A department head at Kelowna General Hospital (KGH) is highlighting what he says are the serious gaps in pediatric health care delivery in the wake of the ongoing pediatric ward closures at the hospital.
“This is an unprecedented situation,” said Dr. Duncan de Souza, head of KGH’s anesthesia department. “We do not know of anything similar that has ever happened in British Columbia, where a major hospital has lost such a key component of its services.”
De Souza, who provides care to pediatric patients, spoke at Wednesday’s town hall meeting, which was organized in the wake of the pediatric crisis at KGH.
He provided comparisons in pediatric services between Interior health (IH) and Vancouver Island Health (VIH) as an example of how much IH is lagging behind.
“Vancouver Island Health Authority has 900,000 people. So does IHA. Victoria is their major referral centre, as is Kelowna and their level of pediatric care is vastly superior to ours,” de Souza told the roughly 100 people in attendance.
The advanced pediatric care, as outlined by de Souza, is offered at Victoria General Hospital (VGH).
“They have a higher level newborn ICU. They have a pediatric ICU, which we don’t have,” de Souza said. “They have dedicated services for children in the emergency room. They have a much, much more robust and active pediatric surgical program.”
De Souza said he believes the stark difference in pediatric care in the two health authorities boils down to advocacy efforts.
“What we have now is the result of whatever level of advocacy and push for pediatrics that existed in IHA and we see the effects of what’s going on now,” de Souza said.
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KGH’s 10-bed pediatric unit closed on May 26 with the closure now approaching the six-week mark.
It’s not known when it will re-open.
According to IH, 19 pediatric patients who needed a hospital admission had to be transferred to other hospitals across the IH region, including Vernon, Penticton and Kamloops.
Pediatricians have been calling for changes to the staffing and health care delivery model for years but they have said their concerns were not taken seriously enough.
It prompted many of them to resign from the hospital, leaving KGH with a severe shortage of pediatricians — which resulted in the ward closure.
The unit’s closure has impacted other departments, including the emergency room (ER).
“We’re holding those children in our department for longer,” said Dr. Matthew Petrie, an ER physician. “If they’re sick enough to require transfer right then, that usually means one of our physicians and at least one or two of our nurses are dedicated to dealing with that sick child and that just pulls resources away from a system that’s already under-resourced.”
De Souza believes a model similar to that in Victoria should be seriously considered.
“When we look for a solution for a sustainable model for Kelowna General and for IHA, we don’t have to look far and wide,” de Souza said. “We only have to look in our own province to find something that works.”
The ministry of health stated it is aware of calls for Kelowna to receive services comparable to those in other communities.
It added, “the ministry is currently reviewing a related proposal that was recently submitted from Interior Health.”
It’s not known, however, what that proposal entails.
In an email to Global News, IH cautioned about making comparisons between two health jurisdictions, in this case stating, “to make a direct comparison of Kelowna to Victoria does not factor in significant differences in geography, transportation routes or population disbursement of these two regions.”
IH also stated that population growth in recent years has required the health authority to focus on a review of service delivery models, adding it has expanded the neonatal intensive care unit at KGH.
Medical staff on the front lines however, have said a lot more needs to be done to keep up with the growing demand.
“We are at an inflection point. I hope things improve,” de Souza said. “I hope that we can follow the model that’s out there in Victoria for a better level of pediatric care.”
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