Yellowknife (Mar 07/05) - There may be more physicians in Yellowknife, but waiting times to see a family doctor or surgeon haven't changed noticeably over the past few years.

People needing a hip replacement or foot surgery have to wait about half a year to see Dr. Jim Corkal, who works at Stanton Territorial Hospital. He's one of two orthopedic surgeons in Yellowknife and has watched the number of doctors fluctuate during the 14 years he's lived here.

Orthopedic surgeon Dr. Jim Corkal holds a ball-joint for a hip replacement inside Stanton hospital. He says Yellowknife needs more doctors. - John Thompson/NNSL photo

Today, 29 doctors work in the city, but many split their time between their general practices and the hospital operating room.

Four years ago, Corkal drafted a report that called for 37 doctors in Yellowknife.

"We still feel we need that number of doctors here," he said, adding the report was ignored by government. "There was no response. It was almost as if it didn't exist."

Donna Zaozirny, director of operations of Stanton Hospital, said waiting times have probably fallen because of the greater number of doctors, but couldn't point to any hard numbers.

"It's probably decreased, to tell the truth, because of the number of surgeons in our building," she said.

Waiting times for elective surgery also depend on the seriousness of the condition, she stressed.

"Everyone would like to have their surgery done next week," she said.

Specialists like urologists are flown up from Edmonton on a rotating basis. Urologists specialize in male and female urinary tracts and male reproductive organs.

Nurse Dot Bergman, who works with the urologist at Stanton, said patients slated for elective surgery wait about four months because of the number of emergency or cancer patients who receive priority treatment.

"We don't have time to see others."

Corkal said having a number of rotating doctors doesn't take away the need for a permanent specialist in the city.

"Point-five and point-five doesn't really equal one," he said.

Patients waiting to see a family doctor can expect to wait about two weeks, said Greg Cummings, CEO of the Health and Social Services Authority, which oversees the four clinics in Yellowknife. "If it's not an acute illness... then I'd think within two weeks," he said.About 12 of the 29 family physicians in Yellowknife are accepting new patients, he said.

Waiting times grow every time a specialist like Corkal leaves, said Nicolas Ivanans, president of the NWT Medical Association.

"It's a feast or famine situation up here," he said.

Waiting times in Yellowknife are better than in most of the country, he said, but that doesn't mean it's not a problem.

"Just because it's better here than down south doesn't mean patients are getting adequate care. We need more specialists, and we need more GPs."

time to wait

Average months waiting for elective surgeries, Jan. 2005

Hernia repair6

Lap chole1

Heart stress

test10

Colonoscopy6

Gastroscopy6

Hip or knee

replacement4-6

Tubal ligation4-8

Hysterectomy2-3

Tonsillectomy8-12

Average months waiting to see a specialist, Jan. 2005

Ear, nose and throat 9

General surgery 4

Internal medicine 4

Orthopedics6

Obstetrics and

gynecology6-8

SOURCE: Stanton Territorial Hospital

* * *

Median number of months waiting for surgery in B.C., July 31, 2004

Hip replacement 5.5

Knee replacement 7.5

Ear, nose, throat 1.5

Gynecological 1

Urological 1

General surgery .8

SOURCE: B.C. Ministry of Health