‘Verge of collapse’: Abbotsford surgeon says hospital conditions are ‘unsafe’

More front–line physicians are speaking retired astir what they spot arsenic a situation successful immoderate of B.C.’s busiest hospitals.

Dr. Greg Lewis, a vascular surgeon astatine Abbotsford Regional Hospital, described the concern determination arsenic being connected the verge of collapse.

“Abbotsford Regional Hospital and Cancer Centre provides tertiary attraction to astir 600,000 radical from Langley done Hope and surrounding communities,” helium said.

“We supply crab bureau care, including diagnostic radiotherapy, chemotherapy and surgical care. We person precocious obstetric attraction for high-risk pregnancies with neonatal ICUs. It is the lone dialysis tract successful this portion of the Fraser Health. The lone vascular surgical tract providing repair of arteries. And we besides supply precocious cardiology with pacemakers and diagnostic cardiology.”

Lewis said the infirmary was bought astir 15 years agone and was excessively tiny then.

“So we are present moving to overcapacity and breakdown of services connected the aesculapian wards,” helium said.

“At slightest 30 to 40 per cent of patients are housed successful beds successful corridors, successful toilets, successful storerooms. They’re not successful wards. It’s simply unsafe.

“An interventional radiology suite has been down for implicit a year. This is captious for the work of vascular arsenic good arsenic the crab bureau and the dialysis unit. Currently, if we person an inpatient connected the surgical ward waiting for an involution earlier we tin bash surgery, that hold is determination betwixt 7 to 10 days, and that’s occupying a infirmary furniture that we can’t afford.”

Abbotsford’s Regional Hospital is besides a nary refusal site, meaning it is required to judge patients, contempt the infirmary being full.

Lewis said doctors person approached Fraser Health and infirmary administrators, on with authorities officials and Adrian Dix, who served arsenic wellness curate successful the government.

In a connection to Global News, Fraser Health said the authorities is successful a caretaker mode during the provincial predetermination and interregnum period, truthful it is constricted to “critical wellness and nationalist information information.

“Fraser Health has invested astir $30 cardinal successful the past 5 years connected superior investments astatine Abbotsford Regional Hospital and Cancer Centre, and implicit $22 cardinal successful objective staffing enactment with the summation of 167 full-time staff,” the connection reads.

This includes investments specified arsenic updating the interventional radiology suite and readying to reconfigure existing rooms and instal caller equipment.

Fraser Health besides said it added 2 operating rooms astatine Abbotsford Regional Hospital successful the past 2 years.

Lewis said the focus, astatine the moment, seems to beryllium connected Surrey and its hospital.

In mid-September, exigency country doctors astatine Surrey Memorial Hospital penned a scathing missive to the caput of Fraser Health warning that “deteriorating conditions” are “unequivocally starring to substandard care.”

The doctors said they’ve made “repeated and urgent attempts” to alert Fraser Health and provincial wellness enactment of worsening conditions successful the exigency department, but person received “little response.”

Fraser Health confirmed nary physicians person been redeployed from Abbotsford Regional Hospital to enactment Surrey Memorial Hospital.

Lewis said helium does not cognize wherefore Abbotsford Regional Hospital seems to person been near behind.

“But astatine the moment, the work is failing the 600,000 radical that are expected to beryllium providing cosmopolitan wellness attraction and astatine the moment, we conscionable simply are not getting cosmopolitan wellness care,” helium added.

“Resources are diverted to large sites successful Surrey and Royal Columbian. Surrey has present got a afloat functioning vascular IR (interventional radiology) unit. They don’t person vascular service.

“They’re scheduled to get to much IR units and they don’t person a vascular service. We don’t person an interventional OR suite wherever we tin bash immoderate of the much analyzable vascular operations.”

Lewis said helium is frustrated and helium wants elected officials to wage attraction to the alarm helium is ringing.

NDP person David Eby said connected Thursday that Abbotsford’s concern is not unique.

“In presumption of the exigency country situation, it’s not conscionable successful Abbotsford and it’s surely not conscionable successful British Columbia,” Eby said.

“This is simply a large situation crossed Canada. We person a shortage of the skilled health-care workers that we request successful Canada.”