Manitoba adds 800 hip and knee surgeries in Selkirk

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The Manitoba government is expanding access to hip and knee surgeries by adding 800 procedures at the Selkirk Regional Health Centre, Health, Seniors and Long-Term Care Minister Uzoma Asagwara announced Thursday.

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“We want to see more Manitobans lead active lives with their families and see less Manitobans waiting in pain,” Asagwara said. “Adding more surgeries in the Interlake means more patients and families are getting the care they need. Cutting wait times for surgeries doesn’t have to be complicated. You don’t have to fly across an ocean to get good care, we just need more staff in Manitoba. That’s what this announcement is all about. More surgeons, more nurses, more surgeries, and faster care for you.”

The government will provide annual funding for staffing and operating space at the Selkirk facility to accommodate the additional surgeries. The move is part of a broader plan to reduce surgical wait times across the province, with more surgeries already performed in the past year than ever before. A new provincial surgical waitlist database is also being used to prioritize patients who have been waiting the longest.

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“Adding more capacity in Selkirk is going to significantly reduce wait times for hip and knee joint replacements for patients in our province,” said Dr. Ed Buchel, provincial surgery specialty lead with Shared Health. “This increased capacity is enhancing retention and recruitment of surgical specialists and goes a long way to change the surgical culture so we can tell surgeons that Manitoba is the place to be.”

In addition to the 800 hip and knee surgeries, the Manitoba government is also improving care in the Interlake-Eastern region with a 15-bed transitional care unit, 30 fully staffed medicine beds, and a seven-days-a-week discharge program at the Selkirk health centre. Planning for expanded urgent care in the region is also underway.

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St. Andrews resident Randy Pastetnik shared his support: “I am so glad to hear that more of my neighbours will get the care they need right here in our community,” he said. “When I had knee surgery two years ago, I had to drive to Winkler and book a hotel room, only to be told the surgery was cancelled while I was on the table. To know that should there be a next time, I could get care right here in my community, is a huge relief.”

The province is also increasing its health-care workforce, increasing health-care workers by 873 and adding hundreds of staffed beds. Further expansions, including new extended-hours clinics and minor injury clinics, are planned.

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