Wait times for diagnostic testing has always been issue in Manitoba, and the COVID-19 pandemic has only exacerbated the problem a year and a half in.

 

That’s according to the Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals, the body that represents technicians that perform MRIs, CT scans, ultrasounds, and x-rays, among other diagnostics testing.

 

President Bob Moroz says this is especially felt in the north, citing the wait times for ultrasounds as an example.

 

"If we look at the provincial wait times for even ultrasounds in the north, in February 2020 it took people maybe three to eleven weeks to receive an ulrasound. We're looking at a wait time of 52 weeks at this point in just over a year and a half."

 

Moroz states staff recruitment and retention is imperative to ensuring patients can get the treatment they need in a timely manner. He says the government should allocate human resources accordingly to ensure technicians aren’t getting burnt out and vacating those positions. That includes recruiting potential technicians from the north to work within the region's larger urban centres like Thompson, Flin Flon, and The Pas, as they're less likely to leave to work in southern Manitoba or in another province or territory compared to technicians not from the north.

 

He adds members have been without a collective bargaining agreement for around four years, which Moroz explains is adding to the frustration.

 

Listen to Thompson Today at 12:40 and 5:10 this afternoon for the full interview with Moroz.