Association of Yukon Communities urges better aftercare for patients who travel for medical care

The Association of Yukon Communities is urging the Yukon Government to review and change current patient discharge policies to accommodate rural Yukoners who are medevaced to the Whitehorse General Hospital.

The association's president Ted Laking said what is in place now creates more stress during a stressful time.

"It's been an issue of concern for a number of communities," Laking told CBC News. "Where they've had instances where community members being medevaced to Whitehorse and then sort of just cut loose with no plan to get them to their community."

Laking shared a few examples of stories he has heard.

"We've seen scenarios where someone has had to hitchhike back to their community," he said. "Another scenario where somebody was discharged very early in the morning and they didn't have money or their wallet. They didn't have a place to stay. That was a problem as well."

Laking said these stories were brought up during the Association of Yukon Communities' board of directors meeting in September. He said it was collectively discussed and the board passed a resolution to send a letter to the Yukon's health minister, Tracy Ann McPhee.

That letter was sent Sept. 29. 

Laking said the goal behind the letter was to have the government look at current policies in place, and get back to the association with a detailed plan on how it would address these issues.

He said it's been two months now and the minister hasn't responded.

"It's pretty surprising," Laking said. "Unfortunately it feels like the minister has ignored the issue.

"I'd really like a response. I hope when we get it it's a very thorough response because the minister has had several months to look at this now."

He said this is an important issue and all he wants is to see a new plan in place to ensure that patients of rural Yukon receive adequate support upon discharge.

"That's just an essential sort of service that the AYC is advocating for," Laking said. "We need to ensure that when our vulnerable citizens are transferred from rural Yukon that there's a plan to take care of them after they're in the ER or whatever they were medevaced there for."

In an email sent to the CBC from Yukon's cabinet office communications advisor Renee Francoeur, she confirmed that the minister has received the letter. She also wrote that the Yukon Government is working on a response with the Yukon Hospital Corporation.