Alberta’s emergency care system under fire from every angle. Time and again, doctors and nurses have issued ominous warnings about patient care and their access to hospital resources. We’ve heard from Dr. Warren Thirsk, an emergency physician at two of Edmonton’s hospitals, who has sounded the alarm over this disastrous policy. He is appalled by lag times in emergency response that lead to preventable deaths. The provincial government and public health officials were presented with a detailed document that established six clear examples. In addition, they heard about 27 other cases where delays critically impacted patient outcomes.
Dr. Thirsk emphasized that many reviews conducted on patient care yield little improvement, primarily due to a lack of resources within hospitals to implement recommendations. Alberta’s population is not increasing, it is aging. He claims that health care budgets aren’t growing fast enough to meet the increasing demand for services. This debacle has led to an unprecedented outcry for change from all sides, including from the opposition, civil society, and healthcare providers.
Alarming Findings from Emergency Physicians
Thereport released this week by Alberta’s emergency specialists paints an alarming picture of the province’s healthcare system and the churn it has created. Dr. Thirsk was instrumental in facilitation of the collection of these findings. We hope these findings shine a light on just a few examples of patients suffering dire consequences from waiting months to receive care.
“In his conclusion, Dr. Thirsk didn’t mince words when it came to the impact on patients in our emergency departments. “I’ve seen countless patients lying in a hallway in their own excrement, in pain, hungry, no sleep — [for] hours, sometimes days,” he stated. He lamented the fact that this was considered normal and accepted in the healthcare system.”
“We’ve been screaming into the wind in the middle of a hurricane of patients, saying, ‘These people are suffering. This is unacceptable,’” – Dr. Warren Thirsk
As the challenges facing the emergency department have grown, so to have conversations around finding meaningful ways to improve patient care and expedite treatment processes. Minister of Health Matt Jones even admitted that some of the stories are harrowing. He acknowledged as well, they aren’t an indication of the great quality care at the hands of human healthcare providers across Alberta.
Government Response and Calls for Action
We were pleased to see Minister Jones respond to the concerns of healthcare providers. He stressed recent developments to better connect hospitals with continuing care centers. He added that integrated operations centers in Edmonton and Calgary are already operational. They clear out beds occupied by stable patients to facilitate those more complicated patients transferring more smoothly into alternative care settings.
Fired up, Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi has blasted the government’s strategy. He’s calling for a centralized command center to coordinate and unify the highly-fragmented, complicated segments of Alberta’s healthcare system. He contended that this kind of command centre would be better equipped to tackle the big picture, emergency care’s most pressing problems.
“People don’t die in the waiting room,” – Naheed Nenshi
Nenshi urged Premier Danielle Smith to recall the legislature before its scheduled session in February 2024 to discuss these pressing matters and provide clarity on the financial implications of restructuring Alberta Health Services into new entities.
Jones turned down Nenshi’s request for a command center. He insisted that the powers already granted are more than enough to deal with the crisis. He remarked, “You can build all the buildings in the world,” emphasizing that resources and care protocols need attention rather than just infrastructure.
Challenges Ahead for Alberta’s Healthcare System
Today Alberta’s healthcare system is at a breaking point. To fight back against overcrowded hospitals, Dr. Thirsk is asking the public to tell him their stories, convinced that individual testimonies can help expose the systemic problems hurting patients.
If there’s one lesson we’ve all learned through these patient care conversations, he thinks that it’s that we can’t just focus on the data and hypothetical scenarios. He acknowledged the critical work of the government. Though most initiatives might be well-intentioned, good intentions aren’t enough to carry a project through, especially when funding and staffing are lacking.
As Minister Jones stated, “I do take them seriously. We must learn from them. We do incredible work every day for Albertans and their families.” However, critics argue that without significant changes to address the root causes of these problems, patient suffering will continue unabated.
