By Don Urquhart, Times Chronicle

BC Premier David Eby on Wednesday (May 29) announced the pending expansion of the South Okanagan and Similkameen Primary Care Network as a concrete investment in healthcare for the South Okanagan but gave no timeframe. 

“People in the BC Interior deserve high-quality health care, close to home,” said Eby speaking at the South Okanagan General Hospital (SOGH) along with BC Health Minister Adrian Dix and Roly Russell, MLA for Boundary-Similkameen and Parliamentary Secretary for Rural Development. The NDP Caucus was in Osoyoos and Oliver for meetings this week.

“Primary care networks mean that additional health care workers are on deck just for you and your family with the care that you need,” he said. “People who live in rural communities deserve high-quality health care close to where they live,” Eby added.

An expanded south Okanagan primary care network means new family doctors, nurses, allied health professionals and more, delivering the care people deserve.”

The announcement of the expansion in terms of more FTEs was short on details as to when they will be in place but Eby said they have already been “approved and funded.” 

Currently more than 36 full-time equivalent (FTE) health-care providers, including family physicians, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, traditional healers and allied health professionals, including social workers and mental-health clinicians are working in the South Okanagan, he added.

“We are putting people first by making significant investments into BC’s health-care workforce and system,” said Dix.

“With the hiring of dozens of health-care providers working directly in the South Okanagan, we are improving access to team-based care for more people, as well as connecting more people to a primary care provider,” he added. 

Russell highlighted what he said was the “enormous value” of team-based care for both patients and practitioners.

“With the challenges we’ve seen across the country for people accessing primary care, government support for our primary care network is more important than ever.”

He added that the expansion of the PCN means progress is being made to improve access to health-care services, “now and in the future”.

Problems with access to basic health care continue to persist in the South Okanagan despite various efforts. 

This is not only in terms of the number of people with no access to a family doctor, but with persistent, ongoing closures of SOGH’s emergency department due to a shortage of doctors available to staff the department, many of which come down from Penticton.

“Approval of the Rural Growth Plan and expansion of the primary care network for the south Okanagan-Similkameen is exciting news,” said Martin Johansen, Mayor of Oliver and Chair of the Okanagan-Similkameen Regional Hospital District (OSRHD) Board of Directors for 2024. “More people getting access to health care closer to home is a priority and a much-appreciated investment in our rural communities.”

As of May 2024, 22,558 people have been attached to a primary care provider through the South Okanagan Similkameen PCN overall, according to the health ministry. 

It did not however, provide the number still without primary care. Those in need of a primary care provider can register to be attached through the Health Connect Registry.

Through the South Okanagan Similkameen PCN’s rural growth plan, team-based primary care was extended to Oliver, Osoyoos, Princeton and Keremeos, as well as the Upper Similkameen Indian Band, Lower Similkameen Indian Band and Osoyoos Indian Band.

The province said the South Okanagan Similkameen PCN rural growth plan adds resources to strengthen services identified as high priority and meeting the specific health-care needs of people living in the south Okanagan-Similkameen region. These include:

  • improved access to care for those with mild to moderate mental-health conditions within the primary care setting;
  • better co-ordination of services for families and seniors who are frail, and people with complex health issues;
  • more comprehensive and co-ordinated health care; and
  • culturally safe care for Indigenous Peoples.

The PCN is a partnership between the Ministry of Health, Interior Health, South Okanagan Similkameen Division of Family Practice, Indigenous partners, patients and other local community partners.

The Ministry of Health added approximately $2.2 million to support the rural growth plan, for a total of $6.8 million in annual funding at full implementation for the operation of the South Okanagan Similkameen PCN. 

In addition, one-time funding of $3.4 million is also being provided, which includes change management and capital funding.

When the South Okanagan Similkameen PCN launched in May 2019, it was based in Summerland, Penticton, Penticton Indian Band and Okanagan Falls with a plan to bring more communities into the network over time.

The South Okanagan Similkameen PCN is part of the province’s plan to support health-care providers and increase patient access to primary care. There are currently 79 primary care networks, and work is underway to establish them in more communities throughout the province over the next two years.

PCNs can include family doctors, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, pharmacists, physiotherapists, social workers, midwives, mental-health professionals, First Nations and community providers and others, depending on the needs of the people who live there. 

These teams will include existing family doctor offices, nurse practitioners, services offered at health-authority facilities, community-health service organizations and more. 

The health ministry explained that under the PCN members of the team consult with one another to support a patient with their health concerns. 

For example, when someone with diabetes talks to a family physician or nurse practitioner who is with the PCN about their health, they can be referred to a dietitian who can support them in learning how to manage their health. 

That dietitian may also consult with a social worker for counselling if a patient is struggling with their diagnosis. A senior with arthritis can get care from a primary care provider who may then refer them to a physiotherapist. Patients will not have to travel far from home for care.

The connection between providers is facilitated by the PCN and the result is said to provide “holistic, appropriate and timely support,” without the patient needing to wait and travel a long distance to receive the specialized support of various disciplines.