Tag Archives: Shortage of doctors & nurses

Health

Transparency, accountability at B.C.’s ambulance service has flatlined, audit review shows

Canada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Vital signs on the performance and state of B.C.’s ambulance service remain an outstanding mystery, an update from the B.C. auditor general on Tuesday shows. 

BC Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) and the Ministry of Health have failed to improve public transparency and accountability for ambulance services, or establish a co-ordinated approach so that patient care meets acceptable medical standards, indicates an extensive review of the province’s track record in response to 18 individual audits involving a wide range of agencies since 2019. 

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Health, Politics

NDP leader’s health-care concerns front and centre during Vancouver Island tour

National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Hot off a week-long Vancouver Island tour on the state of health care, federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says protecting Canada’s public health system is a top priority in the coming year.

As Parliament returned Monday, Singh said he expects to have a one-on-one conversation with Justin Trudeau to raise concerns about the threat of privatization and the acute lack of health-care workers that are hobbling communities and hospitals across the country.

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Health

‘I’ve only got one set of hands’: Last remaining ER doctor in Port Hardy wants to hire physician assistant out of his own pocket

National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Port Hardy Hospital’s emergency room is headed for life support, says the only ER doctor expected to be available as of July 1.

Of the four local doctors on the roster at the largest hospital in northern Vancouver Island, one tendered a resignation in March and two others recently announced their departure at the end of June, said Dr. Alex Nataros.

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Community

Immigration Canada rings in 2023 by making history

By Fabian Dawson, New Canadian Media, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Canada’s immigration department is giving itself a pat on the back today by announcing it has achieved its target of welcoming 431,645 new permanent residents to the country in 2022, about 30,000 more than the previous year.

“Canada has experienced one of the fastest recoveries from the pandemic, thanks in large part to our approach to immigration,” said Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) in a media statement to welcome the new year and highlight the historic milestone.

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Health

B.C. needs to invest in primary care to stem the bleeding of family doctors from rural areas

National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Rural communities in B.C. will continue to suffer critical doctor shortages and the knock-on effect of repeated emergency room closures until B.C.’s primary care system is modernized, an expert says.

New physicians are shunning family practice, while established doctors are abandoning it because of the way primary health care is delivered, said Dr. Rita McCracken, a family physician and researcher with the University of British Columbia’s Department of Family Practice.

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