AGAR: Quality of life shouldn't be ignored in health-care system

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What is the purpose of our health-care system?

To be excellent at emergency care, or to also improve quality of life?

My daughter and I walked some hiking trails in the greater Moncton area last week.

She could not believe I did it. Neither could my son.

I had my second knee replacement at the end of February. I still have some stiffness and soreness. What I do not have is pain.

So, finally I can walk more than four blocks.

It is easy to say that we can put people who are waiting for elective surgery on a waiting list while we spend our resources — money, facilities, and personnel — on emergency health care.

Let’s face it, I was not dying because my knees hurt.

On the Irishtown Nature Park trail in Moncton my daughter reminded me of a time when we were on a family vacation and everyone else went on the trail, while I took the first bench and read a book until they came back.

That was precious family time for them. Not for me. Dad was on the sidelines.

When people are told to wait for elective surgery, the system has elected to have those people live a diminished quality of life.

Perhaps when I am 85, I will not be out on the trail with my family, but whatever issues await in the years between now and then are years I want to enjoy as best I can.

The Ontario Health web page says that 83% of knee surgery patients are seen within the target time. The target time can be as much as six months. It is easy to hit a goal if you set it low enough.

From start to finish of two knee replacements, I was in the process for several years.

Those are years of a diminished quality of life.

The province says Ontario is actively working to reduce wait times for cataract surgery, “through a multi-pronged approach that includes “expanding community surgical and diagnostic centers, optimizing surgical workflows, and investing in technology and training.” The goal is to increase surgical output and improve access to care, especially for those facing significant wait time.”

I am not going to take on the process the province is engaging in to reach that goal, but I do applaud the fact that they have recognized the need to speed things up.

The Fraser Institute reports, “In 2024, physicians across Canada reported a median wait time of 30.0 weeks between a referral from a GP and receipt of treatment. Up from 27.7 in 2023.”

I can climb stairs. That is quality of life.

I can walk with my daughter and I’m living pain-free. That is quality of life.

We shouldn’t wait longer than the rest of the civilized world to improve quality of life for Canadians.

The idea that we have the best system in the world is just an idea — a false boast Canadians should stop making.

We have world-class people doing the work. I would not have allowed them to render me unconscious, cut me open and pound pieces of metal into my bones if I thought we had second-class medical professionals.

We have first-class medical professions, but not a first-class system — and that is political.

We do well in emergencies.

Let’s also care about quality of life.

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