New Interior Health CEO under fire as psychiatrists resign from Vernon hospital

BC Conservatives are taking aim at Interior Health as another set of doctors hand in their resignations, this time at Vernon Jubilee Hospital.

Four psychiatrists blamed overwhelming workloads and a lack of support as they depart the hospital, according to a BC Conservative news release.

“Doctors, nurses, and patients have lost faith that the system will listen, fix problems, or protect them when they speak up. If we don’t see a serious change in direction soon, we will be forced to assume nothing has changed under new leadership,” Kelowna-Mission MLA Gavin Dew said in the release.

It follows similar resignations pending at Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops where seven obstetrician-gynecologists collectively gave up their hospital privileges after months of negotiations with the province and Interior Health, also citing unsustainable workloads.

But, the Vernon departures from both acute and on-call psychiatric care were due to “separate and unrelated personal reasons,” according to Interior Health.

In a written statement, an Interior Health spokesperson said the four psychiatrists will continue their community practices, which the health authority said it anticipates will “positively impact access and continuity of care.” At the Vernon hospital, six more psychiatrists are working under contract, with locum doctors assisting.

Meanwhile, the health authority is working on transition plans with the outgoing psychiatrists, while it works with Provincial Health Services Authority to recruit new doctors and “stabilize acute services in the region.”

Interior Health CEO Sylvia Weir told iNFOnews.ca last week the Kamloops exodus triggered an immediate recruitment effort to replace them, while the current specialists are phased out over time if they don’t come to an agreement.

It also comes months after Weir replaced former CEO Susan Brown who, after already announcing a planned retirement, came under increasing pressure to resign amid a pediatric ward closure at Kelowna General Hospital.

“First pediatricians in Kelowna, then OB-GYNs in Kamloops, and now psychiatrists in Vernon. Families are losing access to care, frontline workers are burning out, and the Minister of Health is still pretending it’s all under control,” Kelowna-Centre MLA Kristina Loewen said in the news release.

BC Conservatives called for “immediate intervention to stabilize Interior Health,” demanding emergency recruitment, mental health support for health care employees and an “independent review” of the health authority’s management and oversight.

“I gave (Weir) the benefit of the doubt, but frankly, this has not been a strong start for the new Interior Health CEO. The people who hold our healthcare system together are walking away because they feel abandoned,” Dew said. “This isn’t just about wages or recruitment. It’s about culture and confidence.”

iNFOnews.ca has reached out to Interior Health for a response to the Jubilee Hospital resignations.