GATINEAU, QUE. -- After feeling abdominal pain in her lower right side, Cheryl Martineau drove to the nearest emergency room where she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer.
"They discovered I had a large mass," she said. "It’s 13 centimetres by 11 centimetres so it’s quite big."
Since the Luskville, Quebec resident’s initial diagnosis about a month ago, the tumour has grown and there’s been a delay in the treatment she needs.
She was told her closest hospital, the Gatineau Hospital, had a staffing shortage. She tried a Montreal hospital but there’s a waitlist there too.
"It's pretty disheartening to know I can't be treated in the province I live in," she said. "Where do I go, what do I have to do to get treatment and have a chance to live."
The shortage continues to be a concern for residents living in western Quebec. Just last month the Gatineau Hospital emergency department was forced to close due to a nursing shortage. It was partially reopened a few days later with limited services.
"It’s been a major concern for years and now with the pandemic it’s worse," said Denis Marcheterre with advocacy group Action Sante Outaouais. "We need better working conditions for nurses, otherwise they will leave the system."
In a statement to CTV News Ottawa, the CISSS de l'Outaouais said the operating room is running at about 60 per cent due to staffing shortages.
"The prescribed wait time for an oncology surgical emergency is 28 days. We have a committee that ensures that surgical priorities are re-evaluated and they meet regularly to review the highest priority patients," said the CISSS de l'Outaouais.
Martineau, who welcomed a new grandson last month, has a telephone appointment scheduled with a Montreal specialist in September.
However, with no surgery officially booked time is ticking.
"I’ve got a month-old grandson, so I have a lot to live for. I want to beat this, get past this," Martineau said. "I want to get medical help in my own province."
