'I can't do anything': Winnipeg man pleads for cataract surgery
A Manitoba man is sharing the challenges he is facing with cataracts, and says he is desperate to have the surgery, noting he has only 10 per cent of his vision left.
Kent Roy was diagnosed in the spring of 2020 just as the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in Manitoba.
“I can’t cook, I can’t clean, I can’t bathe,” he told CTV News Thursday. “Everything that I used to be able to do, I can’t do anything.”
Roy’s had a challenging life. He lives with chronic pain that is managed with painkillers, he has had lung surgery in the past and now he can’t see. He said the only person who comes to take care of him is the pastor from his church, but they are now gone for the winter.
Roy also said he doesn’t leave his small apartment these days. He struggles to find the volume knob on his radio and the cup of tea sitting on the coffee table. Roy has also stopped using the oven to cook because he knows it isn’t safe.
“I can’t see, [it’s] the number one thing afflicting me,” he said.
Roy is not alone; in Manitoba, the waitlist for the procedure is long and has only gotten longer due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“For cataract surgery, we are looking at a waitlist of approximately 10,000,” said Dr. Peter MacDonald Wednesday at a news conference giving the first update from the province’s Diagnostic and Surgical Recovery Task Force.
Approximately 4,000 cataract surgeries in Manitoba have been picked up by a private surgical centre, but to address the rest of the cases, more funding is needed for both the private and public centres according to Dr. Jennifer Rahman.
In Manitoba, the hub for eye surgery is the Misericordia Health Centre. Rahman told CTV News surgical centres get an allotment of funding to do a certain number of cases each year, and if they go over that number, the operating rooms are shut down.
“Of course, this is going to be expensive but it’s an investment in the society and in the health of our communities and we’re not doing great,” she said.
Rahman, who is the president of Eye Physicians and Surgeons of Manitoba, told CTV News the pre-pandemic national benchmark for cataract surgery wait time was four months. A 2020 report from the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) showed Manitoba is second last at getting patients done in that time at 21-per cent.
Rahman said the pre-pandemic median wait time for cataract surgery in Manitoba was 10 months; By February of last year, the wait had already ballooned to 20 months.
“It’s almost two years of waiting,” she said. “From the time that you get diagnosed with symptomatic cataract that needs to be surgically managed, to the time that you actually get managed, and during that time you’re going to suffer with all kinds of things affecting your lifestyle, your livelihood, and even your safety.”
Rahman also said the longer cataract surgeries are put off, the more complicated they can get.
After about two years of waiting, Roy is desperate to get his cataract surgery done. He said he is losing the mental capacity to cope with his day-to-day life because even the simplest tasks are frustrating.
“I am at the point where it’s life or death,” he said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
King Charles' cancer treatment progressing well, says Buckingham Palace
King Charles III’s doctors are 'sufficiently pleased' with his cancer treatment and he is expected to return to public-facing duties, Buckingham Palace announced on Friday.
AFN chief says Air Canada offered a 15% discount after her headdress was mishandled
After the Assembly of First Nations' national chief complained to Air Canada about how staffers treated her and her ceremonial headdress on a flight this week, she says the airline responded by offering a 15 per cent discount on her next flight.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
DEVELOPING Bird flu outbreaks: WHO weighs in on public health risk
The current overall public health risk posed by the H5N1 bird flu virus is low, the World Health Organization said on Friday, but urged countries to stay alert for cases of animal-to-human transmission.
76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid says he has Bell's palsy
Philadelphia 76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with Bell’s palsy, a form of facial paralysis he says has affected him since before the play-in tournament.
Island near Mull of Kintyre for sale for US$3.1 million
An idyllic 453-acre private island is up for sale off the west coast of Scotland and it comes with sandy beaches, puffins galore, seven houses, a pub, a helipad and a flock of black-faced sheep.
Regina police officer injured after being accidentally shot by fellow officer's gun
An investigation is underway after a Regina police officer was accidentally shot by a fellow officer’s gun during the search of a house early Friday morning.
Taylor Swift dons Montreal designer's dress in 'Fortnight' video
A pair of Montreal designers' work has now been viewed over 41 million times. Taylor Swift dons a Victorian throwback black gown in her latest music video, 'Fortnight', designed by UNTTLD due Simon Belanger and Jose Manuel Saint-Jacques.