Residents forced to wait outside at LifeLabs in Regina

Concerns raised at LifeLabs in Regina WATCH: A Regina man is concerned about long waits at LifeLabs in frigid temperatures when winter arrives. Marc Smith reports.

Regina — As temperatures in Saskatchewan begin to cool, concerns are being raised about policies currently in place at LifeLabs locations in Regina.

Ken Hoff went to LifeLabs to get blood work done recently.

"I waited for about 55 minutes in total at the location, outside being at least 45 minutes in fairly frigid temperatures," Hoff said.

The labs’ ‘Net Check In’ app allows users to see how long the wait is at their five locations in Regina, and to reserve a spot in line.

Hoff said he used the app to save his spot, but the wait was much longer than posted.

"When I used it, the wait time was eight minutes at probably 7:01 a.m. and when I got there, there was no way to be able to check in and we ended up having to wait in line," he said.

The Saskatchewan Health Authority uses LifeLabs as a provider of community laboratory collection services in Regina and Saskatoon.

In a statement to CTV News, LifeLabs didn’t address concerns about patients having to wait outside, but encouraged them to use its app or book an appointment online.

"As the pandemic continues to evolve, we are exploring new solutions to improve our customer’s experience," the statement said.

According to Hoff, there were elderly people as well as others with disabilities using walkers waiting in line.

He said he’s worried someone may head there expecting a shorter wait time and end up being left out in the cold.

"If you have to wait outside for an hour, you’re going to have to be dressed appropriately to do that and not many people are ready to be dressed for an hour wait outside in a line," Hoff said.

Hoff hopes LifeLabs will adjust its policy to provide a way for those needing to use the labs to wait inside or have an accurate estimation for how long their wait will be to allow them to prepare for it.