need. That has always been the abiding principle in British Columbia, until perhaps the Falcon era."
As the NDP's John Horgan, MLA for Juan de Fuca, put it in question period, "Only in Liberal bizarro world would cancelled surgeries be good news for British Columbians. George Orwell would be proud of the minister for that remark." ![[Tyee]](http://thetyee.cachefly.net/ui/img/ico_fishie.png){kind=small}
snert
29-10-2009
Twisted
This is simply the most twisted and deranged plan this government has come with, yet.
Cutting services then trying to capitalize on the availability that's been created borders on insanity.
Jaclyn
29-10-2009
Very twisted
And yet not surprising from our lovely govt. All the more reasons for why another political alternative needs to come together, one that works for the benefit of the majority of BC'ers and not just the Liberal or NDP style of working for a select few.
Kam Lee
29-10-2009
Krazee Wee Kev
What a load of crap. Maybe some of those drugs floating into BC must be in his system. This is the craziest, most illogical, and damn mean spirited. It makes no sense. Add this to the ever-growing list of lies and mistruths they spew. Even the recovering alcoholic gordo wouldn't, or would he do something this underhanded? Yes. Time for him, his gf, his gang of fools to go. Such a waste of skin, all of them
Frank
29-10-2009
Reduced wait times
That would be because the Feds came up with a lot of money, I remember the phrase "fixing healthcare for a generation".
I guess that "generation" lasted about 5 years?
So since Liberal management skills grind to a halt when the Feds aren't handing over billions in new money I guess we can look forward to people from out of province getting the care they need while BC'ers sit at home in pain?
freebear
29-10-2009
What the F..k!
I guess we know where to find the low IQs the government has not been tracking!
Won't this just increase BC patient wait times and lines; so even if Falcon makes money by selling surgeries to Saskatchewan patients, and reducing Saskatchewan patient wait times; he is increasing the backlog (as we boomers age and our joints give out!) and wait times for BC patients.
So in Saskatchewan the decision is to spend more money to send patients to BC; but BC's solution is to postpone treatment for BC patients, until Falcon makes a profit which he will then use to treat BC patients later, as the wait lines grow longer.
What the f..k?
sunshine coast girl
29-10-2009
Bringing in people from Saskatchewan
won't slow access to surgery for British Columbian's, he said. "Obviously I wouldn't do it if it was going to slow down the wait list."
And Falcon, et al are our "brightest and our best". OMFG! How scary is that? What's really scary is that he really thinks we're somehow going to understand his twisted, convoluted logic.
RECALL!!!!
G West
29-10-2009
This is the stupidest, most knuckleheaded idea ever
First cut 10,000 surgeries - in facilities paid for by taxpayers - then truck paying customers in from another province.
Idiots.
bougie
29-10-2009
interesting business!!!
Now Minister Falcon only has to look for another province or country where they provide better services for less money and we are making a profit. Soon we don't have to pay any taxes any more and we can revert all the cutbacks the Health Authorities had to make and reopen the OR's. Don't worry the liberals will take care of you.
Seldom have I seen such business savvy.
crankypants
29-10-2009
Maybe we are missing the bigger picture
Ever since the last provincial election the Liberal cabinet ministers have been coming out with nothing but wingnut announcements. From the Campbell and Hansen dog and pony show in May to Falcon now and pretty much everything in between, the announcements and reasonings just haven't passed the smell test.
Maybe the IOC forgot to inform us that they have added a new category for the winter olympics and these clowns are all going for the gold. The category has to be "the most incompetent cabinet minister".
The outlandish statements coming out of Victoria have become so numerous that it is becoming too hard to remember them all. They must all be graduates of the "BS Baffles Brains School"!!
mary jane
29-10-2009
when
when are those of us who are so disgusted go and stand on the grass in victoria and give gordo the finger. Or go on strike??
Is this new crap because gordo has made such a mess of our finances that we are about to go totally bankrupt?