New OMA survey highlights need to improve health care in Waterloo region

Reducing wait times for medical procedures and investing in new facilities are the most important ways to improve health care in Waterloo region, according to a survey by the Ontario Medical Association (OMA).

As part of the OMA consultations, people were asked to identify their top priority for improving local health care outside of addressing the ongoing pandemic. 

About 25 per cent of the 274 residents who responded identified reducing wait times as their top priority.

Chair of the local OMA district Dr. David Schieck said several key areas have been highlighted by the survey results.

"The first key area of focus will be working through the backlog of care that has been deferred or missed through the pandemic for all the various reasons that that's happened, so addressing backlog in all areas," Schieck told CBC K-W.

"It's not just surgeries, which are obviously considerable and significant, that have been put off through the pandemic, but also visits with specialists and even primary care and family doctors. So working through the backlog is a key area that we'll be talking about and bring focus to." 

I think many of us that work in the system now recognize that when it comes to some of the infrastructure and facilities, there is a need for improvements there.- Dr. David Schieck, chair local OMA district

Schieck said the survey also highlighted issues with mental health and addictions as well as pandemic preparedness. 

"Mental health and addictions, that is certainly always a challenging problem but it has been magnified through the pandemic, particularly the opioid crisis and overdose deaths. So that will be another area that is highlighted," he said.

"Pandemic preparedness — so being prepared for the next pandemic or our ongoing pandemic is a key area of focus."

Residents were also asked about the single most important thing which can be done to improve health-care services in the community right now. More than a third said they would like to see investments in new hospitals, clinics and medical facilities to improve access, while another third identified making it easier to get an appointment with their doctor.

"I think many of us that work in the system now recognize that when it comes to some of the infrastructure and facilities, there is a need for improvements there," Schieck said.

"There are many hospitals, and I know our hospital in Guelph, where the emergency department has been for years, is packed and overcrowded and there's a real need for more space, re-thought-out space that can improve flow. I think [this] is similar in many facilities through our part of the province. Facilities and infrastructure — that is a long-standing issue that it appears that patients have recognized and have given us feedback on in their responses."

Schieck said the findings are incredibly important in helping the OMA develop a plan to improve health care and create a more integrated and sustainable system for all Ontarians.

"This is a huge province and health-care priorities here can be very different from those in other regions like Toronto. By completing this public survey, you help make the voice of the Kitchener-Waterloo area heard," he said.

Other public survey results specific to the Kitchener-Waterloo area include:

• 60 per cent said their views of the way local health care is delivered have become worse due to the pandemic, 10 per cent said their views have improved and 30 per cent said their views were unchanged.

• When asked to grade the local health-care system on a scale of A, B, C or F, 28 per cent of those who responded gave it a B, 45 per cent gave it a C and 23 per cent gave it a failing grade. Four per cent gave it an A.

• More than half — 54 per cent — of those who responded said the government should give improving health care in this community the same priority as economic recovery from the pandemic, and more than a third —  35 per cent — said it should be given the highest priority, above all other issues.

• Almost half — 48 per cent — of those who responded said that the health care issues that were important to them and their community were not being discussed at all, and 40 per cent said that they were being discussed somewhat.

• When asked to choose the statement that best reflected their views on the way health care is delivered in their community, 38 per cent chose: "more should be done to keep people healthy and out of hospitals and doctors' offices," and 20 per cent chose: "health care dollars should be better spent."

More than 7,400 residents in more than 600 communities across Ontario have completed the survey to date. 

The OMA said the survey is part of a broad consultation process that has involved doctors, nurses and other health-care professionals as well as community leaders across Ontario. 

The OMA will release its plan to improve health care based on the consultation process this fall.

Support for Kitchener hospitals during COVID-19

Meanwhile, the Ontario government has announced that it is providing up to $696.6 million this year to help cover historic working funds deficits of qualifying hospitals, with a focus on small, medium as well as specialty and rehabilitation hospitals.

This includes more than $8 million for St. Mary's General Hospital and nearly $10 million for Grand River Hospital.

"Our government has been clear that we will use every tool at our disposal to support our hospitals. St. Mary's and Grand River are pillars of our health-care system here in Waterloo Region, providing high quality care to local residents and this $18 million will ensure that care continues and can be expanded now and into the future," said Kitchener-Conestoga MPP Mike Harris.

This funding is a part of the over $1.2 billion investment previously announced to help hospitals recover from financial pressures created and worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic, while ensuring they can continue providing high-quality care.

"This fund provided important relief to the many new working capital pressures we've experienced as a hospital throughout the pandemic. We are grateful for the additional funding support that allowed St. Mary's General Hospital to significantly increase our capacity to provide care to patients with COVID, alongside our usual care for the community," said Lee Fairclough, president St. Mary's General Hospital.