Lengthy wait times causing some B.C. cancer patients to die before first consultations

Some cancer patients in B.C. are now waiting months to begin treatment while cancer physicians in the province are self-reporting the highest levels of stress, burnout and disengagement among oncologists across Canada. As of this fall, only one in five patients referred to an oncologist received a first consultation within the recommended period of two weeks. In comparison, about 75% of patients in Ont. are seen within two weeks. B.C.’s health minister says the main issue is one of increasing demand, pointing to the province’s growing and aging population. The province aims to address this with dramatic recruitment. An oncologist who left BC Cancer felt a lack of leadership led to workplace dysfunction, burnout and disengagement among staff. He left the agency because he felt it had "no goals, no vision" and no longer supported the quality of work he wanted to do. Other former oncologists from the agency shared similar thoughts.