Effective Aug. 15, children in the Okanagan will now have access to all pediatric services at Kelowna General Hospital (KGH), including the pediatric inpatient unit.
Interior Health is welcoming three new pediatricians who are joining the KGH team between now and the beginning of September, with an additional pediatrician expected to join in November. IH also welcomed a new associate physician to KGH in early July who is supporting work in the pediatric unit, and a second associate physician will join the team in September.
“These new physicians, combined with our existing medical staff, mean the inpatient unit has capacity to serve all pediatric patients in our area who need care,” said Dr. Mark Masterson, Interior Health’s vice-president, medicine. “I want to thank our team at the hospital and staff and physicians throughout the Interior region who came together to support pediatric care during this time.”
Some pediatric inpatient services were previously reintroduced to KGH on July 13, including elective pediatric surgeries, diagnostic procedures that require a child be sedated, and admitting patients to the pediatric unit during daytime hours. Tomorrow’s return to full operations means physicians and staff will be available, providing day and night-time coverage, pending any unforeseen circumstances.
The pediatric unit staffing schedule is underway for the remainder of 2025 while recruitment is ongoing to further build the pediatric care team and provide the best care possible for all admitted children who require assessment by a pediatrician.
To preserve critical pediatric services, Interior Health implemented a general pediatric service disruption to the 10-bed inpatient unit at KGH on May 26. During this period, 22 pediatric patients required transfer to other sites due to the service disruption.
Interior Health leadership continues to focus on rebuilding relationships with community pediatricians and medical staff through direct engagement, in partnership with Doctors of BC.
