Sask. woman says information-sharing between provinces might have prevented mother's life

It usually takes about eight minutes to drive from Creighton, Sask. to Flin Flon, Man., but the journey for electronic medical records between the two provinces isn't nearly as quick.

For one Creighton resident, it was life-threatening.

Creighton, a northeastern Saskatchewan town of about 1,200 people about 430 kilometres northeast of Saskatoon, has no hospital.

But for Creighton residents, the choice is seemingly obvious: access health care in Saskatchewan by driving at least 350 kilometres south to the closest hospital in Nipawin, or simply walk across the border to Flin Flon General Hospital in Manitoba.

Frances Garinger, a 78-year-old Creighton resident, regularly chose the latter.

Garringer had open heart surgery in 2011, then was put on a regular dose of blood thinners, regulate