Doctors of B.C. says ERs across province 'overrun', urgent action needed

B.C.'s doctors' association is warning that emergency departments across the province are facing undue pressure, and calling on the government to take steps to address the issue.

It comes after a physician at Langley Memorial Hospital advised colleagues to ask patients to bypass the facility if they were having a medical emergency, according to Doctors of B.C. 

The association said the email highlighted how the hospital was "overrun with patients and near collapse" — something they said was taking place in ERs across B.C., and required urgent action.

"Our emergency departments are on red alert," said Dr. Gord McInnes, co-president of the association's section of emergency medicine, in a statement.

"Our patients are suffering, and the doctors struggling to provide their care are tired and distressed."

The calls for action come after ERs across B.C. were closed for thousands of hours cumulatively in 2022, with closures at the time attributed by the province to staff shortages, driven by waves of sick leaves and more lasting staff retention issues, as well as the spread of COVID-19 and high levels of respiratory illness.

In its statement, Doctors of B.C. said patients are being "warehoused" in emergency departments for up to 48 hours before they are moved to the appropriate ward.

"Patients are waiting upwards of eight hours to see a doctor, so that by the time they receive care, their condition has seriously declined," the statement read.

McInnes says the government should work to increase the number of beds within B.C.'s hospitals, as well as steps to address the staffing shortages.

Doctors of B.C. also said health authorities should allow physicians and nurses to call a "code orange" — a protocol that means patients will be moved to other areas of the hospital if the ER is full. The code has been used in the past during mass casualty events, and can only be enforced by health authorities.

"We [also] need a process that would switch acutely ill patients in the emergency department, who are waiting for a bed on a specialty nursing ward, with a recovered patient in that ward waiting to be discharged," reads the statement.

Minister says more recruitment happening

In a statement, a Fraser Health spokesperson said the long wait times at Langley Memorial Hospital were due to a "gap in hospitalist coverage" adding to a higher volume of patients.

"In partnership with our emergency physicians, family physicians, nurse practitioners, internal medicine specialists, surgeons and clinical associates, we have implemented mitigation actions to support Langley Memorial Hospital," read the statement.

"In collaboration with the ministry of health, we have implemented substantial recruitment strategies at hospitals throughout our region to bolster and support our workforce and ensure the sustainability of our health system.

"We know long waits can be challenging for our patients and their families, and we thank them for their continued patience and kindness."

The spokesperson said that on Tuesday, 2,300 patients were seen at ERs across B.C.'s largest health authority — 100 more than the average seen at this time of year.

Health Minister Adrian Dix told CBC News that the province was currently seeing a very high level of hospital occupancy, with 9,804 in-patients reported on Wednesday.

In January, Dix said 10,260 hospital beds were occupied across B.C. — higher than the 9,200 base bed capacity, and more than was seen on any day in 2021.

"We're taking specific actions now at Langley Memorial Hospital. A group of family physicians in the Langley area has been signed to a contract to take over responsibility for patients at the hospital," he said in the legislature on Wednesday.

He also said that the province was continuing to work to introduce more primary care providers into the system, with 480 more family doctors added since a new payment plan came into effect.