A recent survey conducted by Doctors of BC and Consultant Specialists of BC found that specialist waitlists increased by 10 per cent in just one year.
Waitlists are continuing to grow, but nearly 5 per cent of specialists have closed their books to new patients, according to the new Doctors of BC survey.
In addition, 36 per cent of specialists who participated in the survey say they have either partially closed their practice to new referrals or are considering doing so in the next year.
It was revealed that 80 per cent of specialists believe patients do not have the access they need to specialist care, and that BC lacks an adequate number of specialists to meet the population’s health demands.
Similarly, 80 per cent of family physician participants reported their belief that the health care system has worsened in effectively providing patients with access to specialists.
Nearly 90 per cent have reported finding it difficult for their patients to access specialist care over the past year.
Wait times are reportedly exceeding 12 months to be seen in cardiology, neurology, and orthopedics departments.
“Lengthy wait times to see a specialist in BC are contributing to declining patient health and increasing pressure on already overburdened areas of our health care system, such as emergency and primary care,” says Dr Adam Thompson, President, Doctors of BC.
“A provincial waitlist management program would enhance patient access to specialist expertise, generate data on wait times, and ensure that specialists can dedicate time to triaging referrals.”
While patients are waiting to see specialists, there are additional primary care appointments, testing, and hospitalizations for patients, which add financial strain to BC’s health care system.
“When patients have to wait extended periods of time to see a specialist, not only does it often worsen their medical condition, which in turn costs the health care system more time and money, it also forces their primary care providers to try and fill in the gap while the patient is waiting,” said Dr Darren Joneson, President, BC Family Doctors.
“This leads to increased visits to their primary care physicians and longer wait times to access primary care.”
The Canadian Institute of Health Information reports the average cost of a hospital stay in B.C. is $8,321, and care costs are rising with delayed access to specialists.
Recommendations from Doctors of BC, Consultant Specialists of BC, and BC Family Doctors include collaborating with the Ministry of Health on:
- Implementing the Specialist Waitlist Management Proposal to improve efficiency and optimize resource allocation.
- Providing specialist doctors with new tools to provide earlier support to family physicians and their patients, and to improve the efficiency of the referral-consultation process.
- Significantly increasing residency spaces and expanding specialist training programs.
- Supporting specialist team-based care in their clinics to increase capacity and enhance patient access.
“Specialists provide complex care for some of the most vulnerable patients in our health care system, and the lack of data-driven decision making and simple tools for specialists to improve the efficiency of the consultation-referral process is resulting in spiralling waitlist sizes, rapidly growing wait-times for patients, and exponentially increasing costs of care due to delayed access to specialists. Continuing with the status quo is not an option,” says Dr. Robert Carruthers, President, Consultant Specialists of BC.
An overview of the survey results is available on the Doctors of B.C. website. Click here.
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