Kelowna General Hospital pediatric unit partially reopening after weeks

Some pediatric services are coming back to Kelowna General Hospital, weeks after the unit closed.

The 10-bed pediatric unit at KGH has been closed since May 26 and some services will be open again on July 13, according to a press release from Interior Health.

The partial reopening will include elective pediatric surgeries, diagnostics that require kids to be sedated and admitting kids to the pediatric unit during the day.

“We are deeply grateful to the care teams who helped maintain pediatric care during this period of reduced pediatric services at KGH,” IH vice president Mark Masterson said in the release. “Resuming services at Kelowna General Hospital continues to be everyone’s goal and our ability to start that process is indicative of the dedication, coordination, and teamwork happening at the site to support young patients.”

There have been 22 pediatric patient transfers to other sites within the Interior Health region during the unit’s closure. Another seven patients were transferred to the BC Children’s Hospital but Interior Health said that was not because of the unit closure.

Emergency services for children are still available at KGH. The partial service restoration will reduce the amount of transfers for kids admitted to the hospital, but some transfers might still be necessary. IH said BC Emergency Health Services will help transport patients to different hospitals.

The pediatric unit closure has been controversial. Interior Health has a new interim CEO, but the health authority said the leadership change isn’t because of public criticism.

IH has hired several new doctors for KGH and plans to continue hiring until the hospital is fully staffed.

IH did not say when the pediatric unit will be completely reopened.