Radiologists warn of worsening imaging backlogs as omicron takes hold
Canadian radiologists are warning of worsening imaging backlogs as the omicron variant continues to spread.
Wait times for crucial diagnostic services have swelled well beyond the country’s recommended maximum of one month when the pandemic first started. Patients are reportedly now seeing delays upward of 82 days for CT scans and 89 for MRIs, the Canadian Press reported Wednesday.
As COVID-19 case counts grow, the situation is escalating, with providers now postponing or canceling even more exams.
“By having to ramp down our outpatient imaging for radiology, this is now exacerbating what was already a difficult situation for us,”Ania Kielar, MD, vice president of the Canadian Association of Radiologists and vice chair of the University of Toronto’s Department of Medical Imaging, told the news service. “Right now, the equipment that we have, which in itself is not enough, is being used very extended hours and, unfortunately, we just don’t have enough people to run what we have, so it’s a two-sided problem,” she added later.
A recent association survey found that about 75% of radiologist members had not yet been able to reduce their imaging backlogs. Another 30% said they believe wait times may never return to pre-pandemic levels.
Read more from the Canadian Press below.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.