Experts say gaps in arthritis care detrimental to Maritime patients

Across the country, arthritis patients are falling victim to gaps in access to care - something experts in the Maritimes are calling a major barrier to research and damage prevention. One in five Canadians suffer from arthritis and in the Maritimes the need for timely, effective care is stronger than ever. A Halifax-based rheumatologist says wait times are very high for both surgical intervention for arthritis but also for rheumatologic evaluation for inflammatory arthritis. He says these wait times are due to a lack of rheumatologists and rheumatology professionals in Atlantic Canada.