New RVH partnership aims to reduce cataract surgery wait times, clear backlog
Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre (RVH) in Barrie hopes a new partnership will reduce wait times for cataract patients and relieve the surgical backlog in the region.
Starting Tuesday, RVH ophthalmologists will perform eligible surgeries at Barrie Lasik Centre on Huronia Road in the city's south end.
"It will be the same procedure done at RVH, just in a different location," a release issued Monday noted.
"Given that RVH surgeons will be performing the procedures they would normally do at RVH, it was crucial to find a partner that could replicate the same conditions found in our operating rooms," stated Nancy Savage, Executive Vice President, Clinical, Regional Vice President, Ontario Health (Cancer Care Ontario).
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RVH expects 80 to 90 per cent of Simcoe Muskoka cataract patients will meet the criteria for off-site surgery.
"This is a huge win for not only patients requiring cataract procedures but also for all RVH surgical patients," said Dr. John Rissanen, RVH surgery program medical director.
With over 2,000 cataract surgeries performed annually at the Barrie hospital, officials say moving most of these procedures off-site will free up additional operating room time to help address surgical waitlists.
The release noted patients who qualify for their procedure at Barrie Lasik Centre would be contacted by their surgeon's office to alleviate the need for patients to reach out directly to RVH or the Huronia Road centre.
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