Legislative Report
(4 November 2009)

Work Begins On Reducing Surgical Wait Times

For far too long, Saskatchewan people who needed surgery had to wait months, maybe even years, to get their procedure. Not anymore.

Acting on our government’s bold new goal to reduce surgical waiting times to three months or less, we have announced a surgical working group, made up of representatives from the Ministry of Health, health regions and people who provide healthcare. This group has asked to develop a plan that will:

• improve the experience of Saskatchewan surgical patients;
• eliminate the backlog of people waiting for surgical care; and
• achieve the government's goal of reducing surgical wait times to no more than three months within four years.

The formation of the surgical working group is in response to the recently-released Patients First report. Patients will soon be added to this working group in order to ensure that the plan really does put patients first.

SASKATCHEWAN PROVIDES LEADERSHIP ON H1N1 VACCINATIONS

As H1N1 vaccination clinics, now focusing on small children and pregnant women, continue across Saskatchewan, other provinces are moving to follow our model.

By rolling out the vaccine in stages, Saskatchewan people have largely avoided the huge lineups being experienced in places like Alberta and Ontario. Not only are people waiting for hours in other jurisdictions, sometimes they get to the front of the line to be told there’s no more vaccine.

In the weeks to come, there will be vaccine clinics for other high risk groups, followed by clinics for the general public. For the most up-to-date information, check the Health section under Community Information for a link to the Health Region.

PREMIER WALL PAYS TRIBUTE TO FALLEN SOLDIER

Losing a child is a parent’s worst fear. For a Saskatoon family, that fear became reality last week. Angie and Brian Boyes lost their son, Lieutenant Justin Garret Boyes in Afghanistan. Justin was 26 years old and leaves behind his wife, Alana, and their three-year-old son, James.

Led by Premier Brad Wall, the Legislative Assembly paid tribute to the Boyes family and the ultimate sacrifice made by their son. Justin was part of a dedicated team of Canadian men and women working hard to secure the safety and freedom of the people of Afghanistan. We applaud them and offer our condolences and continued support. To watch Premier Brad Wall pay tribute to Lieutenant Boyes and his family, click here.

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