Canada's Healthcare System is Still on Pause 💀

The Deets

Okay, so listen up, fam. Canada's healthcare system is still tryna catch up from the whole COVID situation. Even though they're lowkey doing more surgeries now than before the pandemic, the wait times are still dragging. Like, you're gonna be waiting longer for everything from hip and knee replacements to cancer surgeries. It's a whole mess.

Let's break it down. For hip replacements, only 68% of Canadians got it done within the 26-week benchmark in 2024. That's down from 75% in 2019. And for knee replacements, only 61% got it within the 182-day threshold, compared to 70% before. So, basically, you're gonna be waiting longer, period.

And it's not just those surgeries. Wait times for cancer surgeries are also up, especially for prostate cancer. Plus, you're gonna be waiting longer for MRI and CT scans too. The median wait time for an MRI scan in 2024 was 57 days. Like, can you even?

Why is this happening? Well, there's a shortage of specialists and nurses, operating room time is limited, and emergency cases always take priority. Plus, the population is aging, so there's more demand. It's a whole situation.

Some provinces are doing better than others, tho. Ontario is kinda killing it with hip replacements, but Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Quebec are lagging behind. So, it really depends on where you're at.

The longer you wait, the worse it can get. Diseases can progress, symptoms can increase, and your overall health can take a hit. So, this isn't just about being impatient, it's about your well-being, for real.

They're tryna fix things, tho. Some provinces are doing more outpatient procedures, and Ontario is even using private clinics to help with hip and knee replacements. But still, the healthcare system is moving slower than my grandma with dial-up. Hopefully, they can get their act together soon, 'cause waiting for surgery is def not the vibe.