Cancelled and delayed procedures because of the COVID-19 pandemic led to longer wait times for joint replacements and cataract surgeries in 2020. About half of Canadians who needed a procedure did not receive it within recommended time frames, compared with around one-third in 2019. However, for urgent procedures such as radiation therapy and hip fracture repair, most Canadians continued to receive care within benchmark time frames.
These findings released by Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) reflect wait times for patients who had their procedures done between April and September 2020, and provide comparisons with the same period in previous years. In 2020, many health care services were cancelled, delayed or modified due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Read more:
- CIHI: Wait times for priority procedures in Canada. June 15 2021