Largest maternity clinic in Kamloops accepting new patients again as staffing challenges ease

It looked like the largest maternity clinic in Kamloops, B.C., would close for good this summer but an influx of temporary hires meansit's once again preparing to acceptnew patients.

Dr. Shaun Davis, co-principal of the Thompson Region Family Obstetrics clinic (TRFO), is now confidentthe facility will be able to accommodate patients with due dates until December.

A sufficient number of medical professionals have appliedto work at the clinic on a temporary basis over the past few months, which Davis says has contributed to his optimism.

"We've got a group of locums, [and] there have been some that have expressed an interest in potentially moving here down the road," Davis said on Thursday.

TRFO, located within Royal Inland Hospital, is the primary provider of birthing services in Kamloops. Its team consists of five doctors and two midwives, who deliveraround 50-60 babies each month at the hospital.

The clinic hadannouncedits impending closure in February due to staffing challenges, meaningthey were unable to accept patients with due dates beyond July 31 unless new staff members could be recruited.

Davis acknowledged that the news TRFO will remain open at least until the end of the yearwould be a relief for many.

"I know some young people who are thinking,'I might get pregnant this year,' and they're actually putting off their family plans because they don't know what to anticipate. They don't know if they can trust getting proper maternity care," he said.

Meanwhile, Interior Health announced the opening of the Midwifery Antenatal Care Clinic within Royal Inland Hospital on Tuesday. Theclinic accepts patients with or without referrals from family doctors.

Lisa Zetes-Zanatta, the health authority's executive director for clinic operations in Kamloops community, says the new clinic would serve as a complementary service with TRFO.

"Our goal is to create a comprehensive model of care where we have multidisciplinary team members coming together to provide the highest level of care before, during and after pregnancy,"Zetes-Zanatta toldCBC's Daybreak Kamloops.