15,000 Deaths While Waiting: 6 Steps to Shorten Medical Wait Times in Canada
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Mid-January 2025 saw a flurry of news articles about the 15,000 Canadians (4,516 of them British Columbians) who died between 2023 and 2024 while waiting for diagnostic testing, medical treatments and surgery.
15,000. It's a staggering number.
Sadly, in my experience, the actual number is probably more than double this, as this stat doesn’t include the referrals and requisitions lost along the way.
In the week this news broke, just on my desk alone, more than half of my clients' referrals to specialists and services had not arrived.
6 Critical Steps to Shorten Medical Wait Times
The good news is that, as an empowered patient or care partner, you can avoid being a part of this heartbreaking statistic.
Here are six key steps you can take to ensure that requisitions and referrals are received and acted upon, thereby shortening wait times for testing and treatment. (Please share widely with friends and loved ones!)
Be kind, no matter how frustrated, angry, or scared you are - or how rude the person on the other end of the phone is. Frustration and anger shut down constructive communication, even when it is justified.
Be assertive (but not passive and not aggressive). You deserve answers. Your life may depend on it!
Be prepared with the following information, before you call:
Your name and your role (patient, spouse, Representative)
State the patient's first and last name, and spell it slowly and clearly
State the patient's Personal Health Number slowly and clearly
Listen, with pen and paper ready. When you receive voicemail, listen to the prompts. Write down extensions for next time. Listen carefully to the messages and instructions.
Follow up. If a number of weeks have passed with no response, find out where the referral or requisition was sent. Get the name and phone number from your doctor or receptionist. Use Google if needed. Phone that specialist or department, state the information above and the reasons you're calling:
“I'm calling to ensure you received the referral from Dr. (Smith), sent on (date) and that you have all of the information you need. If you did not receive it, please call me back at (state phone number clearly, twice) or contact Dr. (Smith's) office."
“It is urgent that I am seen for (this test). Please put me on your cancellation list.”
Follow up again, as many times as needed, especially if any of the following occurs:
You have not heard anything in a reasonable period, depending on posted wait times. Your primary care practitioner (PCP) usually has access to that information.
Your condition or symptoms are worsening. Tell your PCP, asking that they update and resend the requisition or referral, this time marking it as “URGENT." Then, inform the specialist's office about your worsening condition.
Your Health Can’t Wait
If you have been waiting far too long, and need help with this process for any reason, please contact us. Our compassionate 5-star Patient Advocates have been securing appointments, answers, and faster treatment for our clients since 2011.
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