Surgeon says province’s plan does little to reduce surgical wait times in Red Deer
A local surgeon says a plan announced Wednesday by the provincial government aimed at reducing surgical wait times in Alberta will have little impact in Red Deer.
Alberta is spending $100 million to upgrade hospital operating rooms and move some low-risk surgeries to smaller facilities and private clinics. Health Minister Tyler Shandro says that will mean an extra 17,000 surgeries to be done in the 2020-21 fiscal year and about 30,000 more yearly by 2023.
Under the investment, the province says low-risk surgeries will be moved out of the Red Deer Hospital to be offered in Innisfail, Stettler, Ponoka and Olds.
However, Dr. Keith Wolstenholme, a local orthopedic surgeon, points out that’s already been the case for several years.