Concerns among parents and caregivers in the Central Okanagan are growing in the wake of a pediatrician shortage at Kelowna General Hospital (KGH). “With winter coming up and all the winter flus, like that is very scary, definitely very scary,” said Tianna Byers, a Kelowna mother of three. Earlier this month, the Kelowna Emergency Department Physician Group issued a public advisory warning of service disruptions at KGH related to pediatric care in the emergency department (ED).
The advisory stated that no new admissions will be possible to the KGH pediatric ward during service disruption times and that complex cases and critically ill children will be transferred elsewhere for care. “I think there should be a pediatrician on call at all times,” said Nella Milligan, a grandmother to a three-year old boy. “At least one or two for this area.
” Interior Health (IH) won’t confirm how many shifts aren’t covered, saying as it works to staff those shifts, the number changes. According to the College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia, there are 24 pediatricians registered in the City of Kelowna. However, only six of them work at the hospital.
Some of the doctors Global News spoke with, who didn’t want to be interviewed, said it is a disaster waiting to happen. In a statement to Global News, IH said during the provincial election and interregnum period, government is in a caretaker mode and health authority communications are limited to critical health and.
