Supporting emergency solutions in rural hospitals

Dr Jacques Brussow
ER Physician, Dawson Creek, BC

Ensuring emergency services are available 24/7 in community hospitals around British Columbia can be a challenge. It’s one that’s especially difficult for smaller communities with just a few local physicians to share the load.

To address the issue, in 2010 the BCMA and Ministery of Health launched the Rural Emergency Enhancement Fund (REEF). The fund offers financial support to rural physicians who commit to helping ensure local emergency services are always available.

Dawson Creek family physician Dr Jacques Brussow says the incentives provided through REEF are much appreciated by the nine physicians who share emergency duties at Dawson Creek and District Hospital. To provide 24/7 emergency coverage for the hospital, each physician works one 12-hour shift a week in emergency, alternating weekly between days and nights. They also each work two week-end shifts every three weeks.

Although the physicians in Dawson Creek are doing fairly well at sharing emergency duties, Brussow says some communities have more doctors closer to retirement, who don’t want to do night shifts anymore. “That puts a lot of pressure on the younger guys to do extra nights,” says Brussow. But with the added incentive from REEF to compensate for the extra shifts, “things seems to work out quite well.”

However, in the smaller, more remote northern community of Fort Nelson, the issue of maintaining 24/7 emergency coverage is even more challenging.

“Fort Nelson only has three physicians, so if one goes on holiday, the other two are on call 24 hours, every second day for emergency. That routine gets to you,” says Dr Brussow. Encouraged by the incentives provided through REEF, Dr Brussow’s colleagues in Fort St. John, 380 kilometres south of Fort Nelson, are stepping up and often provide weekend emergency relief for Fort Nelson’s over-taxed physicians.

“REEF is making a difference in communities like Dawson Creek, but even more so in small places like Fort Nelson,” says Dr Brussow. “Quality of life is improved for physicians, and emergency services are improved
for the communities.”

For more information on the Rural Emergency Enhancement Fund, please click here to visit the Rural Coordination Centre of BC's website.