The President of CUPE 5430, whose members are diagnostic technologists, says one of the reasons for long wait lists and overcrowding in Emergency Departments is because there is a severe shortage of radiological technologists so there aren’t enough staff to run the tests that doctors have ordered. Bashir Jalloh and healthcare technicians brought their concerns to the Legislature today (Wed). Jalloh says technologists are being mandated to go to work and have been denied holidays. They fear Regina Pasqua Hospital and its diagnostic services are at risk of going on bypass or being unable to deliver services this winter due to staff shortages and unfilled vacancies.

The Official Opposition’s Rural and Remote Health Critic, Matt Love, says the shortage of technologists means long wait lists for test results. Currently, there are over 1,500 people who have waited more than 90 days for a CT scan. He says, “We can’t afford to go without CT scans, x-rays and mammograms at a time like this. The wait lists are already too long and we have been hearing about that from people all across Saskatchewan.”