A Kelowna, B.C., mother is emotional after her nine-week-old daughter was transferred by ambulance in the middle of the night — because the local hospital’s pediatric unit was closed.
Jade Arignon had brought her infant to Kelowna General Hospital on Wednesday for a respiratory illness. It was the second visit in two weeks. But this time, the care she needed wasn’t available.
“It was advised that (my daughter) be kept for monitoring, as well as a bit of air support,” Arignon said. “And due to the pediatric unit being closed now, we weren’t able to stay.”
Instead, Arignon had to watch as her baby was strapped into a gurney and transferred more than an hour away to Penticton Regional Hospital.
“Watching six people try to figure out how to strap her car seat onto a gurney… all this beeping, all these things,” she recalled. “I was sitting in an ambulance that’s used to dealing with intense traumas. I had a moment — I was bawling my eyes out.”
The pediatric unit at Kelowna General is temporarily closed for a month and a half due to physician shortages, meaning pediatric patients who need to be admitted to hospital will be transferred to other hospitals across the region and possibly beyond.
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Arignon called the ordeal “overkill,” describing it as “super stressful” and “an egregious use of resources.”
Despite the situation, B.C. Health Minister Josie Osborne urged families Wednesday to continue taking their children to Kelowna General.
In a statement to Global News on Friday, Osborne acknowledged parents’ concerns and emphasized that critical pediatric services remain available at the hospital. But questions around non-critical care remain unanswered.
“If you need something that should, in my opinion, be a normal level of care — you can’t get that in Kelowna right now,” Arignon said. “Expect to go elsewhere.”
Osborne confirmed to Global News that help is on the way.
“Two new pediatricians have accepted offers to work at Kelowna General, with the first coming in July. And a third is visiting the hospital this weekend from the U.S. Since launching our U.S. recruitment campaign in March, we’ve seen unprecedented interest – over 570 doctors from the US have said they are interested in moving to BC and work in our public health system,” said Osborne in a statement.
Now, further strain on the system is looming.
This week, the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Kelowna General issued a warning that the hospital could face a collapse of its primary maternity care coverage as early as June 1.
That could mean pregnant patients arriving in labour with no doctor available to assist with delivery.
In a statement, the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Kelowna General Hospital called on Interior Health and the B.C. Ministry of Health to take immediate action. The department is urging officials to restore and maintain maternity care through proper compensation and recruitment, create a safe contingency plan with trained professionals, and support the safe diversion of patients when local care isn’t possible.
They added, “Our department remains fully committed to the well-being of patients.”
Interior Health did not provide a response to Global News by publication time.
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