State of pediatric services in Sask. raising concerns

With construction progressing on the $285-million Children's Hospital of Saskatchewan, parents and experts wonder if pediatricians will want to work there.

"We've spent enormous sums of money building a children's hospital [but] we're not going to be able to staff it at current reimbursement rates," said Glen Beck, professor emeritus of health economics at the University of Saskatchewan.

Pediatricians continue to be the lowest-paid doctors in the province, according to the latest figures from Saskatchewan's Ministry of Health.

Their average gross payment of $193,600 per year is less than half of that of their fellow specialists. It's only a fraction of the $1.15 million earned by the average ophthalmologist, with one topping the chart at more than $2.3 million.

Not only are pediatricians the lowest paid, but they're also some of the only specialists whose pay has decreased in the past five years.

"I feel worried, for sure," said Elizabeth Stack, whose four-year-old daughter, Harriet, requires a host of pediatric services.

"They're working really hard, doing a job that's really difficult. You're interacting with parents who have just been given devastating news about their child."

Stack said it's "really heartbreaking" to hear pediatricians are the lowest paid. She's wonders if Harriet and other kids will be able to get the care they need when the new Children's Hospital of Saskatchewan opens in 2019.

Fewer pediatricians than other provinces

The comparably low pay could be one reason Saskatchewan has fewer pediatricians per capita than any other province except New Brunswick, which has no children's hospital.

Saskatchewan has 61 general pediatricians. Meanwhile, Manitoba has 110 and Alberta has 343, according to the Canadian Medical Association's 2015 report.

The provincial government and the Saskatchewan Medical Association largely control the money that is allocated to each specialty.

"This has been a problem … for well over a decade and it's just not been addressed," said Beck. "And if it's not addressed, like all problems, it doesn't get better; it gets worse."

The head of pediatrics for the Saskatoon Health Region, Dr. Laurentiu Givelichian, agreed Saskatchewan needs more pediatricians and that low pay is part of the problem.

But he is confident the region will be able to recruit the 15 to 17 pediatricians needed to staff the children's hospital.

New incentives

Changes have recently been made to give new recruits more cash if they take on academic duties at the University of Saskatchewan. Givelichian said that's helped increase the supply of hospital-based pediatricians by more than 40 per cent in recent years.

As for all other community-based pediatricians, meetings are being held with the Saskatchewan Medical Association and government to increase pediatric fees. No changes have been made yet, but Givelichian said that could be in place next year.

"Their fees are going to be comparable to the rest of Canada," he said.

Critics note there have been countless meetings over the years with few results.

Beck said changes have to be made soon or pediatricians will "simply leave Saskatchewan for greener pastures."