Thread by @Vicki_Mowat_NDP

Let's get personal. Today I had firsthand experience in a Regina emergency department after what has been a painful week. I had a lot of time to think and I want to share a few of my observations. /1

I've been advocating for wait times that are out of control under this government for years now. But I've been lucky I've had mostly good health, and have mostly only dealt with them secondhand. Today, I felt like I was becoming a statistic the longer I sat and waited. /2

It was really hard not to feel like a number as the hours went by. The doctors and nurses were run off their feet. Whenever I had an interaction with them, I could feel their warmth and concern - they treated me like a human being. But the waits made me feel invisible. /3

It was 4 hrs from when I entered emergency around 8 am until I saw a doctor for the first time around noon. After the doctor ordered tests, I waited until about 5 pm to get an ultrasound. I was released around 6 pm. I wasn't allowed to eat or drink at all, for fear of surgery. /4

I have been calling out the sask party for hallway medicine for years, but until you live it you really don't understand. Before I'd even seen a doctor, I was informed that I would be moved into the hallway to make space in the curtain-style room I was currently occupying. /5

Laying in the hallway for hours, without privacy, when you're at your worst, is a terribly dehumanizing experience. When it was finally time to go, I had nowhere to change. When I needed help, I had no call bell. Beds rolled by as doctors squeezed out of the way. /6

For too long, these issues have been ignored by the sask party government. They've been raised by patients, families, advocates for years. The pandemic didn't create this mess, but it did make things worse. Understaffing and burnout are very real. /7

And I have to talk about acute care capacity in Saskatoon & Regina. These hospitals have been overcapacity for so long, doing so much, and as one of my awesome doctors said today as I was leaving, "I'm sorry you had to wait so long. Our health care system is a mess." /8

We need a system that works. We need a government who listens to experts and frontline workers and understands the needs of patients. We need system wide change to address issues like understaffing. We need to boot the sask party. /9

Don't talk to me about what the NDP did when I was in elementary school after Grant Devine bankrupted our province. The sask party has failed our health care system for the past 15 years. They've shown their true colours. We just had a budget. This tracks. #skpoli /10

But a few things today gave me hope. My two doctors were both women. Huzzah! 💪 Everyone was efficient and busy but still showed care when I know I must have been cranky. ❤️ And I remembered why I fight - for everyone who can't do it themselves. 🙂 /end

P.S. I'm OK. Thanks to everyone who reached out.