As women face childbirth far from home, B.C. maternity doctors sound alarm
The expectant mother is 600 kilometres from her home in Kitimat because the local hospital cannot support the twin babies she will deliver by C-section later this month. Prince George is better than Vancouver — a possibility that was raised earlier in her pregnancy — but it's still far from her support network at one of the most vulnerable times in her life.
'I'm just trying to take it day by day,' said King. 'I'm doing a lot of deep breathing.'
In a statement released Friday, the obstetrics and gynecologists section of Doctors of B.C. sounded the alarm about the shortage of maternity specialists in B.C. and the impacts on women and babies whose lives 'depend on a doctor's middle-of-the-night decision-making.'
Prince George and Kamloops, where patients were told they may need to be transferred to other hospitals to give birth, are the first B.C. sites to reach critical staffing levels, said the statement. 'There are many other communities around the province whose specialists are also reaching their limits.'
Also Friday, Northern Health announced it had found specialist coverage for the Prince George hospital for August and September, eliminating the need to transfer high-risk patients. And while the situation in Kamloops remains the same, with patients not attached to a local maternity care provider potentially being transferred to other hospitals in the region, doctors have been able to cover the gaps, said a statement from Dr. Peter Bosma, executive medical director for Interior Health.
'We ask everyone to present to (Royal Inland Hospital) when needing urgent care, where they will be assessed and the best care plan can be put into place,' he said. 'When possible, a family practitioner with enhanced obstetrical surgical skills will also be available to support deliveries as appropriate within their scope. That was the case over last weekend, and all patients presented were able to deliver their babies locally in Kamloops.'
While acute maternity care is most affected by specialist shortages, B.C. women of every age are experiencing limited access and long waitlists to see a specialist, said the statement from the obstetrics and gynecologists section.
'The closures that are making the news are due to the doctors remaining in these communities having to juggle all the competing women's health priorities they are responsible for.'
The statement attributed the shortage to 'years of physicians doing everything they can to maintain services and burning themselves out,' as well as 'impossible working environments' that have led to departures.
The statement said the obstetrics and gynecologists section has been working with the B.C. government for the past year-and-a-half, but the province's plan to recruit more doctors from the U.S. cannot be the only solution.
Dr. Douglas Waterman, a New Westminster gynecologist, said the Ministry of Health needs to look closely at how the shortage developed.
'Providing obstetrical care has become more demanding over the past 20 to 30 years,' Waterman said in a written interview. 'Women are having their children later in their lives. They are also having fewer babies. Therefore, more pregnancies are first-time births, and are more likely to have medical complications. These pregnancies are more likely to need involvement by the obstetrician.'
Waterman said during talks with government there was acknowledgment the current method of reimbursement was not working.
'We were starting to work toward an alternate payment plan,' he said. 'Hopefully, this work will continue and reach an appropriate outcome. In the meantime, recruiting new physicians to a system that is not working will not be a long-term solution. They will be subject to the same problems of burnout, job dissatisfaction and leaving.'
Waterman said Canada has one of the best records for perinatal outcome in the world.
'That did not happen by chance. We need a well-organized and sustainable system for delivering obstetrical care all around the province. Our mothers and their babies deserve nothing less.'
In a statement, the B.C. Ministry of Health said hospitals and the health authorities 'take every step possible to fill gaps in health-care provider coverage to make sure people get the care they need, when they need it.' Health authorities also support families with contingency planning if they need to relocate for a birth.
The statement emphasized the work the ministry is doing to recruit doctors from the U.S. and other countries by streamlining credential recognition.
'Many health professionals have expressed interest in making the move to B.C.,' it said.
Nicole Penner, expecting her fourth baby in a few weeks, is scrambling to figure out where to go to deliver her baby. Last time, she gave birth a few minutes after entering the doors of the Prince George hospital. At her last appointment, her midwife told her she would need to go to Quesnel or Vanderhoof, more than an hour's drive away.
On Friday, after Northern Health announced it had found specialist coverage for August and September, Penner was even more confused about where to go.
'I'm scared,' she said. 'Do I call the hospital, or do I start driving to Vanderhoof? When you're in labour, you can't think. It's the only thing on your mind. I can't figure out where to go and who will take care of my kids. What if my labour is short? What if I don't make it to the hospital on time?'
For Brittany King, facing childbirth far from home regardless of the situation in Prince George, there are no easy answers. The family has started a GoFundMe to help with expenses.
'It sucks. What else can I say?'
gluymes@postmedia.com
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