Harper targets health-care wait times for children

Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Thursday the federal government will spend $2.6 million on a new 15-month national pilot project to improve wait times for childrenin need ofsurgery.

Harper made the announcement in Toronto at the Hospital for Sick Children, where he said he received medical care as a child.

The project will set up a "pan-Canadian" information system that willgather data on wait times for childrenneeding surgery, and once a national database is organized, the system will develop to a treatment plan for children facing unacceptable wait times, Harper said.

Eventually, there is to be a national guarantee of reasonable wait times for children.

The project is set to begin this month. Harper said it's being put together with the help of 16 children's hospitals in Canada.

"As a parent, I understand there is nothing more heart-wrenching than seeing a child suffer. Because their lives are so precious, because they are our future, our children deserve the best medical care possible, delivered as promptly as possible," Harper said.

"Unfortunately, despite the best efforts of our medical professionals, many children do not receive the medical care they need in a timely manner. Too often, they hear the words that haunt the entire system: 'Sorry, you just have to wait.'"

'Recourse mechanism' for patients

The project will focus on six key surgical areas: cardiac, cancer, neurology, sight, spinal deformity, and dental treatment requiring anesthesia.

Within one year, one of these areas will be chosen to test a guarantee that will include recourse for patients who are waiting too long.

Federal Health Minister Tony Clement will host a conference with his provincial and territorial counterparts in February to discuss the issue of wait times for all Canadians.

Speaking to the CBC Thursday, Clement said thatalthough progress was being made to reduce wait times, getting guarantees was the ultimate goal.

"We have tobe able tolet people know that if their procedure is not available within the clinically acceptable wait time, there is a recourse mechanism so they can get the care they need when they need it," he said.

The prime minister said that everywhere he toured during the last election, he heard the same concerns: "'Wait times are too long. We're afraid those we love won't be able to get the care they need.' Improving access to health care is a priority of our government,"Harper said.

Collaboration will bring better outcomes: Haddad

Mary Jo Haddad, president of the Hospital for Sick Children, said at the news conference that the projectis a good idea.

"We believe that creating a national wait time strategy for children is the best way of ensuring that our children get the medical care they need, when they need it," she said. "It is only through collaboration across all levels of government and with health-care leaders that we will see better outcomes for our kids."

Harper said he wasn't interfering in provincial jurisdiction, he was simply announcing federal support for a project put together by the children's hospitals themselves.

Clement said that Canadians want and expect a better health-care system and that no Canadian would object to such a worthwhile project.

"We're hopeful the provinces will see the value in this and be our partners," he said. "And how can you be against better access to surgeries for kids who need them?"

The provincial governmentsmanage an existing program for reducing waiting times in five areas, including joint replacements, heart and cataract operations and diagnostic imaging.

Earlier, Toronto police had cordoned off the area surrounding the hospital because of a shooting between police and a gunman. Police searched the hospital's underground parking garage fora suspecthours before the announcement.