The governments of Alberta and Saskatchewan have released the full text of a report that found Lloydminster’s health-care system faces “critical challenges” tied to capacity and infrastructure.
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The Lloydminster Health Service Needs Assessment was jointly commissioned by both provinces in 2024 to guide clinical and capital planning for the Border City, which straddles the Alberta-Saskatchewan boundary and serves a catchment area of roughly 217,000 people within 150 kilometres on both sides of the line.
Both health ministries initially released only a four-page summary of the assessment in June, which stated that “service levels are being met similar to other communities of this size.” That characterization drew criticism from local advocates, a Lloydminster physician and policy experts, and the full 261-page document was eventually leaked by Saskatchewan’s NDP health critic before both provinces released it officially on Oct. 30.
The assessment says Lloydminster Hospital is “no longer adequate for the population it serves,” and describes primary-care services as “critically understaffed,” with mental health and substance use supports “notably lacking.” It also points to dual licensing requirements and poor communication between the two provincial systems as ongoing barriers for patients and providers, an issue Meridian Source has previously examined in coverage of inter-provincial health-file woes.
Tom McIntosh, a professor of politics and international studies at the University of Regina who studies health care and intergovernmental relations, said he noticed nothing had been redacted from the version finally made public.
“That sort of negates their initial position on the report,” McIntosh told CBC News.
He said the findings are likely to spur further pressure on both provincial governments.
“[It’s] going to create pressure, presumably on both governments, to start to announce some plans to fix what’s going on in Lloyd,” McIntosh said.
Long-term care beds tied to hospital capacity
Darrell Dunn, vice-president of the Lloydminster Concerned Citizens for Seniors Care Society, delivered 2,700 letters from residents to the Saskatchewan Legislature this week, calling for the replacement of the Jubilee Home, the only long-term care facility on the Saskatchewan side of the city.
A 2013 needs assessment flagged significant deferred maintenance at the 50-bed home and recommended it be replaced within 15 years. Dunn said population growth since then, combined with projections in the new assessment showing the number of residents aged 75 and older will nearly double in the region by 2040, make the case for action more urgent.
“The challenge is people who should be in long-term care are taking up space in the hospital when they’re in medical distress, and those beds are tied up because there’s nowhere to put these folks into long-term care,” Dunn said.
Saskatchewan Health Minister Jeremy Cockrill, responding to questions about Dunn’s request during Wednesday’s legislative sitting, said the province will continue to engage with Lloydminster residents and elected officials on next steps for health-care investment in the city.
The report recommends several measures for further evaluation, including an after-hours primary care access clinic, team-based and virtual primary-care models, and a mental health short-stay unit. Both provinces have stressed the recommendations are not funding commitments.
Dunn said he’s frustrated by what feels like years of consultation without visible progress, but called the report’s full release a step in the right direction. Residents hoping to follow the issue can watch for further comment from both provincial health ministries, which have said they intend to keep working with local stakeholders on the Lloydminster file first raised in coverage of Alberta’s health care priorities.
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