BC health minister under fire over mass resignation of Kamloops ob-gyns

BC’s health minister is addressing what is being described as a maternity crisis in the province, following the mass resignation of a group of obstetrician-gynecologists (ob-gyns) and a letter signed by more than 100 fellow doctors in their support.

Seven obstetrician-gynecologists at Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops announced on October 11 that they would no longer provide care at the hospital during labor, delivery and cesarean sections until replacements for them would be found, citing “extreme physician burnout“Among their reasons.

Following the announcement, the vice-president and former president of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of BC issued a letter expressing support for the doctors who resigned.

The letter, addressed to the Minister of Health and the Interior Health CEO, describes “years” of advocacy for better access to care and warnings of a “premature motherhood crisis” being ignored and dismissed.

About 130 pregnant women signed it.

Doctors call province’s plan ‘unrealistic’

During question period on Monday, Conservative member and Kamloops Center MLA Peter Milobar asked Health Minister Josie Osborne about the province’s plan in response to the resignation.

Osborn said Interior Health is working with physicians on a “transition plan” and continues to recruit doctors, including 12 potential new hires from other jurisdictions.

She also reassured those who are expecting a baby soon, and those facing a high-risk pregnancy, that they will still receive care at Royal Inland Hospital.

But in its letter, the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of BC criticized the province’s plans to recruit a dozen new obstetrician-gynecologists as “unrealistic,” and called its reliance on locum physicians — doctors who temporarily fill in for other doctors — “short-sighted.”

“There are serious concerns about who will supervise and support these new hires … in an already stressful environment. The use of these short-term stop gaps instead of fair negotiations with the current OBGYN group has not gone unnoticed,” the letter reads.

“We will not participate in these temporary coverage plans or oversee new appointments under these terms,” the letter said. The letter urges the Health Ministry to find a “permanent solution.”

During question period, Osborne reiterated that he hoped Interior Health would work with the physicians who resigned, and listen to their concerns.

“Those conversations happen at a table, not here in this House, not during Question Hour,” he said.

“The priority must always be the patient, the family and the people,” he said. “It’s my expectation from these physicians, it’s my expectation from Interior Health that they will come together to talk about these issues, to start the conversations that are going on right now, to put the patient at the center of their work.”

Osborne acknowledged the shortage of doctors in the province, and noted the opening a new medical school Streamlining credentials for doctors in Surrey, as well as other jurisdictions.

Women in labor are still welcome to stay: Interior Health

Interior Health has said the door is open to the doctors who resigned.

In an October 20 statement, Mark Masterson, vice president of medicine with Interior Health, said the physicians had rejected the Department of Health’s offer of a 25 percent compensation increase before resigning, but that the offer remains on the table.

“We would welcome the opportunity to bring eager physicians back to serve patients at Royal Inland Hospital,” Masterson said in the statement.

In a statement from the Conservative Party of B.C.

More than 200 people attended a rally in Kamloops over the weekend by the newly formed Maternity Matters Kamloops – a group of advocates, health-care workers and parents – demanding immediate action from the BC government.