Close X
Monday, November 11, 2024
ADVT 
National

Surrey ER doctors call for 'new leadership' amid 'toxic' work environment

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 17 Sep, 2024 02:17 PM
  • Surrey ER doctors call for 'new leadership' amid 'toxic' work environment

British Columbia politicians are celebrating connecting more people with family doctors, but it comes as emergency room physicians at Surrey Memorial Hospital say conditions there continue to crumble.

A letter sent to the president of Fraser Health Authority Dr. Victoria Lee, and published online, warns that deteriorating conditions in the department are "unequivocally leading to substandard care" and creating an "increasingly toxic work environment."

The letter calls for "new leadership," saying wait times in the ER often exceed 12 hours and the rate of patients who leave the department without being seen has tripled to 8.4 per cent since 2020-2021.

Premier David Eby and Health Minister Adrian Dix were in Surrey, where a new hospital is being built, to announce that more than 248,000 people have been connected to a family doctor or nurse practitioner since a provincial registry was launched in July 2023.

Eby says the province is working on addressing health-care pressures by building the second hospital in Surrey and connecting more people with family doctors to reduce the need for them to go to the emergency room.

A statement from Fraser Health says it understands the seriousness of the concerns and it will be responding directly to the physicians "to address them comprehensively."

"While we have more work to do, we are pleased to report that in addition to the thousands of staff already working at the hospital, since July 2023 we posted 575 net new positions for the Surrey Memorial Hospital and Surrey communities," the statement says.

The letter from the doctors says that since 2021, staffing has increased eight per cent, while patient volumes have jumped 30 per cent.

The letter says doctors have tried dozens of times to declare a "Code Orange" when they believe the department is pushed beyond a safe level, but 24 of those 25 requests have been denied, making doctors reluctant to call for help.

"The combination of long shifts, overwhelming patient volumes, high acuity, inadequate support, compensation disparities and the invalidation of our lived experiences has contributed to significant burnout among our staff," the letter says.

"Physicians are facing exhaustion, anxiety and an overall decline in their mental health, which ultimately compromises patient care."

MORE National ARTICLES

Trudeau attends NATO leaders' summit as Russia escalates aggression toward Ukraine

Trudeau attends NATO leaders' summit as Russia escalates aggression toward Ukraine
The ongoing war will top the agenda of the three-day summit following Russian missile attacks Monday that left death and destruction, including at a large children's hospital in Kyiv.

Trudeau attends NATO leaders' summit as Russia escalates aggression toward Ukraine

4 charged in Guildford robbery

4 charged in Guildford robbery
Mounties in Surrey says four people have now been charged after a robbery at a jewellery store in Guildford earlier this year. They say police responded after shots were fired at the store on February 18th, leaving one person with non-life threatening injuries. 

4 charged in Guildford robbery

Daily heat records tumble in B.C., temperatures in southern Interior to remain high

Daily heat records tumble in B.C., temperatures in southern Interior to remain high
A summary from Environment Canada shows 25 daily high temperature records were set and two tied across the province Monday, from Whistler, to Trail in the southeast, Smithers in the northwest, and Campbell River on Vancouver Island. The Lytton area was a hot spot with a daily high of 42.4 C, breaking the old record of 39.4 set in 1952.

Daily heat records tumble in B.C., temperatures in southern Interior to remain high

Pro-Palestinian protesters dismantle UBC camp

Pro-Palestinian protesters dismantle UBC camp
A pro-Palestinian protest camp that had occupied a sports field at the University of British Columbia's Vancouver campus for more than two months has been dismantled by the demonstrators. Dozens of tents had been removed by Monday, although barricades and fencing around the site remain in place.

Pro-Palestinian protesters dismantle UBC camp

Man charged in weapons trafficking

Man charged in weapons trafficking
The Canada Border Services Agency says a man has been charged with one count each of weapons trafficking and possession of a prohibited firearm after an investigation that began in December 2022.

Man charged in weapons trafficking

Air quality advisory issued for Metro Vancouver

Air quality advisory issued for Metro Vancouver
The Metro Vancouver regional district has issued an air quality advisory as hot, sunny weather mixes with emissions to create ground-level ozone, or smog. The advisory spans Metro Vancouver and parts of the Fraser Valley.

Air quality advisory issued for Metro Vancouver