Vancouver Coastal Health’s (VCH) chief operating officer for the coastal region says the health authority and local doctors have crafted an action plan to deal with issues identified in a recent survey by Doctors of BC and the decision of a psychiatrist to stop consulting in the Sechelt Hospital ER.
The results of the Doctors of BC’s 2018 Health Authority Engagement Survey showed doctors on the Sunshine Coast were much less satisfied with their working relationship with VCH than their colleagues in other areas and much less satisfied then they were when asked the same questions in 2017.
Karin Olson told Coast Reporter this week that the survey results “demonstrate where we as VCH need to be working more closely with the physicians.”
The other issue that became public late last year was the decision of psychiatrist Dr. Anthony Barale, the medical lead for the Addictions and Mental Health Unit in Sechelt, to stop consulting in the ER. In an email to colleagues, he highlighted safety concerns as a main reason.
Olson said VCH administration was working on the issues identified by Barale as far back as last November, and she met with him on Dec. 21 to discuss his concerns.
VCH also met with a committee of doctors on Jan. 3.
“It’s important for the public to know that we’ve had two good meetings where the issues were very clearly articulated and action plans were developed… I want to give us some time to work on these issues,” she said, explaining that it would be premature to discuss the details publicly.
Olson also said the medical community on the Sunshine Coast is dealing with some unique pressures, which include everything from a tight housing market that’s making it hard to recruit staff to congestion at the hospital and stretched resources for mental health and addictions care, seniors care and end of life care.
“We have an incredible group of physicians and staff who work exceptionally hard at that hospital to provide the very best care possible, and in the community… At a local leadership level they’re also very fortunate and physicians would say that as well,” Olson said. “What needs to be strengthened is the relationship with VCH overall, which is myself and the senior medical directors here, to support that good work.”
