In the Saskatchewan legislature the government has been questioned about the emergency department overcrowding situation in Regina. ER physician staffing levels at the two city hospitals are about a third lower than they should be, and the Regina Qu’Appelle health region is considering the necessity of reducing the number of hours at one of them in order to cope.
On Monday, Premier Brad Wall acknowledged that there are 26 funded positions for resuscitation-capable physicians but only 20 practicing. He said “there is a shortage of ER docs right across North America,” and said the government is aggressively recruiting doctors to deal with the issue. He pointed to the government’s record since taking office in doubling the number of residency positions and training seats, and expanding the number of countries from which foreign-trained doctors are accepted.
On Tuesday Health Minister Dustin Duncan said the government is pursuing a number of innovative strategies to deal with the issue including targeting the needs of frequent ED users to reduce traffic. The government has set a bold target of reducing all ED waits by 2017, and Mr. Duncan said a two-day meeting with emergency physicians took place last week on how the government is going to deliver on this promise.
Health Edition, November 21, 2013
