The promise of improved service levels hasn’t materialized yet, but perhaps there’s still hope.
When it was announced last spring that routine lab work would be moved from the Okotoks Health and Wellness Centre to a yet-to-be-opened private lab in town, the messaging from government focused on the benefits that would come from such a move.
An emailed statement to this newspaper at that time stated: "This will improve service for Okotoks residents by providing a dedicated community lab location with more convenient hours than the service currently available at the urgent care centre."
At the time, the lab at the Okotoks Health and Wellness Centre was open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. The private lab opened on schedule last December on Southridge Drive and its hours are — wait for it — 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays.
Given the identical hours, it’s not surprising the government’s promise of improved service hasn’t come to fruition. In fact, the lab’s online booking tool shows there’s now about a seven-week wait for an appointment for routine testing in Okotoks, a figure that has grown throughout the early part of this year.
We're far from the only area experiencing such delays, so Alberta Health Services announced last week it’s working with DynaLIFE, the lab operator, to address these wait times across the board. AHS said DynaLIFE confirmed it will make more weekday appointments available in Okotoks starting next month and the facility will be open on Saturdays beginning in July. Sounds promising, but so did the plan to move to the private operator, so forgive us if we’re not convinced the most recent announcement will be the solution.
Should the addition of Saturdays become a reality this summer, it would make good on the promise of more convenient hours. The move would come about a year after the initial announcement and seven months after the lab opened, but as the old saying goes, it’s better late than never.