Skip to Main content

14.57°^C Vancouver

News Entertainment Sports Videos Shows Podcast Contact Us

Jul 21, 2020 10:25 PM -

B.C. aims to clear surgery backlog in 15 months if COVID-19 surge doesn't happen

Share On

b-c-aims-to-clear-surgery-backlog-in-15-months-if-covid-19-surge-doesnt-happen

File - Adrian Dix says 32,400 procedures were not done or not scheduled as of mid-March to retain beds that may have been needed for COVID-19 patients. (The Canadian Press)

British Columbia's health minister says the province has hired more staff and increased operating-room hours to catch up on cancelled surgeries but a significant surge in COVID-19 cases could impact recovery.

Adrian Dix says 32,400 procedures were not done or not scheduled as of mid-March to retain beds that may have been needed for COVID-19 patients.

Combined with patients already on wait lists, the number of people waiting for procedures ballooned to over 95,000.

However, Dix says over half the patients whose surgeries were cancelled in the spring had them between May 18 and June 25.

Michael Marchbank, former CEO of Fraser Health and consultant to the Health Ministry, says the backlog could be cleared in 15 months, down from the previous forecast of two years.

He says surgeries will be expedited with extended operating-room hours on evenings and weekends but ``hard work'' is ahead to make that happen.

Latest news

AlbertaMay 12, 2026

Elections Alberta says Centurion Project leader not co-operating in voter list leak probe

Elections Alberta says the man linked to a major voter information leak has not co-operated with an ongoing investigation into the unauthorized use of the province’s official voter registry. In a statement, the agency said Centurion Project leader David Parker has not complied with a cease-and-desist letter issued last week. The letter required Parker to sign a declaration confirming he would stop using Alberta’s official voter list, which contains the names and addresses of nearly three million residents. According to Elections Alberta, investigators identified the Centurion Project as th

b-c-nurses-vote-overwhelmingly-in-favour-of-strike-action

B.C. nurses vote overwhelmingly in favour of strike action

Members of the British Columbia Nurses Union have voted 98.2 per cent in favour of strike action as contract negotiations with the province remain stalled. The union said more than 50,000 of its roughly 55,000 members participated in the vote after bargaining talks reached an impasse in April. Key issues in negotiations include wages, benefits and ongoing staffing shortages across the health-care system. The BCNU has not announced a strike date. Any potential job action would follow further negotiations and could involve mediation or additional bargaining steps under provincial labour rules. T

canadian-foreign-affairs-minister-anita-anand-begins-official-visits-to-oman-and-qatar

CanadaMay 12, 2026

Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand begins official visits to Oman and Qatar

Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Anita Anand has begun official visits to Oman and Qatar aimed at strengthening bilateral ties and advancing cooperation on regional and economic priorities. According to Global Affairs Canada, Anand will remain in Muscat and Doha until May 15 for meetings with senior government officials focused on defence cooperation, trade, and people-to-people connections between Canada and Gulf states. In Oman, Anand is scheduled to meet Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr bin Hamad bin Hamood Albusaidi and other senior officials. Discussions are expected to include economic

oakridge-park-mall-in-vancouver-to-open-may-28-as-major-redevelopment-project-advances

Oakridge Park mall in Vancouver to open May 28 as major redevelopment project advances

Oakridge Park, the retail and residential redevelopment under construction in Vancouver, is scheduled to open its shopping mall component on May 28, developers QuadReal Property Group and Westbank announced. The project, located at the former Oakridge Centre site, is part of a broader redevelopment expected to total about five million square feet by its planned completion in 2029. Developers have previously estimated the full project cost at approximately $6.5 billion. According to project details released by QuadReal and Westbank, the first phase opening later this month will include about 2.

alberta-ndp-accuses-smith-government-of-avoiding-accountability-in-privacy-breach-response

AlbertaMay 12, 2026

Alberta NDP accuses Smith government of avoiding accountability in privacy breach response

Alberta’s Opposition NDP is accusing Premier Danielle Smith of allowing a United Conservative caucus staffer to take responsibility for a privacy breach involving Albertans’ personal information. The issue stems from an April meeting where private information was allegedly displayed through an app used during discussions attended by UCP caucus members and staff. According to the UCP caucus, a staffer present at the meeting later briefed the caucus executive director about the incident. Smith said the information was not passed on to her office by the executive director, resulting in a dela

Related News

B.C. nurses vote overwhelmingly in favour of strike action

B.C. nurses vote overwhelmingly in favour of strike action

Members of the British Columbia Nurses Union have voted 98.2 per cent in favour of strike action as contract negotiations with the province remain stalled. The union said more than 50,000 of its roughly 55,000 members participated in the vote after bargaining talks reached an impasse in April. Key issues in negotiations include wages, benefits and ongoing staffing shortages across the health-care system. The BCNU has not announced a strike date. Any potential job action would follow further negotiations and could involve mediation or additional bargaining steps under provincial labour rules. T

Oakridge Park mall in Vancouver to open May 28 as major redevelopment project advances

Oakridge Park mall in Vancouver to open May 28 as major redevelopment project advances

Oakridge Park, the retail and residential redevelopment under construction in Vancouver, is scheduled to open its shopping mall component on May 28, developers QuadReal Property Group and Westbank announced. The project, located at the former Oakridge Centre site, is part of a broader redevelopment expected to total about five million square feet by its planned completion in 2029. Developers have previously estimated the full project cost at approximately $6.5 billion. According to project details released by QuadReal and Westbank, the first phase opening later this month will include about 2.

Telus, Ottawa announce AI data centre expansion in B.C. to strengthen Canadian computing capacity

Telus, Ottawa announce AI data centre expansion in B.C. to strengthen Canadian computing capacity

The federal government and Telus announced plans Monday for a multi-site artificial intelligence data infrastructure project in British Columbia that officials say is intended to expand Canada’s domestic computing capacity and support what they described as “sovereign” AI infrastructure. Federal AI Minister Evan Solomon joined Telus representatives in Vancouver to outline the project, which includes an expansion of Telus’ existing data centre in Kamloops and two new facilities planned for Vancouver – one in the Mount Pleasant neighbourhood and another in the downtown core. According

Legals

Journalism code of ethics

© 2021 AKASH Broadcasting Inc.

MANAGED BY STRATWIT

useful links

Accessibility Plan

BC Children's Hospital