People with non-urgent medical needs may experience longer waits in the emergency department at Saanich Peninsula Hospital due to overnight staffing shortages, Island Health said Saturday.
People with non-urgent medical needs may be given the option to return home and come back in the morning, said an advisory issued at 4 p.m. Saturday.
“The physician on call will only support people with serious medical needs,” it said.
People in need of emergency care should always call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department, the advisory said. Confidential health information and advice from a registered nurse is available toll free, 24/7 by calling HealthLink BC at 811.
On a typical night, an average of 8.5 people go to the emergency department at Saanich Peninsula Hospital.
The emergency department will continue to provide emergency care to those who need it, said Island Health.
When there are limited physicians available, Island Health works in collaboration with the physicians to adjust available staffing to the daytime hours when the emergency department is busiest.
Inpatient care in all other units at Saanich Peninsula Hospital is not affected by this temporary adjustment.
In an earlier interview, Saanich Peninsula ER physician Dr. Jeff Unger said overnight closings might be required because of insufficient staffing.
The hospital has been “scraping by month to month” since last fall, with last-minute coverage by a dwindling staff of physicians working more shifts, out-of-province emergency physicians flying in for short periods, or non-emergency-certified family physicians filling in.
Two of the hospital’s emergency physicians recently left for early retirement and two are now off for personal health reasons, “all attributable to burnout from the last several years of being pushed beyond sustainability,” Unger said.
Saanich Peninsula has been recruiting emergency physicians for a year and a half, yet six new full-time physicians are still needed, he said.
— With Cindy E. Harnett
