IWK operating without a pediatric cardiac surgeon

Administrators at Halifax's children's hospital don't know how long they'll be without a pediatric cardiac surgeon.

The IWK Health Centre has only one on staff, Dr. Camille Hancock Friesen, and she was granted a one-year leave of absence to stay in Texas until next spring.

That means any scheduled surgeries must be performed by surgeons, who will come to Halifax from outside the region.

Toronto for emergencies

Any emergency cardiac surgeries would require a trip to the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto.

"They will provide coverage for us if we actually have the need of an urgent operation for one of our children," said Dr. Krista Jangaard, the IWK's medicine and academic affairs vice-president.

No planned surgeries will be postponed, she said.

The search is on for a replacement, having begun as soon as Hancock Friesen's leave was granted, she said.

"It's not unusual for physicians to take leave for a variety of reasons," Jangaard said. "What commonly is done is you search for a locum physician, someone who covers the duties of a physician who is away."

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Permanent new surgeon

But this new surgeon to be hired will become a permanent addition to the IWK staff.

That means the hospital will have two cardiac surgeons when Hancock Friesen returns from her leave.

"We've had several good candidates join us from across North America come and interview," Jangaard said. 

But when that interview process will wrap up and see a new surgeon hired remains up in the air.