A veteran of the Canadian Navy says he is tired of waiting for a primary care provider after being on Prince Edward Island’s waiting list for 11 years.
Matt Dobson moved to PEI in 2011 after being released from the Navy for medical reasons when he was diagnosed with depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. He has served in the armed forces for more than a decade.
Dobson then first registered with the provincial patient registry. But after hearing nothing for eight years, he decided to call the province in 2019 to see when he would finally have access to a primary caregiver.
“I was told that my name was no longer on the list. That they removed everyone from the list who were over four years old. So I had to put my name back on the list and start over, “Dobson said.
“It simply came to our notice then. There was no call. There was no notice at all … I was told I would receive an email or letter at that time. I went back and reviewed all the records. I can’t find anything. “
After that call, he said he had contacted about two dozen doctors to see if they were accepting patients at the time. But he was unlucky.
Dobson and his fiancée Angie Brighty. (CBC / Laura Meather)
He and his fiancée Angie Brighty said it was exhausting to try to get the care they needed.
“We went to the emergency room together and waited for hours and hours to see a doctor,” Bright said.
“Access clinics – which is good for what it’s for … But for someone with a history like Matt and who needs someone to take the time to review his history and understand his needs, the walk … at the clinic doesn’t even come close to meeting his needs. “
“This can’t go on for another day.”
Dobson said he developed depression and post-traumatic stress disorder after serving in the Persian Gulf in 2005. He said his life was still a “daily battle”.
“I have good and bad days,” he said. “He is always there: the daily struggle to take care of myself, to do even the easiest tasks. When I have bad days, it’s quite paralyzing.
Dobson currently has a long-term disability and has not been able to work for the past two years due to his condition.
Matt may not be here tomorrow if no one comes to the rescue. ‘Angie Brighty
He went to clinics for prescriptions and blood tests, and found a veteran psychiatrist who monitored his medication and also helped him with talk therapy.
Although he said there are more good days now than bad ones, there have been times when he has committed suicide. Brighty said the lack of a family doctor could be dangerous.
“It can’t go on for another day,” she said. “Because Matt may not be here tomorrow if no one comes to the rescue. It’s horrible.”
Thousands are still on the waiting list
The list of patients registered in the PEI is currently 23,000 names and is expected to be even longer.
Health PEI said the recently announced departure of at least three family doctors in the Charlottetown area will affect more than 5,000 patients, which he said will certainly add more names to the waiting list.
In an e-mail statement, the agency said it was not removing patients from the registry after four years and that the islanders were being assigned a health care provider in chronological order.
It says 11 years is definitely longer than the usual waiting time, although they also depend on the region the person has chosen as their preferred place for their primary caregiver. In the Queens region, the average wait is eight years.
For Dobson, the long waiting list is proof that the PEI health care system is broken.
“I do not see an end to this at the moment. Like, it just keeps going [growing into] a deeper hole, “he said.
“It’s sad because I know there are so many people like me who are struggling and need first aid and someone they can count on to book appointments and see. And I just don’t see any way out of it here any time soon. “
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