Endoscopy backlog, wait times greatly reduced

The Manitoba government says it has put a dent in the backlog of patients waiting for an endoscopy, a procedure used to diagnose intestinal diseases.

Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara announced Wednesday a record number of the procedures have been completed in the last three years — approximately 50,000 annually.

“When we took office, thousands of Manitobans were waiting far too long for procedures that can detect cancer and other serious illnesses because of the previous government’s cuts and mismanagement,” the minister said in the release.

“Thanks to the hard work of health-care workers across Manitoba and targeted investments to expand capacity, more Manitobans are getting the care they need sooner.”

Endoscopy allows a person’s digestive system to be observed through the use of a flexible tube that has a camera attached to its end.

The backlog dropped 85 per cent, to 1,678 in July from almost 11,500, in July 2022. The average waiting time is 69 days compared to 233 days previously. In urgent cases, a patient can get the procedure in eight days.

Dr. Dana Moffatt, section head of gastroenterology and the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority’s medical director of endoscopy, said in the release that front-line stakeholders worked “extremely hard” to address the backlog.

“That hard work and the co-operation from government are starting to pay off, with normalization of wait times to pre-pandemic levels, giving Manitoba some of the shortest wait times for endoscopy in Canada,” he said.

“We know this will result in lives saved, as cancers of the gastrointestinal tract are being detected, diagnosed and treated earlier.”

The government said more procedures are being conducted at Seven Oaks and St. Boniface hospitals, the Health Sciences Centre and Grace Hospital.