QEH unable to operate peds clinic at full capacity, Health P.E.I. says
'Right now, we only have about 60% of the doctors that we need,' says health agency
Queen Elizabeth Hospital's pediatric clinic is warning of extended wait times in a letter sent by doctors to patients and families at the clinic.
The letter says the clinic will prioritize emergency and urgent cases. Follow-up appointments, routine and less-urgent cases will experience delays.
"We understand this situation may be frustrating, and we are very sorry for the inconvenience," the letter says.
In a statement Health P.E.I. told CBC News that there are six full-time positions for pediatricians at the clinic and one neonatologist.
Currently staffing is down to 4.6 pediatricians and a temporary leave will reduce that to 3.6 positions next month until early 2026.
Health P.E.I. said it continues to try to recruit for a full-time pediatrician to join the team at the QEH and is advertising for pediatric locums.
The agency noted that staff at the clinic have "encouraged patients who have a primary care practitioner or access to other community healthcare resources to utilize those services when possible."
'Scared and worried'
Some Islanders whose children access the clinic are now reporting that they have received phone calls informing them that they have been "discharged" from the clinic.
Lisa Manuel, who has two children who access health care at the clinic, said she was "infuriated" when she got the letter from Health P.E.I. on Tuesday.
Manuel's two-year-old son has mild hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy — or HIE — a brain injury that occurs when the brain is deprived of oxygen and blood flow. That puts him at high risk for seizures, Manuel said.
Her son is okay for now, but she's "scared and worried [that] he's not going to get the care that he needs when something does happen to him," Manuel said.
Her experience with the clinic "hasn't been all bad but it's progressively gotten worse," she said.
"It's scary because you feel like they don't care about them. The doctors do, obviously, but Health P.E.I. doesn't."
The news about the pediatric clinic's reduction in service came days after Health P.E.I. announced the province's entire health-care system is over capacity.
Doctors at the internal medicine clinic at the QEH have also advised family doctors that they will stop accepting non-urgent referrals on Jan. 21 because wait times have become "unsafe and unsustainable."
Need for action
Green MLA Matt MacFarlane said he's concerned about the deterioration of the Island's health care system.
"If it was the only letter that we've seen… over the course of months or a year, then it would be a different flavour than if it's the second type of letter we've seen in the span of a week," he said.
MacFarlane is calling for another public meeting where government officials and Health P.E.I. can tell Islanders about the state of the system and answer questions.
A similar meeting last year brought out hundreds of Islanders who voiced their concerns about cuts at Prince County Hospital.
In the meantime, MacFarlane said concerned Islanders should speak up.
"Parents who are affected by this notice need to take their concerns to the province," he said.
Parents such as Manuel think that's all they can do.
"I guess you just have to keep fighting for your kids," Manuel said.
With files from Cody MacKay