Radiologists warn 'dangerously long' wait times could worsen as B.C. clinics at risk of closure

Months after they warned that waits for critical medical imaging were worsening and could lead to a “tsunami of cancer cases, British Columbia’s radiologists say private clinics doing half the screening are so underfunded they may shut down, plunging patients into even longer waits. 

The BC Radiological Society tells CTV News that inflation has heavily impacted clinic costs, with a 25 per cent spike for equipment, technical fees, and wages, but the provincially-set rate for their services has only grown by 5 per cent and clinics can no longer eat the costs.

“They're losing money and it's just not sustainable,” said the organization’s president, Dr. Charlotte Yong-Hing.

“The situation is critical because patients are (already) waiting six to nine months for biopsies and patients are going to be diagnosed later when their cancer is at a later stage and it's harder to treat.”

She says the private clinics are more efficient than health authority-run medical imaging labs, and that if they close the publicly run system cannot absorb the tens of thousands of scans that are already taking too long, adding waits for mammograms and breast cancer screening are "dangerously long."

CTV News has asked the Ministry of Health to comment on the situation but they have not responded. Whether government plans to provide temporary stop-gap funding as it had when it bailed out family doctors last year, or if it would buy out the clinics as it has with other medical imaging providers is unclear but both are possibilities based on previous actions.

ALL SURGERIES IMPACTED

Cancer diagnosis is the biggest concern, since time is of the essence in diagnosis and treatment and often relies on the X-rays, mammograms, and ultrasounds performed by the publicly funded, privately run clinics.

But in the modern age, many diagnoses and all surgeries are dependent on medical imaging – often before a patient can even get a surgeon’s assessment.

“People cannot even access a surgical waitlist until they get off a radiology waitlist, it’s a huge bottleneck,” said Dr. Daniel Jenkin, past president of the General Surgeons of B.C.

He pointed out that any discussion of wait lists for procedures and operations should actually start with waits for medical imaging because of the cascading effect the radiology shortage and delays have on downstream healthcare. 

“We're playing whack-a-mole with problems right now,” said Jenkin. “All those things add up.”

PLENTY OF WARNINGS

The opposition BC United has been hammering the governing New Democrats on the issue for months, even before the $440-million investment in cancer care, which includes beefed-up diagnostics.

“This is not news to this government. It's time to step up, acknowledge that we have a crisis on our hands,” said health critic, Shirley Bond.

She’s deeply concerned at the prospect of clinic closures or interruptions to patient care while the government sorts out how to keep their diagnostic services running.

“Delay when it comes to medical imaging is literally a matter of life and death,” said Bond. “Imaging saves lives so we need to make sure we are retaining the services that we have and looking for ways to expand.”