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15-month wait for new hip unacceptable | TheSpec.com.

15-month wait for new hip unacceptable

Wait times for surgery

I write as another casualty of our health system. I was scheduled for hip replacement surgery for July 25.

On July 18, I received a letter from my surgeon that my surgery had been cancelled as the Juravinski OR had cancelled all OR times between July 23 and Aug. 23. No reason was given in the letter except that “it was absolutely beyond our control.” I had been on the waiting list since September 2011. On July 23, I was told that my surgery has been rescheduled for Dec. 12, fully 15 months after I was put on the list.

I had gone to all the “pre-op” testing which will now probably have to be rescheduled. I have gone from the front of the line to the back. Of course this is an inconvenience to me and I remain in pain. I am a prisoner of the system, unless I pay out of pocket and head south to have my surgery.

I am a firm believer in “universal health care” but this event has shaken my faith in the system. It seems that a lot of dollars are being wasted in the system.

The manager of the OR at the Juravinski Hospital told me why surgery was cancelled for those weeks mentioned above. It was due to financial restraints imposed by the province. The manager had no other choice because there was no money left in her budget.

I find this incredulous. This from a government that has wasted billions on the eHealth scandal, the Ornge affair, the two cancelled power plants etc., etc.

There is something wrong when this happens to innocent people through no fault of their own. We need an explanation. I hear all this about “wait times” getting shorter and then this happens to me and other unfortunate patients. We pay for our health care here in this province. We pay a lot.

The Ontario government has no right to play with people’s lives. There is no excuse for a 15-month wait for hip replacement surgery in today’s Ontario. I am not a happy camper and I will persist through all means available to get a resolution to this very serious situation.

Fortunato Roberto, Hamilton

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