Ontario teen says it's 'heartbreaking' to have surgery postponed indefinitely because of Omicron wave
An Ontario family hopes solutions can be found to quickly reschedule surgeries cancelled during the Omicron COVID-19 surge.
Rachel Bugera desperately wants to get back to playing soccer. The 16-year-old from Ajax, Ont. has been sidelined from the pitch — and a crucial surgery.
Bugera needs an operation to replace her ACL and meniscus resulting from an injury in October.
She found out shortly before Christmas that the procedure would be delayed and there is no date in sight.
“It was just heartbreaking,” Bugera told CTV News Toronto Wednesday.
The high level competitive centre-back is in Grade 11. She hopes to get recruited by a varsity team and land a possible university scholarship.
With the post-op recovery expected to take nine months, she worries if she’ll be ready when teams start looking at players in the fall and beyond.
“They could look at me during my outdoor season but I might not be at my best. I might not even be a quality player that they’d want to look at. That would definitely make it harder to be recruited, making harder to see those dreams come true,” Bugera said.
She also contends with pain on a regular basis.
Rachel Bugera desperately wants to get back to playing soccer but can't until she undergoes surgery. (Supplied)
“It just aches sometimes,” Bugera said. “It’s like a throbbing pain, you can’t get rid of no matter what you do.”
Public Health Ontario CEO Matt Anderson said Monday between 8,000 and 10,000 non-urgent surgeries and procedures are expected to be pushed a week to help support hospitals during the Omicron surge.
A spokesperson for Health Minister told CTV News Toronto the directive could bring on up to 1,500 acute and post-acute beds.
Burgera’s mom Shelly wants to see more done to help young people waiting resume their lives.
“It’s probably been as a mom, the hardest thing to watch her go through,” she said.
“There’s got to be a creative solution … Maybe its going to areas not so effected by COVID, looking at hospitals that do have those or times available. I’m willing to travel. I don’t care, I’ll go at 2 in the morning.”
Already Bugera said on and off school and training because of the pandemic has been hard enough. The surgery delay now, even more so, knowing the longer she waits, the bigger impact it could have on her future.
“Just keep trying to my exercises that I have leading up to the surgery so I can be as strong as possible … and just staying as positive and motivated as possible as challenging as it may be.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Poilievre will do 'anything to win,' must condemn Alex Jones endorsement: Trudeau
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is ramping up his attacks on Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre as he promotes his government's federal budget.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
New evidence challenges the Pentagon's account of a horrific attack as the U.S. withdrew from Afghanistan: CNN exclusive
New video evidence uncovered by CNN significantly undermines two Pentagon investigations into an ISIS-K suicide attack outside Kabul airport, during the American withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
All Alberta wildfires to date in 2024 believed to be human-caused: province
There are 63 wildfires burning in Alberta's forest protection area as of Wednesday morning and seven mutual aid fires, including one in the Municipal District of Peace.
Video shows suspects waving weapons, smashing glass in Toronto jewelry store robbery
Arrests have been made after five men were captured on video rampaging through a jewelry store in Toronto, waving weapons and smashing glass display cases.
Pilot proposes to flight attendant girlfriend in front of passengers
A Polish pilot proposed to his flight attendant girlfriend during a flight from Warsaw to Krakow, and she said yes.
Ottawa injects another $36M into fund for those seriously injured or killed by vaccines
The federal government has added $36.4 million to a program designed to support people who have been seriously injured or killed by vaccines since the end of 2020.
Ex-SNC executive sentenced to prison term in bridge bribery case
The RCMP says a former SNC-Lavalin executive has been sentenced to three and a half years in prison in connection with a bribery scheme for a bridge repair contract in Montreal.