Kelowna General Hospital doctors warn of 'collapse' of primary maternity care coverage

Doctors in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Kelowna General Hospital (KGH) are warning that the maternity ward is on the verge of collapse amid a shortage of family physicians.

A joint statement from all nine members of the department issued Thursday said that "without immediate action from health authorities and government decision-makers, the safety of patients and newborns is at serious risk."

"Due to a critical shortage of family physicians willing or able to provide this care— worsened by a failure to recruit replacements—our hospital is facing a collapse of its primary maternity care coverage as early as June 1, 2025.

"This means that many pregnant patients may arrive at the hospital in labour with no doctor available to provide safe, continuous care during delivery."

The doctors said their concerns about staffing and support have gone largely unanswered and they're demanding immediate action from Interior Health.

The doctor representing the group declined an interview request from CBC News.

Dr. Hussam Azzam, executive medical director for Interior Health South, acknowledged the physicians' concerns, saying KGH leadership is in regular contact with with the ob-gyns to address a complex issue with "multiple pillars to it that we need to address."

"We are open to listen and we're open to work with them collaboratively to meet their needs and to deliver the best quality care that they've trained to do," Azzam said.

Dr. Charlene Lui, president of the professional association Doctors of B.C., said family doctors often handle low-risk patients with obstetricians focused on cases that are high risk and more complex.

"When we have fewer low-risk maternity providers that are family physicians, then that puts additional pressure on our obstetricians to sometimes need to be in several places at the same time when an emergency arises," Lui said.

The statement followed last week's announcement of an extended closure of the pediatric unit at KGH. The health authority said it temporarily closed the pediatric care unit at the hospital to address scheduling gaps due to limited physician availability.

"We are very alarmed to hear that the issues at Kelowna General continue to escalate without solutions from the health authority," Lui said Friday.

KGH is a regional referral centre with over 1,800 deliveries each year and a Tier 4 neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) caring for babies born at 30 weeks gestation or later, according to the doctors' letter.

Dr. Jeff Eppler, an emergency department physician at KGH, told CBC News on Friday that he was heading into a weekend shift amid staff shortages, including no pediatricians and a limited number of ob-gyns.

"Our staff is burning out. All of these service disruptions just make the job so much harder for all of us in the emergency department," Eppler said.

"And even though we are all starting to burn out, we are going to have to pick up extra shifts this summer to make up for all the shortcomings in the system."

In a statement, B.C. Health Minister Josie Osborne said parents can be assured that all of the hospital's critical care services for children remain open, including the emergency department and NICU.

Gavin Dew, the B.C. Conservative MLA for Kelowna-Mission, described the situation at the hospital as a "crisis of government neglect."

"We have multiple departments of the hospital who clearly feel as if they are not being heard by the folks who should be listening to them and are resorting to making public the crisis-level conditions at the hospital," Dew said.

The hospital ob-gyns said they have warned administrators of the risks, and have tried to offer solutions.

"We have submitted multiple letters, proposals, and formal communications urging action," reads the statement. "Our concerns have gone largely unanswered."

They are calling on Interior Health and B.C.'s health ministry to create a contingency plan to ensure patients are cared for and to support the transfer of maternity patients if care can't be provided locally.

Osborne acknowledged the hard work of pediatricians at KGH, saying they have been dealing with staffing shortages and are "understandably experiencing burnout."

She went on to say the province's efforts to recruit health-care workers are starting to pay off. Two new pediatricians have accepted offers to work at KGH, she said, with the first set to arrive in July.