by Dr. Chris Morwood Physicians who staff the Emergency Room (ER) at Powell River General Hospital (PRGH) are concerned about the proposed schedule changes to the Comox-Westview and Texada-Westview ferry routes. It is our belief that these changes, if instituted, would adversely affect the health of the residents who live here.
There are three primary ways in which service reduction would threaten both the immediate and long-term health and well-being of our patients: diminished opportunities for youth, economic depression and reduced access to emergency medical services. The first two issues have been well described by others in our community so this letter will detail the third issue.
Several background points are needed to understand some of the direct medical impacts of trip cancellations. Firstly, as there is no hospital on Texada Island, its 1,000 residents rely on regular ferry service to access an ER. At present, ferry crews are called out for a special sailing if someone requires medical care in the middle of the night. Thankfully, since the eight-hour window of time without service corresponds to when most people are sleeping, this is an uncommon occurrence.
Currently, Texada residents can receive emergency treatment and return home the same day, provided they leave the ER department by 10:45 pm (in time to catch the 11 pm ferry). If the proposed service reductions take effect, however, there would be approximately 12 hours of no service most days and 15 hours on Saturdays. As a result, residents trying to get home after emergency visits in the evening would be unable to do so. Similarly, residents travelling back from medical appointments out of town would have greater difficulty making it home the same day.
The most concerning consequence of this proposal is that Texada residents would have ferry access to our hospital less than 50 per cent of the time. Unfortunately, emergencies don’t always occur during office hours, and they can’t always wait 12 or 15 hours for treatment.
The medical implications of the Comox-Westview sailing reductions (Saturday evening and Sunday morning) also require some background. While our hospital serves over 20,000 residents, as a rural site we cannot offer all specialty services. Consequently, we must sometimes transfer patients out of the community for higher-level care. Emergent, life-threatening issues are transferred by helicopter (weather permitting). Urgent but not immediately life-threatening problems, such as orthopaedic trauma, ocular emergencies and urologic concerns are transferred by ferry to Vancouver Island as soon as possible. Under the new proposed schedule, such transfers could be significantly delayed.
If you broke your hip Saturday afternoon, by the time you were X-rayed and diagnosed, you would probably miss the last ferry to Comox at 5:15 pm. The earliest you would arrive at the Comox or Campbell River hospital would be Sunday afternoon. By that time you may have waited nearly 24 hours just to be seen by the receiving specialist, let alone have the surgery you require.
The simple fact remains that our ferries constitute our highways—they connect us socially, economically and medically to the rest of the province. The people of Powell River region, including Texada, rely on BC Ferries for access to urgent and emergent medical care. We ask that this be recognized and considered before any permanent changes are made to the ferry schedules.
Dr. Chris Morwood is an engaged community general practitioner in Powell River. This Viewpoint, written on behalf of the ER physicians, was sent to BC Ferries as part of the BC Coastal Ferries Community Engagement process.
